St. Thomas University says goodbye to its men's hockey program after eight decades

It’s an athletic director’s worst nightmare. The funds aren’t there, the results aren’t there, and there’s no choice but to agree with the school’s administration and cut the cord on a varsity athletic program.

That’s the position St. Thomas University’s Mike Eagles found himself in this week. The decision went public on Monday morning that the St. Thomas Tommies men’s hockey team, which had been competing in university athletics since 1938, would be no more.

Although initially a shock to many in Atlantic University Sport, the dismissal shouldn’t come as a surprise when you look at the recent struggles of the Tommies’ men’s hockey program. Having not qualified for the AUS playoffs since 2008, having just four wins in the past two years, and having not had a season over .500 since 2005-06, the $245,000 budgeted annually for the program was simply too much to spend.

“The costs of operating the men’s hockey program are unsustainable in light of our other financial priorities, especially in academic and student areas—it is simply beyond our means,” said Dawn Russell, the university’s president and vice-chancellor. “We have an operating budget deficit and are closely examining costs across our operations.” 

In conversation with a few athletic directors this week, the budget expenses for CIS hockey and football far exceed those of any other varsity sports, and with no varsity football at STU, hockey was the sport causing them the most financial hardship. Although the absence of men’s hockey frees up substantial dollars for St. Thomas, The Daily Gleaner’s Tara Chislett reported that the men’s hockey team may be just the first casualty of STU’s budget battle.

The Saint Mary’s Huskies women’s hockey team found themselves in a familiar spot at the end of the 2011 season when that university announced it was shutting down the program. As disgruntled players and coaches came to terms with the abrupt decision after a disappointing bronze medal loss at nationals, Canadian Tire stepped in and contributed $60,000 to keep the SMU program alive. In turn, the school reinstated the women’s hockey program and the Huskies have been successful ever since.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear STU’s story will have a happy ending. The Tommies’ struggles in recent years in both the standings and at the box office make St. Thomas a very difficult place to find good reason to invest money into as the current New Brunswick economy stands. And with the UNB Varsity Reds just a stone’s throw from the campus in Fredericton, it essentially kills any chances of a men’s hockey revival for St. Thomas any time soon.

As far as the AUS conference in CIS hockey is concerned, the departure of the Tommies has significant implications. A new plan was unveiled earlier in the year to split the AUS into two divisions of four teams each, with the top three teams in each division advancing to the playoffs.

Now, with the league being diminished to just seven teams, the AUS will have to make adjustments to the conference structure. Part of the new divisional format included an increase in games from 27 games to 30 games, which would now see UNB, UPEI, and Moncton square off against each other nine times in a year without St. Thomas. That will have to change, and the favoured opinion at the moment is that the AUS returns to the seven-team, single-division format with six teams advancing to the playoffs.

The AUS is scheduled to have their annual meeting in May this year, and fallout from the St. Thomas decision will be number one on the priority list. For St. Thomas, the campus will not be without hockey, as the women’s program is still alive. Athletic directors around the country are tossing around the idea of a possible merger between STU’s varsity women’s program, and UNB’s women’s program, slated to be reinstated in 2017 after a nine-year hiatus.