BOWLING GREEN — For nearly all of the viewing public, the 2018 Stanley Cup Final was notable for its newness. The Vegas Golden Knights were playing for a championship in their expansion season, and the Alexander Ovechkin-era Washington Capitals finally broke through the Eastern Conference.
For the two general managers, the meeting was, shall we say, not the first.
General managers Brian MacLellan of the Capitals and George McPhee of the Knights, longtime friends and former teammates at Bowling Green State University, found themselves in competition for the most coveted trophy in all of sports.
The two men spoke before one of the games, and MacLellan chuckled when asked for his memory of the night.
“It was different,” MacLellan said. “It was a good thing and an awkward thing. I started working for George [with the Capitals] in 2001, and we worked a lot of years together. Then we end up at that place together in the finals. It was a fun and a little awkward.”
Washington went on to win the series and the franchise’s first Stanley Cup, though two former Falcons crossing paths in the National Hockey League is a familiar sight.
Bowling Green’s program has created a web throughout many different levels of the NHL.
In addition to players such as Sean Walker of the Los Angeles Kings and Vegas center Ryan Carpenter, three GMs — Rob Blake of the Los Angeles Kings is the other — are former Falcons.
So is Ken Morrow, the New York Islanders’ director of scouting, and Nelson Emerson, the Kings’ director of player personnel.
BGSU graduate Dan Bylsma, now a Detroit Red Wings assistant coach, led the Pittsburgh Penguins to the 2009 Stanley Cup as a head coach and also led Team USA during the 2014 Sochi Olympics. Todd Reirden, another alumnus, is in his first year as head coach of the Capitals.
Former BGSU players Garry Galley (CBC) and Mike Johnson (TSN) went into broadcasting. The voice of hockey in the United States, NBC’s Mike Emrick, earned his nickname “Doc” while pursuing his doctorate at BGSU.
In the current NHL, it doesn’t take long to find someone with Bowling Green ties.
“You’re constantly running into guys that have been through the program, whether you know them really well or just an acquaintance,” MacLellan said. “But you’re always saying hi to these guys.”
BG’s NHL connections were on full display last Saturday with the Red Wings in Las Vegas to play the Knights.
The Falcons went into Saturday knowing they would make the NCAA tournament with a win in the WCHA championship game or a Boston College loss.
Two people inside the visitor’s dressing room at T-Mobile Arena were well aware: Bylsma and former BGSU student manager Brady Munger, now part of Detroit’s equipment staff.
“We had the Bowling Green game on in the trainer’s room,” Bylsma said. “It started at 5 o’clock Vegas time, so we were watching it and keeping tabs on the BC/Northeastern game on our phones.”
Rooting along from 270 miles away was Walker, the Kings defenseman who returned to his phone after a shootout win against Anaheim to a host of messages from his former teammates. The Falcons lost a heartbreaker at Minnesota State, but Boston College lost.
The Falcons were in after a 29-year wait.
Walker, who played under current Falcons coach Chris Bergeron, said Bowling Green’s run to the NCAA tournament has been felt by alums all throughout professional hockey.
“For them to make the tournament is just a testament to where the program is heading and all the work Berg and [assistant coaches] Ty [Eigner] and Barry [Schutte] have done,” Walker said. “It’s definitely fun to watch to see the program succeed.”
Bylsma said he credits Bowling Green for opening his eyes to the possibility of making a living in the professional game.
The Grand Haven, Mich., native originally came to BGSU to play hockey and obtain his degree in accounting. Bylsma graduated from the school with the degree, though he now jokes that it’s covered in dust.
Bylsma played from 1992 to 2004, then jumped right into coaching and has been there ever since.
“As my time unfolded at Bowling Green, you see the likes of Rob Blake and Nelson Emerson and Matt Ruchty that go on and play pro hockey, it kind of dawns on you that you might have the chance to do the same thing,” Bylsma said. “I certainly would not have had that opportunity had it not been Bowling Green that I chose.”
Bergeron, now in his ninth season at Bowling Green, said the program’s NHL ties have been a recruiting tool during the program’s rebuild.
Three current Falcons, goaltender Ryan Bednard (Florida), defenseman Adam Smith (Nashville), and forward Brandon Kruse (Vegas), already have been drafted, and the players lounge at Slater Family Ice Arena is adorned with memorabilia of Falcons in the NHL, including a portrait of Bylsma, Blake, and Emerson hoisting the Stanley Cup.
“There’s no limit to what you can become whether it be some type of administrator or a player,” Bergeron said. “I mean, look at the guys on the wall.”
Bowling Green’s return to the national stage will be an important moment for the program, a feeling that extends to the wide array of former Falcons now in the professional ranks.
“I think everybody’s proud,” MacLellan said. “It feels like it’s been a long time. I think back in the ’80s and ’90s, we took it for granted that our program was going to be there every year.
“I think Chris Bergeron has done a great job building it back up, and they’re reaping the benefits of it right now.”
First Published March 27, 2019, 5:38 p.m.
