The Potsdam Bears are a Men’s Division III ice hockey team representing the State University of New York at Potsdam, located in Potsdam, New York from the State University of New York Athletic Conference. The team is based out of Maxcy Ice Arena, which is located on the school’s campus. The men’s program was established for the 1976-77 season.
Quick Hits
- School: SUNY Potsdam
- Location: Potsdam, New York
- School Founded: 1816
- Enrollment: ~2,501
- Colors: Maroon, Gray, Black, & White
- Home Arena: Maxcy Ice Arena
- Arena Capacity: 1,200
- Rink Dimensions: 200′ x 85′
- Conference: State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC)
- Head Coach: Mike Grace
- Conference Tournament Titles: 1 (1996)
Conferences
- ECAC Division II (1976-1985)
- New York Collegiate Hockey Association (1977-1986)
- conference ran within ECAC Division II until 1985, within ECAC West until 1986
- ECAC West (1985-1992)
- State University of New York Athletic Conference (1992-present)
Arenas
- Maxcy Ice Arena (1976-2012; 2013-present)
- Cheel Arena (2012-2013)
- Maxcy Ice Arena underwent renovations during 2012-13 season
Head Coaches
- Dave McClellan (1976-1978) 14-29-0 (.326)
- John Horan (1978-1988) 108-150-6 (.420)
- Ed Seney (1988-2002) 169-187-20 (.476)
- Glenn Thomaris (2002-2007) 47-75-12 (.396)
- Aaron Saul (2007-2009) 19-25-9 (.443)
- Chris Bernard (2009-2025) 121-227-32 (.361)
- Mike Grace (2025-present) 7-16-2 (.320)
Year by Year Results
| Season | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | Finish | Conference Tournament | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
ECAC Division II | Overall Record |
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| 1976-77 | 13 | 1 | 12 | 0 | 25 | 82 | 2 | 15th West | Did not qualify | 22 | 5 | 17 | 0 | - | - |
ECAC Division II (New York Collegiate Hockey Association) | Overall Record |
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| 1977-78 | 15 (-) | 4 (-) | 11 (-) | 0 (-) | 60 (-) | 95 (-) | 8 (-) | 13th West (-) | Did not qualify | 21 | 9 | 12 | 0 | - | - |
| 1978-79 | 19 (12) | 2 (1) | 17 (11) | 0 (0) | - (37) | - (101) | 4 (2) | 16th West (7th) | Did not qualify | 24 | 4 | 20 | 0 | - | - |
| 1979-80 | 17 (-) | 2 (-) | 15 (-) | 0 (-) | 57 (-) | 99 (-) | 4 (-) | 16th West (-) | Did not qualify | 24 | 6 | 18 | 0 | 97 | 138 |
| 1980-81 | 21 (-) | 9 (-) | 12 (-) | 0 (-) | - (-) | - (-) | 18 (-) | 9th West (-) | Did not qualify | 24 | 12 | 12 | 0 | 114 | 126 |
| 1981-82 | 25 (14) | 14 (7) | 10 (6) | 1 (1) | - (-) | - (-) | 29 (15) | 6th West (4th) | ECAC: W, QF 6-5 OT Oswego) L, SF 11-3 (Plattsburgh) | 27 | 12 | 13 | 2 | 126 | 129 |
| 1982-83 | 24 (16) | 14 (10) | 9 (5) | 1 (1) | - (-) | - (-) | 29 (21) | 5th West (3rd) | ECAC: L, QF 5-2 (Plattsburgh) | 28 | 15 | 12 | 1 | 144 | 135 |
| 1983-84 | 25 (-) | 14 (-) | 10 (-) | 1 (-) | - (-) | - (-) | 29 (-) | 6th West (-) | ECAC: L, QF 9-2 (Oswego) | 29 | 15 | 13 | 1 | 148 | 121 |
| 1984-85 | 24 (18) | 12 (9) | 12 (9) | 0 (0) | 121 (-) | 109 (-) | 24 (18) | 7th West (5th) | ECAC: L, QF 5-2 (Plattsburgh) | 28 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 143 | 127 |
