Trevor Amundrud & 95-96 team inducted to Acadia Sports Hall of Fame

Former Mustangs’ goaltender and current Melfort resident Trevor Amundrud recently received an honour as part of his former team.

The 1995-1996 Acadia Axemen hockey team was named to the Acadia Sports Hall of Fame on October 17,2009 in Wolfville, NS as part of the University’s homecoming week.

Amundrud played with the Melfort Mustangs in 1992-1993 and 1993-1994 under head coach Kevin Dickie. The team finished first in the North and lost in the SJHL in his last season.

“After my junior career was done I went down there,” he said.

He enjoyed the entire experience while attending the ceremony.

“A lot of them I hadn’t seen in about 13 years, so it was pretty good,” he said.

Twenty-one of the 26 members of the Axemen showed up for the ceremony, according to Amundrud.

“There was extenuating circumstances behind a couple not being there, and there has been one death,” he said.

The team still remains close all of these years later.

“By having almost 90 per cent of the team out there at the ceremony you could tell what kind of group they were,” he said.

The 1996 Axemen were the most recent Acadia hockey team to claim the CIS men’s hockey title.

Acadia accomplished this feat with two first-year CIS goaltenders, and Amundrud eventually earned the starting job.

“I just ended up in a fortunate situation where there was two rookie goalies,” he said.

“I didn’t go in as the starter, but after about the first month I earned my way to the starting job and got to play right through in the National Championships,” Amundrud explained.

The team overcame some turmoil early in the season to transform into champions.

“It was a group of guys that blended really well and very quickly. We had a little bit of turmoil at the start of the season with the head coach leaving and heading off to some other options,” he said.

“We were in a little bit of turmoil and going into my first year of college, but the group of guys was just fantastic. I don’t think any team that wins Nationals goes through with just any type of guys. It is a very special group that does that,” he said.

The way he came to be a member of the Axemen was also unusual.

“Everything just fell into place that year. I guess that is part of what makes it really special,” he said.

He had not been planning to attend Acadia, but the opportunity arose.

“It was a great opportunity that fortunately I was able to take advantage of,” he said.

Under head coach Mark Hanneman, Acadia finished with a record of 19-6-1 regular season record and capturing a regular season title.

Acadia claimed the championship after defeating Waterloo 3-2 in the finals.

“It was a nice opportunity and not everyone gets an opportunity to win a National Championship,” he explained.

Amundrud was able to return to the National Championship in 1998, where the Axeman lost. The whole experience on the team made the reunion special.

“To stay in touch with the majority of the team and still have that bond is an awfully special experience,”

He also added that the National Championship is a tie that binds the players together.