(Canton, N.Y.) – SUNY Canton has hired former Hobart College Assistant Coach Carl Michaelson as its new head men’s ice hockey coach. In addition to his extensive coaching experience, Michaelson also played professional hockey for five years and is a former NCAA Division III college hockey standout.

"Carl's playing and coaching experience make him an ideal choice to become our men's hockey coach," said Athletic Director Randy Sieminski. "He has worked with SUNY Canton Alumnus Mark Taylor for the past three seasons at Hobart, and Mark is one of the most well respected college hockey coaches in the nation. Carl has proven to be an exceptional recruiter and coach, and we're excited to have him lead our hockey team in their first year competing against top level NCAA D3 teams."

Michaelson brings an impressive coaching and playing résumé to SUNY Canton after a successful stint at Hobart College, one of the premier Division III hockey programs in the country. He served as an assistant coach with the Statesmen for the past three years and recruited and coached several all-Americans, all-League Players and league Rookies of the Year. Michaelson was a member of the coaching staff that won the program’s second ECAC West Championship.

In addition to coaching at Hobart, Michaelson has served as owner and operator of Westlake Hockey Development, established in Montreal, Canada. The program is currently operating in the Cree Nation of Mistissini, a native reservation located in the James Bay Region of the Province of Quebec.

As a player, Michaelson lettered for four years at Hobart earning a bachelor’s of arts degree in economics. On the ice, he served as a captain or assistant captain throughout his career and led the Statesmen to their first ever ECAC West Championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament. In addition to playing in college, Michaelson played professional hockey overseas in France and Belgium, a short stint in the Unites States with the Fort Wayne Komets in the United Hockey League.

“It is with great pride and enthusiasm that I enter SUNY Canton as its first head coach participating in the NCAA,” said Michaelson. “The pride is in the great history established through its former players and past coaches. They all have a piece of this fantastic growth we are experiencing today, and I am thankful to them. My enthusiasm is in the direction of the University as a whole. My mentor Mark Taylor has prepared me for this day, and I could not be more grateful. I look forward to leading this program into the future in DIII College hockey.”

Michaelson and the Roos open their 2012-13 season on the road at NCAA Division III Fredonia State University on October 19. The Roos will also face Division III opponents SUNY Geneseo, Wesleyan College, Trinity College, Connecticut College, and Tufts University as well as NCAA Division II opponents Assumption College, Stonehill College, St. Michael’s College, Franklin Pierce University and Southern New Hampshire.