HANOVER — The secret to Dick Dodds’ longevity? For one, he doesn’t fear the alarm clock.
He’s in his 39th winter answering 4:30 a.m. wakeup calls to lead the Hanover High boys hockey team’s practices. He owns a half-dozen NHIAA state championships, sent multiple players to college programs and can’t reasonably count the long-term friendships that have evolved over his tenure.
He now has something else to hang on his wall. The American Hockey Coaches Association this month notified Dodds, 62, that he would be this year’s recipient of its John Mariucci Award, given to a secondary school hockey coach “who best exemplifies the spirit, dedication and enthusiasm” attributed to the award’s namesake.
“When I was informed that I had won it, I was just numb for a while,” Dodds confessed on Thursday afternoon. “I’m just so very humbled by receiving this and what it represents and the past people who have won the award. It’s truly an honor to be considered in that category.”
Called the “godfather of U.S. hockey,” Mariucci played at the University of Minnesota and later coached the Golden Gophers; his name adorns the program’s arena in Minneapolis. He was also integral in the growth of the game, earning induction in the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in 1973 and the Hockey Hall of Fame as a builder in 1985.
A 1976 Hanover High graduate, Dodds returned to the Upper Valley shortly after completing his college playing career at St. Lawrence in 1980. Then-Marauder coach Jack Turco quickly added Dodds to his staff, yielding the head coaching job to him in 1982. Dodds has held it since.
“It was just one of those situations where you’re excited every day to get to the rink no matter what time,” Dodds said. “It’s that youthful energy. The age group is terrific; they’re always on. So much energy and spirit. It’s just rewarding being part of it.”
Dodds won his first NHIAA Division I championships in 1993 and ‘94 with teams that included Turco’s sons, Mark and Scott. The Marauders added crowns in 2003, ’05, ’06 and ’18.
He’s also not one to call attention to himself, admitting he got word of the honor about two weeks ago.
“He is humble to a fault,” Hanover ski jumping coach Tom Dodds, Dick’s brother, said on Wednesday night. “I don’t even think he told his wife about that.”
Dodds is the third Twin State recipient of the AHCA’s Mariucci Award, following Kimball Union Academy’s George Akerstrom in 1992 and Essex, Vt., High School’s Bill O’Neil five years ago.
It doesn’t sound if Dodds is tiring of the routine after four decades, more than 530 wins and nearly 900 games coached, either. He tipped a cap to his wife, Missy, for making the sacrifices possible for him to continue coaching.
“Every winter, when the calendar turns to December, it’s, ‘OK, guess I’ll see you in the middle of March,’ ” he said. “Without her support and all she does for me, I couldn’t possibly do that without it.”
The alarm clock probably deserves a little credit, too.
Greg Fennell can be reached at gfennell@vnews.com or 603-727-3226.