Craig Homola

Craig A. Homola is an American retired ice hockey center who was an All-American for Vermont.[1]

Craig Homola
Born (1958-11-29) November 29, 1958
Eveleth, Minnesota, USA
Height 5 ft 8 in (173 cm)
Weight 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb)
Position Center
Shot Left
Played for Vermont
Oklahoma City Stars
Nashville South Stars
Birmingham South Stars
Salt Lake Golden Eagles
Milwaukee Admirals
Dundee Rockets
Dundee Tigers
Playing career 1977–1989

Career

In his sophomore year in high school, Homola was one of three centers on the Eveleth-Gilbert High School team who would go on to be stars in college hockey, the others being Dave Delich and Mark Pavelich.[2] Homola graduated in 1977 and began attending the University of Vermont that fall. After a good freshman season, he took over as the leader on offense, pacing the Catamounts with 55 points as a sophomore. As a junior Homola gained wide recognition for his scoring prowess and he was invited to join the US national team a month before the 1980 Winter Olympics but he turned down the offer and watched as his former teammate Pavelich went on to win a gold medal.[3] That season Homola was named as an All-American and ECAC Player of the Year while helping the Catamounts capture the ECAC West Division.

After graduating in 1981, Homola signed on with the Minnesota North Stars minor league system and played well. Unfortunately, short players were not in high demand for NHL teams. He bounced around in the Minnesota and Chicago Blackhawks organizations for a few years before heading to Scotland in 1986. In his first season with the Dundee Rockets, Homola produced astounding numbers, scoring 167 points in just 34 games (nearly 5 points per game), contributing on more than half of the team's goals that season. Dundee folded after the year but Homola stayed in the city when the Rockets were replaced by the Dundee Tigers. Homola was again the focus of the offense but didn't continue his torrid pace for much longer. After 7 games the following year, Homola retired for the game and returned home, eventually becoming a coach at his old high school.

Homola was inducted into the Vermont Athletic Hall of Fame in 1991.

Statistics

Regular season and playoffs
    Regular Season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1974–75 Eveleth-Gilbert High School MN-HS ——————————
1975–76 Eveleth-Gilbert High School MN-HS ——————————
1976–77 Eveleth-Gilbert High School MN-HS ——————————
1977–78 Vermont ECAC Hockey 3117183514—————
1978–79 Vermont ECAC Hockey 3024315539—————
1979–80 Vermont ECAC Hockey 3428416918—————
1980–81 Vermont ECAC Hockey 3319274644—————
1980–81 Oklahoma City Stars CHL 52240—————
1981–82 Nashville South Stars CHL 761935544730002
1982–83 Birmingham South Stars CHL 80304474341339128
1983–84 Salt Lake Golden Eagles CHL 682927563750220
1984–85 Milwaukee Admirals IHL 5616324818—————
1985–86 Milwaukee Admirals IHL 122242—————
1986–87 Dundee Rockets BHL 347394167275149232
1987–88 Dundee Tigers BHL 29756113642—————
1988–89 Tayside Tigers BHL 78101812—————
NCAA totals 12888117205115—————
CHL totals 22980108188118213111410
IHL totals 6818345220—————
BHL totals 70156165321815149232

Awards and honors
Award Year
All-ECAC Hockey First Team 1979–80 [4]
AHCA East All-American 1979–80 [1]

References
  1. "1979-1980 All-American Team". The American Hockey Coaches Association. Retrieved 2017-06-21.
  2. "Mark Pavelich". Minnesota Hockey Hub. Retrieved May 21, 2021.
  3. "Craig A. Homola". Vermont Catamounts. Retrieved May 21, 2021.
  4. "ECAC All-Teams". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
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