ECAC West (New York Collegiate Hockey Association) | Overall Record |
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| 1985-86 | 25 (18) | 10 (7) | 14 (11) | 1 (0) | - (86) | - (85) | 21 (14) | 8th (6th) | SUNYAC: L, SF 9-5 (Oswego) | 26 | 11 | 14 | 1 | 120 | 122 |
ECAC West | Overall Record |
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| 1986-87 | 26 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 115 | 130 | 22 | 9th | SUNYAC: L, SF 8-1 (Plattsburgh) | 28 | 11 | 17 | 0 | 122 | 144 |
| 1987-88 | 26 | 8 | 16 | 1 | 108 | 164 | 17 | 10th | Did not qualify | 26 | 8 | 17 | 1 | 111 | 171 |
| 1988-89 | 24 | 9 | 15 | 0 | 124 | 127 | 18 | 12th | SUNYAC: L, SF 7-5 (Geneseo) | 25 | 18 | 15 | 0 | 130 | 131 |
| 1989-90 | 25 | 7 | 15 | 3 | 93 | 104 | 17 | 13th | Did not qualify | 25 | 7 | 15 | 3 | 93 | 104 |
| 1990-91 | 24 | 4 | 20 | 0 | 8 | 14th | Did not qualify | 25 | 5 | 20 | 0 | 90 | 154 | ||
| 1991-92 | 23 | 12 | 11 | 0 | 24 | 8th | Did not qualify | 25 | 13 | 11 | 1 | 112 | 94 | ||
State University of New York Athletic Conference | Overall Record |
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| 1992-93 | 12 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 9 | 5th | Did not qualify | 24 | 8 | 14 | 2 | 109 | 106 | ||
| 1993-94 | 12 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 37 | 51 | 10 | T-3rd | L, SF 3-8, 1-7 (Fredonia) | 27 | 12 | 14 | 1 | 95 | 112 |
| 1994-95 | 14 | 9 | 5 | 0 | 65 | 59 | 18 | T-3rd | L, SF 2-6, 2-9 (Plattsburgh) | 26 | 13 | 12 | 1 | 113 | 124 |
| 1995-96 | 14 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 67 | 41 | 22 | 2nd | W, SF 4-7, 5-4, 1-0 minigame (Oswego) W, F 4-4, 3-3, 1-0 minigame (Plattsburgh) | 30 | 18 | 10 | 2 | 141 | 104 |
| 1996-97 | 14 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 62 | 43 | 18 | 3rd | L, SF 2-6, 4-7 (Plattsburgh) | 27 | 13 | 12 | 2 | 115 | 115 |
| 1997-98 | 14 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 74 | 47 | 18 | 4th | W, QF 5-5, 5-4 (Brockport) L, SF 2-5, 6-4, 1-2 minigame (Oswego) | 29 | 15 | 10 | 3 | 133 | 117 |
| 1998-99 | 14 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 39 | 55 | 12 | 5th | L, QF 2-2, 2-3 (Geneseo) | 27 | 8 | 18 | 1 | 82 | 127 |
| 1999-00 | 14 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 63 | 44 | 20 | 2nd | W, SF 2-3, 8-7, 2-0 minigame (Oswego) L, F 0-6, 2-6 (Plattsburgh) | 29 | 15 | 13 | 1 | 121 | 117 |
| 2000-01 | 14 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 48 | 43 | 19 | 3rd | W, QF 4-0, 7-5 (Cortland) W, SF 4-3, 7-2 (Oswego) L, F 3-6, 6-2, 1-5 (Plattsburgh) | 31 | 20 | 8 | 3 | 120 | 90 |
| 2001-02 | 14 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 43 | 44 | 12 | 5th | L, QF 1-2, 3-1, 0-1 minigame (Geneseo) | 27 | 12 | 15 | 0 | 80 | 78 |
| 2002-03 | 14 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 45 | 45 | 15 | T-3rd | W, QF 6-2, 7-3 (Geneseo) L, SF 3-4, 1-5 (Oswego) | 29 | 14 | 13 | 2 | 100 | 95 |
| 2003-04 | 14 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 65 | 43 | 19 | T-2nd | L, SF 3-6, 2-8 (Oswego) | 27 | 11 | 14 | 2 | 113 | 113 |
