Alex MacLellan

Alexander Douglas MacLellan (April 30, 1930 – March 18, 2022) was a Canadian ice hockey defenceman who won three consecutive national championships with Michigan.[1]

Alex MacLellan
Born (1930-04-30)April 30, 1930
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Died March 18, 2022(2022-03-18) (aged 91)
Position Defenceman
Played for Michigan
Playing career 1950–1953

Career

Hailing from Montreal, MacLellan was one of a slew of Canadians who played for Vic Heyliger on his powerhouse Michigan teams in the 1950s. After a year on the freshman team, MacLellan joined the varsity squad for the 1950–51 season and the team didn't miss a beat; the Wolverines finished the regular season with a record of 20–4–1 and received the top western seed. Michigan dominated the competition, winning both games by 6 goals and captured their second national championship. The following year was more of the same and the Wolverines' 20–4 mark got them the top seed once more. MacLellan scored his first postseason goal against St. Lawrence in the semifinal and the Wolverines completely shut down Colorado College in the final.[2]

In MacLellan's senior season the Wolverines took a step back, finishing with a 15–7 record but tied for the MCHL lead, giving them a sixth consecutive tournament berth.[3] While the offense had declined during the season, the defense was still a force to be reckoned with and, as the leader of the group, MacLellan was named as an AHCA First Team All-American.[4] In the tournament the offense returned in full and blew the competition out of the water; Michigan scored 21 goals in two games and won their third consecutive title. MacLellan and the three other seniors on the team are the only players in the history of the NCAA to win three consecutive Division I championships (as of 2020).

MacLellan graduated from the school of Business Administration and was inducted into the Michigan Dekers Hall of Fame in 1978. In 2018 MacLellan was ranked as the 45th best player in the history of the program.[5] MacLellan died on March 18, 2022, aged 91.[6]

Statistics

Regular season and playoffs
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1950–51 Michigan NCAA 27——27— —————
1951–52 Michigan MCHL 26———— —————
1952–53 Michigan MCHL 24———— —————
NCAA totals 77113849— —————

Awards and honors
Award Year
All-MCHL Second Team 1952–53 [7]
AHCA First Team All-American 1952–53 [4]
NCAA All-Tournament First Team 1953 [8]

References
  1. "Hall of Fame: Alex MacLellan (1978)". Dekers Club. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  2. "NCAA Division 1 Tournament". College Hockey Historical Archives. Archived from the original on 2014-02-02. Retrieved 2013-06-19.
  3. "Through the Years: Season-By-Season Results" (PDF). Michigan Wolverines. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 31, 2020. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
  4. "1952-1953 All-American Team". The American Hockey Coaches Association. Retrieved 2017-06-21.
  5. "Michigan hockey's best 50 players of all time". Michigan Live. February 20, 2018. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  6. "Alexander MACLELLAN Obituary". Vancouver Sun and Province. April 2, 2022. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  7. "WCHA All-Teams". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
  8. "NCAA Frozen Four Records" (PDF). NCAA.org. Retrieved 2013-06-19.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.