By Arielle Aronson/DFP staff

Northeastern University named alumnus Jim Madigan as its 10th head coach in program history Tuesday. Sebastien Laplante, an assistant coach under former head coach Greg Cronin and the interim head coach after Cronin's departure in June, will remain with the Huskies as an assistant coach under Madigan.

Madigan has never been a head coach and last coached 18 years ago as an assistant coach at Northeastern. He played for the Huskies from 1981-85 and won two Beanpots in his tenure as a player then took his first assistant coaching job with the University of Vermont for the 1985-86 season. Madigan returned to Northeastern in 1986 and was with the Huskies when they won their most recent Beanpot in 1988. Madigan left Northeastern in 1993 and became an NHL scout who worked with the New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins.

After his tenure as a coach ended, Madigan worked inside the Northeastern athletic department as the director of athletic development from 1999-2004. Madigan was also the associate dean and director of development for the College of Business Administration from 2004-11.

"Jim played a prominent role in one of our program's most illustrious decades," Northeastern athletic director Peter Roby said in a press release. "More importantly, though, Jim has shown a great ability to identify talent and is committed to developing players on the ice, in the classroom and in the community. His energy and enthusiasm, along with his commitment to Northeastern values, made him the obvious choice."

Madigan will have to revive a program that lost its top four scorers (Wade MacLeod, Tyler McNeely, Steve Silva and Brodie Reid) as well as promising rookie defenseman and last season's plus/minus leader Jamie Oleksiak, who left the Huskies for the Ontario Hockey League.

In the press release, Madigan said he is looking forward to the task ahead of him.

"The expectations I have for our program are high," Madigan said. "We will continue to build on the momentum established by Greg Cronin and his staff, and we will compete at the highest level, both in Hockey East and nationally."

With the addition of Madigan at Northeastern, Hockey East will feature three new head coaches this season as Nate Leaman takes over for Tim Army at Providence College and Norm Bazin replaces Blaise MacDonald at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell.

By Arielle Aronson/DFP Staff

When former Boston University defenseman Colby Cohen decided to forego his senior season to pursue an NHL career, he dreamed of winning a Stanley Cup. He never expected to win it one year later back in Boston.

“Obviously I had hopes to win the Stanley Cup and be able to raise the Cup,” Cohen said. “It’s just I thought I’d do it with Colorado.”

And why not? Cohen left BU to join the Avalanche organization, which drafted Cohen in the second round (45th overall) in the 2007 NHL Draft. Cohen played in three NHL games during the 2010-11 season with Colorado before he was traded to the Bruins on Nov. 29 for defenseman Matt Hunwick.

Cohen was immediately assigned to the Providence Bruins, where he played in 46 games and earned 12 points (one goal, 11 assists) and a plus-5 rating while impressing the Boston brass enough to earn himself a call-up for Boston’s playoff run.

Cohen’s experience in the postseason was atypical for what people would expect from a Stanley Cup champion. As a member of a playoff practice squad called the Black Aces, Cohen did not play in any games for the Bruins and dressed only to take the ice with the team for the Stanley Cup presentation ceremony. His name will not be inscribed on the Cup, but despite his minimal role with the team, Cohen said the Bruins veterans made him feel every bit included in the celebration.

“The team just won the Cup and I got to be a part of it and stand on the ice,” Cohen said. “I’m standing there [after Game 7] and Shawn Thornton hands me the cup and [Thornton] says ‘Put that thing over your head, you’re just as much a part of this team.’ It was obviously quite the experience.”