Bob Peters
Encyclopedia
R. H. "Bob" Peters is a former men's ice hockey
coach. He was the head coach of the Bemidji State University
ice hockey
team from 1967 to 2001. With 744 wins, he ranks fifth all-time in career wins by a men's college ice hockey coach.
. During his initial campaign, Peters, the eventual Western Collegiate Hockey Association
Coach of the Year, led the Fighting Sioux
to a WCHA title and a third-place finish at the NCAA Championships. He coached in Grand Forks for two seasons, leading the Sioux to a 42-20-1 mark before making a career decision that would change the face of collegiate hockey.
Peters left the Division I powerhouse in 1966 and took over at Bemidji State University
. Within two seasons Peters led BSU to its first national championship and set the foundation for what would become one of the most dominant programs in college hockey.
Thirty-five years later, Peters retired from coaching with one of the most impressive lists of achievements in the history of collegiate sports: 744 victories as a head coach, 702 coming at Bemidji State alone, to make Peters the first coach to win 700 or more games at a single school; 13 small-college national championships; and still-standing national collegiate records for most wins in an unbeaten season (31-0-0 in 1983-’84) and longest unbeaten streak (43 games from Nov. 8, 1983 to Jan. 1, 1985). Today, only one coach in the sport — Michigan State’s Ron Mason
— has won more games at the collegiate level.
Peters, the only coach to lead a team to a national championship game in three divisions of college hockey and the only coach to reach the Final Four in all four divisions (Division I, III, III and NAIA), developed five NHL players and numerous Olympians and All-Americans.
A 1960 graduate of the University of North Dakota, Peters spent his collegiate days at goaltender for the Fighting Sioux. He coached at the high school level for one season before rejoining the UND staff as an assistant coach.
In addition to appointing Peters CHA Commissioner, the athletic directors of the league’s member institutions approved the recommendation by the coaches to name the regular-season championship trophy in honor of Peters as the R.H. “Bob” Peters Cup.
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
coach. He was the head coach of the Bemidji State University
Bemidji State University
Bemidji State University is a public state university in Bemidji, Minnesota, USA, located on the shores of Lake Bemidji. It is a part of Minnesota State Colleges and Universities .-History:BSU was founded in 1919 as Bemidji State Normal School...
ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team from 1967 to 2001. With 744 wins, he ranks fifth all-time in career wins by a men's college ice hockey coach.
Coaching history
Peters entered the college hockey head coaching ranks in 1964 as bench boss at the University of North DakotaUniversity of North Dakota
The University of North Dakota is a public university in Grand Forks, North Dakota, USA. Established by the Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishment of the state of North Dakota, UND is the oldest and largest university in the state and enrolls over 14,000 students. ...
. During his initial campaign, Peters, the eventual Western Collegiate Hockey Association
Western Collegiate Hockey Association
The Western Collegiate Hockey Association is a college athletic conference which operates over a wide area of the Midwestern and Western United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as an ice hockey-only conference....
Coach of the Year, led the Fighting Sioux
North Dakota Fighting Sioux
The North Dakota Fighting Sioux are the athletic teams of the University of North Dakota , which is located in the city of Grand Forks, North Dakota, in the United States. The logo is a Native American figure. The logo was designed by Bennett Brien, a local artist and UND graduate of Ojibwa...
to a WCHA title and a third-place finish at the NCAA Championships. He coached in Grand Forks for two seasons, leading the Sioux to a 42-20-1 mark before making a career decision that would change the face of collegiate hockey.
Peters left the Division I powerhouse in 1966 and took over at Bemidji State University
Bemidji State University
Bemidji State University is a public state university in Bemidji, Minnesota, USA, located on the shores of Lake Bemidji. It is a part of Minnesota State Colleges and Universities .-History:BSU was founded in 1919 as Bemidji State Normal School...
. Within two seasons Peters led BSU to its first national championship and set the foundation for what would become one of the most dominant programs in college hockey.
Thirty-five years later, Peters retired from coaching with one of the most impressive lists of achievements in the history of collegiate sports: 744 victories as a head coach, 702 coming at Bemidji State alone, to make Peters the first coach to win 700 or more games at a single school; 13 small-college national championships; and still-standing national collegiate records for most wins in an unbeaten season (31-0-0 in 1983-’84) and longest unbeaten streak (43 games from Nov. 8, 1983 to Jan. 1, 1985). Today, only one coach in the sport — Michigan State’s Ron Mason
Ron Mason
Ron Mason is a Canadian former ice hockey player, head coach and university executive. As head coach of various universities, notably including Michigan State University , he became the winningest ice hockey coach in NCAA history with 924 career wins...
— has won more games at the collegiate level.
Peters, the only coach to lead a team to a national championship game in three divisions of college hockey and the only coach to reach the Final Four in all four divisions (Division I, III, III and NAIA), developed five NHL players and numerous Olympians and All-Americans.
A 1960 graduate of the University of North Dakota, Peters spent his collegiate days at goaltender for the Fighting Sioux. He coached at the high school level for one season before rejoining the UND staff as an assistant coach.
CHA commissioner
Although now retired from coaching, Peters remains heavily involved in the sport of college hockey. In 2001 he became the commissioner of the College Hockey America (CHA) conference.In addition to appointing Peters CHA Commissioner, the athletic directors of the league’s member institutions approved the recommendation by the coaches to name the regular-season championship trophy in honor of Peters as the R.H. “Bob” Peters Cup.