University of Vermont Athletic Hall of Fame
William M. MacKinnon 1974 - Hockey
One of UVM's smoothest-ever hockey players, Willie MacKinnon, 1984 Athletic Hall of Fame inductee, had the type of senior season that most players only dream about, and few ever attain. First-Team All-American, ECAC Division II Player of the Year, All-New England, and Vermont State Athlete of the Year were some of the lofty titles that went beside MacKinnon's name after the 1973-74 season, and for awhile it looked like he might miss the entire season.
He had separated his shoulder in the preseason Friends of UVM Hockey Game, but he rebounded to the tune of a team-high 27 goals and 25 assists for 52 points, despite missing six games after reinjuring the shoulder in a February game against Boston University. In all, he lettered three times (freshmen could not play varsity), and scored 50 goals, 69 assists, and 119 points, sixth all-time on Vermont scoring list when he graduated.
MacKinnon, who was featured on the cover of the NCAA Ice Hockey Guide in 1973, scored one of the school's bigger goals as a senior, an overtime tally in a 4-3 upset of Division I power St. Louis, a win that propelled the Catamounts into the nation's top 10 for the first time.
MacKinnon scored well in the classroom also as a Dean's List student and was a member of the Boulder Society. In 1974 he won the Wasson Athletic Prize as UVM's top senior scholar-athlete. In addition, MacKinnon was Sigma Nu's National Man of the Year as a senior.
Upon graduation, he played professionally in Italy and Sweden for two years, before returning to Vermont to begin the Vermont Hockey School in 1974, along with friends and teammates Ted Castle and Ted Child. The school has since served over 5,000 youngsters. MacKinnon also coached at BFA-St. Albans Bobwhites from 1977 to 1979, leading the Bobwhites to two state championships.
