2025 Alumni Honors: Dave Hakstol, ’96
Dave Hakstol, ’96, to be honored with the Sioux Award for Distinguished Achievement & Leadership.
Hometown: Warburg, Alberta, Canada
Area of Study: Business Administration
Dave Hakstol discovered his love of hockey growing up on his family's farm in the community of Warburg, Alberta, but it was playing hockey at UND — and the atmosphere of the Old Ralph Engelstad Arena — that ignited his passion and turned hockey into a lifelong calling.
Hakstol skated for UND from 1989 to 1992 and went on to play and coach professionally in the IHL and USHL. A call from then-UND head coach Dean Blais brought him back to campus in 2000 — this time, behind the bench.
In 2004, Hakstol — at just 35 years old — succeeded Blais as UND’s head coach. He led UND to the NCAA Tournament in each of his 11 seasons at the helm, including seven NCAA Frozen Four appearances and several conference titles. He earned multiple Coach of the Year honors as a premier college hockey coach.
“It was eleven years of great memories for me and my family,” Hakstol said. “It was difficult to leave UND without winning a national championship, but I was thrilled for the players, coaches, staff, and fans to see them achieve that goal one year later.”
In his time as head coach of UND Men's Hockey, Hakstol was the only coach in Division I NCAA hockey with a winning record in every season.
In 2015, Hakstol accepted the head coach job with the Philadelphia Flyers, becoming just the fourth coach to jump straight into a head NHL job from the NCAA. He later became the first head coach of the NHL’s newest expansion team, the Seattle Kraken, in 2021. In seven NHL seasons, he won over 200 games and reached the playoffs three times.
“Entering the highest level of the profession, I wanted to absorb as much information as possible from the people and resources surrounding me while confidently following my own instincts and experiences in making decisions,” Hakstol said.
I’m proud of the success we had, and my love for UND will never change.Dave Hakstol, ’96
Now, three decades into coaching, Hakstol has taken some time to focus on family while planning and preparing for his next step.
Receiving the Sioux Award for Distinguished Achievement & Leadership brings it all full circle for him, as many of his favorite memories trace back to UND. “We talked about the UND culture a lot, but more importantly, we lived it. I’m proud of the success we had, and my love for UND will never change.”
Fun Fact About Dave
Hakstol began his coaching career as the general manager and head coach of the Sioux City Musketeers from 1996-2000. He was named the USHL Coach of the Year in 1997-98 after leading the Musketeers to a 32-21-3 record.
