George F. Menard (1976) - Hall of Fame - Brown University Athletics

George F. Menard

Induction:
1976
Class:
1950

George F. Menard '50
Sport: Ice Hockey
Year Inducted: 1976
Other Sports Played: Baseball

George F. Menard '50, one of the hardest hitting defensemen that Brown has known, was inducted into the Collegiate Hockey Hall of Fame in 1974, the 45th man so honored in the history of U.S. hockey. He was a pioneer in the revival of hockey at Brown in 1947 and was the captain of the first Brown team to win the Pentagonal Ivy League championship in 1949-50. George Menard came to Brown from Burrillville High, where Tom Eccleston '32, also an inductee tonight, coached him in football, hockey and baseball. "George was quick and had good hockey sense," says his coach, Wes Moulton '31. "He was an attacking defenseman who loved to go tearing up ice with the puck. He'd always look for the open man, but he could score too." At the end of the 1948-49 season, Menard was rated with Butch Songin of Boston College as one of the two best defensemen in the East. He also made All-Ivy, All-New England, and honorable mention All-American. An outstanding catcher on the baseball team, Menard was a two-time captain and was signed by the New York Yankees. As hockey coach at St. Lawrence University for 15 seasons (1955-71), Menard stamped himself as one of the nation's finest coaches, ending with a 204-137-14 record. Five of his St. Lawrence teams played in the NCAA championships. He also coached baseball (1955-72) and held the rank of associate professor, having earned an M.B.A. from Syracuse in 1967-68. Retiring from St. Lawrence in 1972, George is now vice-president and treasurer of the P.K. Lindsay Co., Deerfield, N.H.