| 2004-05 | 14 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 57 | 43 | 14 | 4th | L, QF 0-6, 1-4 (Plattsburgh) | 27 | 10 | 14 | 3 | 99 | 115 |
| 2005-06 | 14 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 59 | 64 | 13 | 6th | L, QF 2-7, 3-5 (Fredonia) | 26 | 7 | 15 | 4 | 92 | 121 |
| 2006-07 | 14 | 3 | 10 | 1 | 42 | 75 | 7 | 8th | Did not qualify | 25 | 5 | 19 | 1 | 68 | 130 |
| 2007-08 | 16 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 47 | 63 | 15 | 4th | W, QF 7-2 (Cortland) L, SF 6-0 (Plattsburgh) | 27 | 10 | 13 | 4 | 73 | 105 |
| 2008-09 | 16 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 58 | 61 | 16 | T-4th | L, QF 3-1 (Brockport) | 26 | 9 | 12 | 5 | 104 | 103 |
| 2009-10 | 16 | 5 | 10 | 1 | 56 | 74 | 11 | 6th | L, QF 3-0 (Brockport) | 25 | 9 | 14 | 2 | 83 | 104 |
| 2010-11 | 16 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 49 | 80 | 8 | 8th | Did not qualify | 24 | 6 | 17 | 1 | 72 | 116 |
| 2011-12 | 16 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 51 | 63 | 12 | 6th | L, QF 4-3 (Buffalo St.) | 26 | 8 | 16 | 2 | 83 | 110 |
| 2012-13 | 16 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 45 | 68 | 12 | 5th | L, QF 9-0 (Geneseo) | 26 | 9 | 16 | 1 | 78 | 110 |
| 2013-14 | 16 | 4 | 10 | 2 | 45 | 62 | 10 | T-7th | Did not qualify | 25 | 9 | 14 | 2 | 73 | 88 |
| 2014-15 | 16 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 51 | 51 | 18 | 4th | L, QF 6-2 (Buffalo St.) | 26 | 12 | 11 | 3 | 82 | 82 |
| 2015-16 | 16 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 41 | 49 | 16 | T-5th | L, QF 4-1 (Geneseo) | 26 | 11 | 11 | 4 | 69 | 78 |
| 2016-17 | 16 | 1 | 14 | 1 | 31 | 74 | 3 | 9th | Did not qualify | 25 | 6 | 17 | 2 | 61 | 102 |
| 2017-18 | 16 | 6 | 8 | 2 | 36 | 53 | 14 | 6th | L, QF 4-3 (Buffalo St.) | 26 | 10 | 11 | 5 | 71 | 81 |
| 2018-19 | 16 | 4 | 11 | 1 | 45 | 59 | 9 | 7th | Did not qualify | 25 | 8 | 16 | 1 | 75 | 88 |
| 2019-20 | 16 | 5 | 9 | 2 | 46 | 58 | 12 | 6th | W, QF 3-1 (Buffalo St.) L, SF 7-0 (Geneseo) | 26 | 7 | 17 | 2 | 70 | 100 |
| 2020-21 | Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic |
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| 2021-22 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 31 | 66 | 13 | 7th | Did not qualify | 22 | 5 | 16 | 1 | 41 | 90 |
| 2022-23 | 16 | 3 | 13 | 0 | 41 | 75 | 7 | 9th | Did not qualify | 25 | 5 | 19 | 1 | 67 | 114 |
| 2023-24 | 16 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 32 | 61 | 10 | 6th | L, QF 3-2 (Plattsburgh) | 26 | 8 | 17 | 1 | 52 | 92 |
| 2024-25 | 14 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 31 | 36 | 13 | 5th | L, QF 5-3 (Plattsburgh) | 26 | 8 | 14 | 4 | 51 | 69 |
| 2025-26 | 18 | 4 | 12 | 2 | 46 | 75 | 11 | 9th | Did not qualify | 25 | 7 | 16 | 2 | 63 | 97 |
NCAA Tournament Appearances
| Season | First Round | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Championship | Third Place (1984-1987; 1991-2001) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | N/A | L, 6-3, 5-3 (RIT Tigers) | -- | -- | -- |
1 appearance |
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