Hockey coach Moore leaves lasting imprints

MASSENA — Those who knew Stan Moore say he was always thinking hockey, whether it was behind the bench of championship teams at Massena Central High School or in the stands after his retirement.

Moore, 79, died Monday at the St. Regis Nursing Home, leaving behind a stellar record of 522 wins, 141 losses and 15 ties in 32 years with Massena's hockey program.

During those years, he led his Massena players to 18 league championships, 17 Section 10 championships, seven New York state championships and several appearances in the state final four.

Moore held the state record for career wins with 522 until Salmon River coach Bill Plante surpassed him in 2006.

"He was constantly thinking hockey," said Bryan LaVigne, who played for Moore from 1975-78.

Moore was a math teacher at the time, and Mr. LaVigne said he wasn't in his classes. But that didn't stop them from talking hockey in the hallways.

"I didn't have him for a class, but when I ran into him in between classes he'd be talking hockey. He thought hockey all the time," he said.

Known to some as "dean of New York State hockey," Moore coached at Massena for 33 years, from 1960 to 1992. He coached the junior varsity team in 1960 and became varsity coach in 1961. Prior to that, he played hockey at Clarkson University.

It didn't matter who played for Moore, he always brought out the best in his teams, according to his players.

"I would say he was such a student of the game and he stressed the skills. He was just consistently stressing the basics and he knew how to use the players that he had and I would say, he got the most out of his team," Mr. LaVigne said.

Mark Morris, a 1976 graduate at Massena who played under Moore and now coaches the Manchester Monarchs in the American Hockey League, agreed with the assessment.

"He forced us to think about the game as well, but he also made it fun," he said, suggesting that Moore set the bar high for other coaches in the area. "I don't know if anybody will ever live up to the commitment he made."

David MacLennan said he and Moore often got together to talk about hockey, and he always found it a learning experience.

"He was a great teacher, a great student of the game," MacLennan said. "He knew it inside and out. He was able to relate that knowledge of the game and his record speaks for itself. Look at how many championships and sectional titles and state championships that his teams won. He was well respected by his peers."

It may be a different era with a different breed of players, but Morris said Moore's way of coaching still holds true today.

"I think just to bring your energy to the rink every day," Morris said. "You try to figure out each guy individually. Everybody has buttons that need to be pushed. You have to find what makes the person tick and he obviously could do that. He took the time to give you a boot in the pants if you needed it and also a pat on the back if you needed it as well."