March 8, 2004
Princeton Fires Quesnelle

By Nate Ewell

Princeton fired head coach Len Quesnelle on Monday, just two days after the Tigers completed their second straight last-place season in the ECAC.

Quesnelle, a four-year letterwinner at Princeton and a 12-year assistant coach with the Tigers, spent four years as the school's head coach. He compiled a 29-84-11 record as head coach, including a 5-24-2 record this season.

Athletic director Gary D. Walters dismissed Quesnelle and indicated that Princeton will hold a national search to find his successor.

“Len has been a very loyal member of the Princeton hockey program and Princeton athletic department for many years," Walters said. "It's not easy to make a decision like this, but we felt it was necessary for a change. We thank him for his service and wish him all the best in the future."

Quesnelle had succeeded highly successful coach Don Cahoon in 2000 when Cahoon left Princeton to take over the head coaching position at Massachusetts. Quesnelle guided the Tigers to back-to-back .500 seasons in the ECAC his first two years, followed by consecutive 12th-place finishes the past two seasons (3-26-2 overall in 2002-03; 5-24-2 this year).

Princeton finished this season without a win in its last 17 games (0-15-2). The Tigers' last victory came Dec. 16 at Harvard. They battled to a pair of one-goal losses, the second in overtime, this past weekend at Rensselaer in the first round of the ECAC Tournament.