Dick Ernst (2013-2014 Recipient)

Dick Ernst is a veteran of 60 years in hockey. He played for Cranston High School in 1954 where he captained and won all-state honors in 1958. He then moved on to play for the Providence College team from 1958-61. In 1962 he began coaching high school where he has become a legend in Rhode Island hockey. It was the first of 52 teams he led; seven as an assistant and 45 as head coach.

Ernst holds the distinction of having won 628 games in his coaching career, second only to Mt. St. Charles? great mentor, Bill Besile. He is the only coach to win titles at four different high schools ? boy?s hockey at North Providence, Cranston East, North Smithfield, and girl?s hockey at LaSalle.

On as a side passion outside of high school, Ernst also coached youth hockey at the peewee and bantam levels. It was there that he helped his three sons and others develop skills that brought them to competitive steps needed for high school and later college hockey. He is a member of the RIIL hall of fame.

His teams won five R. I. Officials' sportsmanship awards, two Providence Journal?s Dick Reynolds sportsmanship awards, and in 1985 Ernst received the Words Unlimited Frank Lanning Award for contributions to Rhode Island sports.

Bill Belisle (2012-2013 Recipient)

Normand “Bill” Belisle is the winningest high school hockey coach in the country with more than 900 victories. His Mount St. Charles Academy teams set a national record by winning 26 consecutive championships between 1978 and 2003.

Born in Manville, he still makes his home in that Blackstone Valley village. He attended St. James Parish School and Mount St. Charles Academy where he was a member of the Class of 1948. At Mount, he played hockey and baseball and, in his junior year, the hockey team won the state championship.

In 1954, Bill began his coaching career, first with the Manville CYO junior high school baseball team, which won the diocesan, state and New England championships, the first ever for a parochial school. Later, he organized the first Little League farm team in Manville. In 1974, Bill became manager of the Brother Adelard Arena at Mount St. Charles and a year later began his illustrious career as head coach of the hockey team. In the years since he has become a legend among boys hockey teams in the United States. In March 2011, he celebrated a true milestone, when his team scored the 900th victory of his career.

Bill’s accomplishments and honors are many and varied. They include 100 consecutive wins in Interscholastic League games and exhibitions, and 94 consecutive victories in the Metropolitan “A” Division. His teams were ranked number 1 in high school hockey in the United States more then 10 times.

He has been elected to the R.I. Heritage Hall of Fame, and the Woonsocket Heritage Hall of Fame, and also has received the Cumberland-Lincoln Rotary Club Outstanding Achievement Award. He was the first Rhode Island hockey coach to receive the Mariucci Award from the American Hockey Coaches Association.

Bill and his Mount team were commemorated by Sports Illustrated magazine in January 1985, and also in a 1989 Rhode Island Monthly magazine article. The SI article by writer Robert Sullivan praised both Brother Adelard and Belisle for making hockey history at The Mount. The article characterizes Belise as “a hard-bitten rink rat” and mentions that, before coaching, he had been a truck driver and construction worker and had played for the semi-pro Worcester Warriors.

Lou Lamoriello (2011-2012 Recipient)

Lou Lamoriello?s fascination with hockey began in the Ocean State when he was a youngster. He attended the R. I. Reds games at the old R. I. Auditorium on regular basis and his mom and dad frequently entertained the players at their Lamoriello restaurant in Providence and homestead in Johnston with post-game servings of good old Italian-style food. Today, at age 68, he is one of the most respected executives in all of hockey. 

Under his leadership as president and general manager, his New JKersey Devils have captured three Stanley Cup championships, losing another in the seventh game. He was also the architect of the 1996 American team that upset Canada to win the World Cup of Hockey.

In high school, he starred in hockey at LaSalle Academy, then moved on to Providence College where he became one of the team leaders under coach Tom Eccleston, himself a legend of hockey strategy at that time. Shortly after graduating, Lou became head coach of the Providence College hockey program, mentoring such players as Ron Wilson and Brian Burke. Later, he added the duties of athletic director at PC and was the driving force in the 1984 formation of Hockey East, today one of the nation?s top collegiate conferences.

Lou caught the eye of the Devils owner Dr. James McMullen and was hired as president of the Devils in 1987. He became the team?s general manager the very next year. Since then New Jersey has made the playoffs 19 of 22 seasons and had a run of 12 consecutive post-season playoff appearances. He has served longer with any present GM with the same team and even made several spot appearances as coach of the Devils where his record was 44-24-5.

Lou received the greatest tribute to his long career of hockey excellence on November 9, 2009 when he was recognized for his contributions to hockey by being inducted into the ?builders? section of the prestigious Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.

Sara DeCosta (2010-2011 Recipient)

Sara DeCosta is a two-time goaltender for the U.S. Women?s Olympic team.

She became the first girl to play in the Rhode Island Interscholastic League Championship Division. Her outstanding play helped Toll Gate High School become the first public school in 14 years to reach the best-of-three title round. As a member of the Toll Gate boys hockey?s team, DeCosta was the squad?s MVP in 1995 and 1996. 

In 1996-97, DeCosta enrolled at Providence College. That year, she had an 18-7-2 record and a 2.66 goals against average, earning All-Eastern College Athletic Conference honorable mention her freshman year. 1996 also marked DeCosta?s first appearance for the U.S. National team. 

In 1997, Sara did not play at Providence because she competed in the 1997-98 pre-Olympic tour. She played in nine games and compiled a 6-2-0 record, leading all U.S. goaltenders with a .941 save percentage and 1.30 goals against average. During the tour, five of her six victories were shutouts. Her performance cemented her spot on the 1998 Olympic team that eventually captured the gold medal in 1998.

In 1998-99, DeCosta returned to Providence College and led the nation with a .943 save percentage, was fifth in goals against average (1.50) and had a record of 17-10-3 (seven shutouts). She was named 2000 USA Hockey Women?s Player of the Year and played exceptionally for the U.S. National team. She did not play at Providence her senior year, and instead played exclusively with the U.S. National team as they prepared for the 2002 Olympics in which she led her team to the silver medal.