Head Coach Joe Cucci
Joe Cucci enters his first season at the helm of the Lions in 2009-10. Coach Cucci comes to TCNJ after playing 4 years of NCAA D-I hockey at Bentley University in Waltham, MA. In March 2008 Cucci was signed to a short-term contract by the Trenton Devils of the ECHL. While on a hockey scholarship at Bentley he twice made the Atlantic Hockey All-Academic Team and finished his career at 4th on the program’s All-Time Games Played list with 128. Cucci, known for his leadership on and off the ice, was known as the Falcons’ hardest working defensemen. He notched 1 goal and 14 assists during his NCAA career. Originally from Glen Ridge, NJ, Cucci played his high school hockey at the prestigious Avon Old Farms School in Avon, CT, under legendary coach John Gardner. While at Avon, Cucci was a 2-year captain, All-Founders league selection, won the Division 1 New England Prep School Championship, was a two-time winner of the Brian Leetch Award as Avon’s Top Defenseman, and was honored as Connecticut’s Top Defenseman by Hockey Night in Boston. He played his travel hockey for the NJ Devils Youth program and one year of New Jersey high school hockey where he was on a state championship team with Hudson Catholic High School and was voted hockey “Newcomer of the Year” by the Newark Star-Ledger. Cucci was also selected for the 2002 Atlantic District Select 17 Team, where he led all defensemen in scoring at the USA Hockey Select 17 Festival. His previous coaching experience includes 3 years as an instructor and trainer at the Rob Barletta Hockey School in Massachusetts and as a volunteer coach with the Connecticut Chasers Hockey program for developmentally challenged children. “I am both extremely excited and honored to be joining the TCNJ Hockey Program as well as the TCNJ community. I look forward to the season and yet another successful year for the TCNJ Hockey Program,” says Cucci of his appointment as head coach. Cucci holds a B.S. in Business from Bentley University and currently resides in Belmar, NJ.
Associate Head Coach Thomas “Pops” Ryan
Thomas “Pops” Ryan is entering his first season with the Lions hockey program in 2009-10. He comes to TCNJ from a coaching stint at Flyers Skate Zone in Pennsauken, NJ, where he has recently coached a Pee-Wee team through a 36 game unbeaten streak and a Grundy Cup Tournament championship. Pops participated in his first organized hockey game 48 years ago and continued to play hockey until age 55, when he turned his attention solely to teaching upcoming players. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he played Junior, Senior and Unlimited Hockey in an outdoor rink that would pit him against future NHL’ers, Nick Fotiu and Joey Mullen. During the 1967-68 season, he was the only player in that league to be in the top 10 in both scoring and penalty minutes. After playing several seasons at Northampton College, Pops returned home to create a club for players in his immediate neighborhood. That team, the Brooklyn Nordiques, won 81 of 84 games over a four-year period and captured four consecutive league championships. Also during that time period, he started the Prospect Park Youth Hockey League, a developmental program for elementary school children. Pops remains a life-long student of the game and has a knack for developing systems that fit the profile of the current roster. An advocate of ‘team play’, he is eager to assist in the continued success and further development of the TCNJ Lions hockey program. Pops is also a monthly columnist for Pro Hockey News where he focuses on describing hockey’s interpersonal relationships from a coach’s perspective.
Assistant Coach/General Manager Les Schriber
Les Schriber has been involved in coaching and the administration of college ice hockey for the last 18 years. He joined the Lions staff in 2008-09 as an assistant coach and General Manager. Schriber played his college hockey at Western New England College, competed at the Junior B level for four years and had preseason stints with teams in the ECHL and the British Hockey League. Originally from Lawrenceville, NJ, Coach Schriber was instrumental in the founding of the hockey team at Rider University and coached the team for seven years. His recruiting success led to an ACHA National Tournament appearance by the Broncs in 1999. He also founded the Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Hockey Association (MACHA) in 1998 and has been involved as an Executive Board officer since that time. He currently serves as president and has been largely responsible for the growth and success of the league. He has worked with the ACHA in various capacities for the last ten years as regional ranking coordinator, ranking committee member, league representative, and in 2007-08 was called upon to be the site coordinator of the Southeast Regional Tournament. Schriber has also coached hockey at Princeton Day School and The Lawrenceville School. He holds a B.A in Public Relations and Journalism from Rider University and an M.Ed. in Physical Education and Athletic Administration from TCNJ. He is currently a faculty member at TCNJ as an instructor in Health and Exercise Science. He hopes to grow the program into a regional and national contender in the seasons ahead.
Assistant Coach Jim Meissner
Jim Meissner is in his 4th year with the Lions in 2009-10. Jim played youth and junior hockey in Buffalo, NY where he was born and raised and he attended Temple University on a rowing scholarship where he was a part of two national championship teams. Coach Meissner previously worked for the NHLs Buffalo Sabres front office as a marketing manager and coached high school hockey at his alma mater, St. Joseph’s Collegiate Institute in Buffalo. Meissner left Buffalo after the 1996 season and took on a job as a rink manager and hockey director for an ice and inline rink in Albuquerque, NM. While in this position, he coached a Pee-Wee AAA team that was the first team from New Mexico to ever win the Rocky Mountain District Championships. From 1997 to 2001, Meissner served as a head instructor for the Bobby Glantz International Power Skating Schools, where he ran over 50 camps a year around the country, working with numerous minor league and college players. Jim also worked directly with the Los Angeles Kings players on the ice during training camps working on better skating technique to increase speed, quickness, and strength. During the 2000-2001 season, Meissner was an official in the West Coast Hockey League. Meissner holds a bachelor’s degree in sports administration from Temple.