1983: Huskies win University Cup

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In March 1983, after near-misses in 1981 and 1982, the University of Saskatchewan men’s hockey team brought home the University Cup.  The first inter-university hockey game has been traced back to Kingston in 1885 - an event that was commemorated by the establishment of the University Cup in 1963.  The Huskies’ victory in 1983 was its first national championship.  They defeated the Concordia Stingers 6-2, in Moncton.¹

The University had a varsity hockey team as early as 1909.  Before regular inter-university competition was established, the Huskies competed in city and provincial leagues.  Most notably, they were finalists in the Allan Cup – the national championships – in 1923.²

The coach of the Huskies in 1983 was Saskatoon native and University of Saskatchewan alumnus Dave King, who was already establishing a winning record on the international scene.  The previous year he had been the head coach of Team Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championships, where Canada won gold.  This was Canada’s first international gold medal in hockey for two decades; the President’s annual report noted that “this victory returned to Canadian hockey some of the dignity that has been missing for years.”³   King continued to coach national teams until 1992, the year Team Canada won the silver medal at the Olympics.  He has subsequently been coach of the Calgary Flames, the Montreal Canadiens (as an assistant), and the Columbus Blue Jackets.

The 1982-83 hockey team was inducted into the Saskatchewan Hall of Fame in 2000.⁴

Images

1983a: Sheaf article, 17 March 1983: “Huskies capture cup.”

Sources

1. The Sheaf, 17 March 1983.
2. On Campus News, 15 March 1996.
3. President’s Report, 1982-83.
4. Faculty Biographies Collection, Dave King file.