Western Washington University Head Coach Larry MacDonald has been coaching hockey for over 32 years, starting in the late 80's with the beach to blades movement in Los Angeles California, taking the roller blade game from the beaches to the local ice rinks following the Gretzky trade to the LA Kings.
He has served numerous roles over this time both coaching at every level and as an administrator for youth hockey programs. He was the association presidents while coaching at both Glenwood Springs Youth Hockey and Mountain States Renegades youth hockey in Colorado. He also coached the Rocky Mountain Wranglers high school program in Northern Colorado.
During this time he served on the board of Colorado Armature Hockey Association as well as contributed to USA Hockey State and District Development camps in Colorado, and California and currently still involved in Washington's State Development Camp. Coach MacDonald also served as a scout and recruiter for The Bellingham Blazers Junior Hockey Team.
During the summer months coach MacDonald runs his Renegades Hockey Skills and Development program for youth players and Junior players looking for off season conditioning, having annual success with helping players move their game to the next level.
Coach MacDonald has been involved in enhancing the program over the past years and is very excited to have the University competing in the PAC 8 hockey league at the ACHA division 2 level.
"Our goal is to mirror the program to the PAC 8's goals and grow our skill base through recruitment, as we strive to move with the Pac 8 to Division 1 Club Hockey in the years ahead."
Interested in joining the Vikings? We are always looking forward to hearing from prospective players so please call or email us!
Western Washington University’s hockey club was originally started by the university students in 1980. In the years between 1980 and 1997, the team played only non-sanctioned games against local opponents. At this time, the team was primarily comprised of WWU students, Whatcom Community College students, faculty and friends. For many years, the club hockey team continued to allow Whatcom Community College to play, but today only full-time Western students are allowed to compete due to new sport club policies.
In 1997, Western’s hockey club joined the American Collegiate Hockey Association and began playing more competitive games against non-local teams and other universities. In 2012, the club left the ACHA and joined the National Collegiate Hockey Association, that same season, the team would go on to win the national championship which was held in Buffalo, New York. Western continued to play in the NCHA for two more years before returning to the ACHA in their 2014-2015 season.
Today, Western Washington University is a member of the PAC-8 (ACHA). During their season, WWU also plays out of conference games with other ACHA teams as well as regional junior hockey teams making occasional trips to Oregon, Utah, and California.
Western’s hockey team is an organization run entirely by WWU students. The club succeeds to this day in the goal of providing an opportunity for students to participate in a competitive hockey league while gaining valuable experience in leadership positions.
While experience on the team may vary, most players have played at the AAA level and usually have many years of experience playing hockey before joining. The team also has many players coming from junior hockey or other higher level leagues.