SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. – Former Lake Superior State University (LSSU) hockey player and Head Coach Rick Comley will be inducted into the 2023 Michigan Sports Hall of Fame this September.
Comley has been making an impact on college hockey ever since his freshman season at LSSU when he led his team in assists, a feat that he would accomplish two more times in his collegiate career with the Lakers. His performances on the ice resulted in him being named an NAIA All-American as a freshman, and he was ultimately named as the team's captain for his senior campaign in 1970-71. To this day, Comley still holds the sixth place mark for career assists in a Laker uniform.
However, as impressive as his accomplishments were as a player, his coaching career proved to be even greater. Comley was named the head coach of the LSSU hockey program in 1973, succeeding his own former head coach and fellow LSSU Hall of Famer, Ron Mason. In his first season manning the helm, Comley would lead the Lakers to their first ever national championship, claiming the 1974 NAIA Championship after a 4-1 win over rival Bemidji State. He would continue coaching the Lakers for two more seasons, compiling a career record of 59-45-3. Comley was inducted into the LSSU Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996.
Comley went on to complete a 37-year coaching career with stops at Northern Michigan (NMU) and Michigan State before retiring in 2011. He would win two NCAA National Championships (1991 and 2007), claim a national title as the head coach for three different programs, and he would ultimately boast a career record of 783-615-110 to become one of just five coaches to surpass the 700-win plateau. He coached nine Hobey Baker Memorial Award finalists, 14 All-Americans, four league players of the year, 25 First-Team all-league selections, and 82 academic all-league selections.
Comley joins Richard "Rip" Hamilton, Henrik Zetterberg, Ryan Miller, Sierra Romero, Lorenzo White, Lamarr Woodley, Mike "Doc" Emrick, Colleen Howe, and Down Riley in the 2023 class.
Full details can be found here.
Comley is currently serving as the athletic director at NMU.
