Salem State men’s hockey head coach Bill O’Neill has announced his retirement after a distinguished 42-year career with the Vikings.
O’Neill amassed a 626-436-76 (.583) record during his tenure, completing his career ranked second all-time in total victories in NCAA Division III. He is just one of 15 NCAA coaches all-time across all divisions to reach 600 career wins.
“I felt this was the best time for me to call it a career,” said O’Neill in a statement. “I am so appreciative to be able to coach this long. I have created so many great memories over the years with my former players and coaches. The years flew by, and I can’t believe the end is here. The great memories will always be with me. I am at peace with my decision.”
Salem State director of athletics Nicolle Wood expressed her appreciation for the way O’Neill and his teams represented the university, contributing to a legacy that transcended beyond hockey.
“Coach O’Neill was a part of Salem State before I even arrived as a student-athlete,” said Wood. “Despite building one of the most successful programs in New England over his career, he remained one of the most humble people in intercollegiate athletics that I have ever met. His teams have gone to multiple Final Fours, won regional championships, dominated New England ice hockey opponents, and put SSU on the map as a destination for top players across North America and Europe…
“[Coach] does not get enough credit for the type of culture and program he built while pursuing and achieving excellence – he recruits student- athletes, who understand the opportunity to play as a Viking and positively represent the university in the classroom and community.”
O’Neill arrived at Salem State in 1981, appointed by President Dr. James Amsler to succeed head coach Mike Gilligan, a former SSU defenseman who manned the coaching reigns from 1975 to 1981, leaving to become an assistant coach at Yale for two years before being named the head coach at Vermont.
“I had just finished my graduate assistant year at Norwich with Don ‘Toot’ Cahoon,” O’Neill said. “The Salem State position became available, and fortunately I had the support of President Amsler and John Galaris, who was the athletic director then. I was just looking to start coaching and never gave any thought to how long my career in coaching would last.”
Entrenched as the leader of the program, he won an impressive 18 MASCAC titles in his first 22 years behind the Vikings bench. Salem State won 20 games five times in a 10-year span beginning with the 1984-85 season, including compiling a school-record 24 wins in 1985.
Affiliated with the ECAC from 1985 until 2009, Salem State established itself against the top Division II and Division III teams in New England, and the program flourished under O’Neill’s direction. His teams won three ECAC East titles – 1985, 1994, and 1995, culminating in Frozen Four appearances in 1992 and 1994. O’Neill’s 1992 team finished third at the NCAA tournament.
Spanning four decades, O’Neill coached 11 All-Americans, 10 conference player of the year winners and nearly 100 All-New England, All-ECAC East and MASCAC All-Conference team members. He won 23 MASCAC championships during his career, guiding Salem State to five more MASCAC titles after the league reformed after a five-year hiatus in 2008 and three NCAA tournaments. Overall, Salem State made nine NCAA tournament and two Frozen Four appearances during O’Neill’s tenure.
The three-time coach of the year (New England Hockey Writers – 1984-85, ECAC East Co-Coach – 2008-09, MASCAC – 2015-16) left an indelible mark on Salem State hockey and the entire “North Shore” hockey community.
“It has been an honor to play for Coach O’Neill,” said current Salem State hockey player Peyton Hughes. “He has encouraged me to thrive as a hockey player, student, and a member of the Salem State community. To have coached for 40-plus years is an accomplishment. To have done so at one university is legendary. He has had a profound impact on so many players and students…His patience, serenity and approach to athletic development have guided scores of successful leaders who have [graduated] from Salem State.”
Former Salem State hockey captain Ian Canty added, “Bill O’Neill was Salem State hockey. [Coach] not only pushed [you] to get the most out of you athletically, but he also prepared you for life outside of sports. He poured his heart and soul into the program and that was evident. I have the utmost respect for the entire O’Neill family.”
His first career collegiate coaching win came on Nov. 14, 1981, a 7-2 victory over Alaska Anchorage. During the 2011-12 season, O’Neill recorded his 500th career win and posted win No. 600 in the final regular-season game of the 2018-19 season, both against Fitchburg State. In 2017, O’Neill coached in his 1,000th career game. His 1,138 games coached are the most all-time in Division III.
“There were many people who helped me throughout my career,” recalled O’Neill. “My coach at St. John’s Prep, Paul Downey, Jack Parker and ‘Toot’ Cahoon at Boston University, and my predecessor at Salem State, Mike Gilligan all stand out. There were so many great players, All-Americans and special teams. Each had their own identity, and I am proud of them all. They gave everything to the program and played to win. I am very proud of our teams qualifying for 40 out of 41 postseason tournaments and the 1992 and 1994 teams reaching the NCAA Frozen Four, respectively. The three ECAC East championship teams and more recently our four MASCAC championship teams brought continued success.”
O’Neill grew up in Lynn, Mass., before moving to Danvers, Mass. He attended St. John’s Prep before accepting an athletic scholarship to attend Boston University, where he was a member of the Terriers’ 1978 men’s hockey NCAA national championship team. He spent one season as an assistant at Bishop Fenwick in Peabody, Mass., before beginning his collegiate coaching career as a graduate assistant at Norwich.
“Hockey has been my family’s life,” O’Neill said. “My daughter Rachel worked in the hockey office at UMass-Amherst. My son Will played college hockey at Maine and went on to play professionally. My oldest son Andrew played and coached with me at Salem State. My wife Liz, who I met at Boston University, has been by my side the entire time. ‘All in everyday,’ she knows all the players; their families…
“I have so many people to thank and are ‘grateful they were part of the journey.’ The late Bill Kipouras, Salem News sports editor, The late Bill Bulloch, Salem State athletic trainer, Tom Roundy, former Salem State sports information director, Bob Moran, SSU statistician in the 1980s and ’90s, My brother John O’Neill, former Salem State hockey player and assistant coach, Tim Shea, former Salem State athletic director, Jim Stoll, former dean of students, and the entire Salem State athletic department.”
Added O’Neill, “Retrospectively, I look back and feel fortunate to have coached for over four decades. It was an honor and privilege to serve Salem State University and recruit and coach so many wonderful people. I want to thank all my former players for their commitment to each other and my assistant coaches, who lived every day trying to impart their knowledge and wisdom in pursuit of our excellence.”
A national search for Salem State’s sixth head coach will begin in the coming weeks.
