http://espn.go.com/classic/s/2001/0924/1254876.html

Monday, September 24, 2001
Walsh, 46, led Maine to two national titles
Associated Press

BANGOR, Maine -- University of Maine hockey coach Shawn Walsh, who led the
Black Bears to two national championships, died Monday, 15 months after
being diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. He was 46.

After Walsh was diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma, he had his left lung
and left kidney removed. He also underwent two exhaustive immunotherapy
treatments and a stem-cell transplant.

He was taken to the Eastern Maine Medical Center on Sept. 10 after
contracting pneumonia and died there.

Walsh, who was entering his 18th season at Maine, ranked 11th among active
coaches and 19th on the overall victory list. He led Maine teams to two
national championships and seven Frozen Four appearances.

"In the public's mind, no one was more closely associated with the
University of Maine than Shawn," said Dr. Peter S. Hoff, university
president. "It didn't matter whether you followed college hockey or not,
people knew Shawn and they knew him as an ambassador of and for UMaine."

The Black Bears were scheduled for their first on-ice practice Tuesday.

Tim Whitehead, a newly named assistant and former coach at the University of
Massachusetts-Lowell, is expected to serve as interim head coach.

The cancer began in Walsh's kidney and spread to his left lung. His
cancerous kidney was removed and he underwent two intensive treatments in
California to boost his immune system.

Further tests revealed the tumors remained, and one of his lungs and
additional tumors were removed prior to the stem cell transplant in May. It
was hoped that the donated stem cells from Kevin Walsh, the coach's younger
brother, would attack and destroy cancerous tumors.

As with any transplant, there were several different medications and
significant side effects.

Walsh had to take drugs for five months to shut down his immune system. That
may have made him more susceptible to infection and probably contributed to
his pneumonia.

Walsh coached Maine to its first NCAA Division I championship in 1993 and
its second six years later.

Walsh was suspended in 1995 for one season following an investigation into
violations of NCAA rules.

A native of White Plains, N.Y., Walsh was a 1978 graduate of Bowling Green,
where he began to concentrate on coaching. He moved on to Michigan State in
1979, where he helped lead the Spartans to the NCAA semifinals in 1983-84.

He arrived at Maine in 1984, where he coached two Hobey Baker Award
winners -- Paul Kariya and Scott Pellerin. His record at Maine was
399-214-44.

Walsh, who lived in Veazie, was survived by his wife, Lynne, and sons Tyler,
10, Travis, 8, and Sean, 2.



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