| Craig Homola | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
(1958-11-29) November 29, 1958 (age 66) Eveleth, Minnesota, USA | ||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (173 cm) | ||
| Weight | 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb) | ||
| Position | Center | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for |
Vermont Oklahoma City Stars Nashville South Stars Birmingham South Stars Salt Lake Golden Eagles Milwaukee Admirals Dundee Rockets Dundee Tigers | ||
| Playing career | 1977–1989 | ||
Craig A. Homola is an American retired ice hockey center who was an All-American for Vermont.
Career
In his sophomore year in high school, Homola was one of three centers on the Eveleth-Gilbert High School team who would go on to be stars in college hockey, the others being Dave Delich and Mark Pavelich. Homola graduated in 1977 and began attending the University of Vermont that fall. After a good freshman season, he took over as the leader on offense, pacing the Catamounts with 55 points as a sophomore. As a junior Homola gained wide recognition for his scoring prowess and he was invited to join the US national team a month before the 1980 Winter Olympics but he turned down the offer and watched as his former teammate Pavelich went on to win a gold medal. That season Homola was named as an All-American and ECAC Player of the Year while helping the Catamounts capture the ECAC West Division.
After graduating in 1981, Homola signed on with the Minnesota North Stars minor league system and played well. Unfortunately, short players were not in high demand for NHL teams. He bounced around in the Minnesota and Chicago Blackhawks organizations for a few years before heading to Scotland in 1986. In his first season with the Dundee Rockets, Homola produced astounding numbers, scoring 167 points in just 34 games (nearly 5 points per game), contributing on more than half of the team's goals that season. Dundee folded after the year but Homola stayed in the city when the Rockets were replaced by the Dundee Tigers. Homola was again the focus of the offense but didn't continue his torrid pace for much longer. After 7 games the following year, Homola retired for the game and returned home, eventually becoming a coach at his old high school.
Homola was inducted into the Vermont Athletic Hall of Fame in 1991.
Statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular Season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1974–75 | Eveleth-Gilbert High School | MN-HS | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1975–76 | Eveleth-Gilbert High School | MN-HS | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1976–77 | Eveleth-Gilbert High School | MN-HS | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1977–78 | Vermont | ECAC Hockey | 31 | 17 | 18 | 35 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1978–79 | Vermont | ECAC Hockey | 30 | 24 | 31 | 55 | 39 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1979–80 | Vermont | ECAC Hockey | 34 | 28 | 41 | 69 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1980–81 | Vermont | ECAC Hockey | 33 | 19 | 27 | 46 | 44 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1980–81 | Oklahoma City Stars | CHL | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1981–82 | Nashville South Stars | CHL | 76 | 19 | 35 | 54 | 47 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1982–83 | Birmingham South Stars | CHL | 80 | 30 | 44 | 74 | 34 | 13 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 8 | ||
| 1983–84 | Salt Lake Golden Eagles | CHL | 68 | 29 | 27 | 56 | 37 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1984–85 | Milwaukee Admirals | IHL | 56 | 16 | 32 | 48 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1985–86 | Milwaukee Admirals | IHL | 12 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1986–87 | Dundee Rockets | BHL | 34 | 73 | 94 | 167 | 27 | 5 | 14 | 9 | 23 | 2 | ||
| 1987–88 | Dundee Tigers | BHL | 29 | 75 | 61 | 136 | 42 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1988–89 | Tayside Tigers | BHL | 7 | 8 | 10 | 18 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NCAA totals | 128 | 88 | 117 | 205 | 115 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| CHL totals | 229 | 80 | 108 | 188 | 118 | 21 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 10 | ||||
| IHL totals | 68 | 18 | 34 | 52 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| BHL totals | 70 | 156 | 165 | 321 | 81 | 5 | 14 | 9 | 23 | 2 | ||||
Awards and honors
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| All-ECAC Hockey First Team | 1979–80 | |
| AHCA East All-American | 1979–80 |
References
- ^ "1979-1980 All-American Team". The American Hockey Coaches Association. Retrieved 2017-06-21.
- "Mark Pavelich". Minnesota Hockey Hub. Retrieved May 21, 2021.
- "Craig A. Homola". Vermont Catamounts. Retrieved May 21, 2021.
- "ECAC All-Teams". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded byRalph Cox | ECAC Hockey Player of the Year 1979–80 |
Succeeded byEd Small |
- 1958 births
- Living people
- AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans
- American ice hockey centers
- Birmingham South Stars players
- Dundee Rockets players
- Ice hockey players from Minnesota
- Milwaukee Admirals (IHL) players
- Nashville South Stars players
- Oklahoma City Stars players
- People from Eveleth, Minnesota
- Salt Lake Golden Eagles (CHL) players
- Vermont Catamounts men's ice hockey players
- American expatriate ice hockey players in Scotland