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Former Air Force goal scorer Lamoureux takes place in Atlantic Hockey Hall of Honor

 

One of the top goal scorers in Atlantic Hockey history, the United States Air Force Academy’s Jacques Lamoureux, is this week’s inductee into the Atlantic Hockey Hall of Honor.

He joins former Falcon teammate Andrew Volkening as the second Air Force player named to the Hall of Honor.

Lamoureux ended his career as Atlantic Hockey’s No. 2 career goal-scorer with 79 tallies despite only playing three seasons with the Falcons. He holds Atlantic Hockey career records for power-play goals (41), power-play goals in AHA play (34), game-winning goals (18), goals per game (0.68) and goals per game in AHA play (0.71).

“My time at Air Force was a major turning point for me as a person,” Lamoureux said. “The maturity I gained, the character and leadership qualities the Academy instilled in me are things I will forever be grateful for from my institution. I was fortunate to gain many strong friendships that are still a big part of my life today. Playing at Air Force gave me some of my favorite memories. The championships we won and the success we had made my playing time at Air Force very memorable.

“What means the most to me are the relationships and friendships I gained from playing for Air Force. I am thankful to my coaches and staff – Frank Serratore, Mike Corbett, Andy Berg and Joe Doyle – for believing in me and giving me an opportunity succeed. I am thankful for having the best teammates who were all selfless and willing to do anything for the team to succeed. When I reflect on my Air Force playing days, I don’t think about the wins/losses, championships, awards, goals or assists, I think about my friends. I think about the fun we had and the bonds we made that are stronger now than ever. I am forever thankful to Air Force for the memories made and the opportunities provided, and will always live in gratitude for all of it.”

The Grand Forks, N.D., native joined the academy after spending his freshman year of college at Northern Michigan and made an immediate impact for the Falcons. Lamoureux won Atlantic Hockey Player of the Year honors and the AHA scoring championship with 38 points on 23 goals and 15 assists in conference play as Air Force shared the regular season title and won the Atlantic Hockey postseason to reach the NCAA tournament. The Falcons would take down Michigan in the NCAA East Regional semifinal before falling to Vermont in double-overtime in the regional final that season.

Lamoureux’s full-season scoring line of 33 goals and 20 assists for 53 points landed him in the AHA record book as he set conference records for goals scored and game-winning goals (nine). His 15 power-play goals that season ranks No. 3 in Atlantic Hockey history. In addition to the player of the year nod, scoring title and All-Atlantic Hockey honors, Lamoureux also became the second All-American in Atlantic Hockey history and was among that season’s Hobey Baker Award top-10 finalists. He would finish the season as the nation’s second-leading scorer with an average of 1.29 points per game.

Lamoureux followed his debut season with a 42-point junior campaign in 2009-10 to lead the Falcons in points and goals (22) as he again earned All-Atlantic Hockey honors as Air Force reached the semifinals of the Atlantic Hockey postseason. He led the AHA in power-play goals with 13, which is tied for the No. 5 single-season total in conference history.

He capped his academy career with a 44-point senior season in 2010-11 as Air Force again captured the AHA regular-season crown and skated off with the Jack Riley Trophy after Lamoureux netted the only goal of the game in a 1-0 victory over RIT in the AHA championship game. The tally came one night after he scored the semifinal game-winner in a 3-2 win over Holy Cross. His six-goal performance in the tournament earned him AHA Postseason Most Outstanding Player honors.

“Jacques Lamoureux is the most natural goal scorer I ever coached,” Air Force head coach Frank Serratore said. “The combination of will, great offensive instincts, and a zero-hesitation release enabled him to score goals at a pace that separated him from the pack. Jacques scored a lot of goals during his career, but most importantly, he scored a lot of very big goals. If you were to research all the big wins we had during Jacques’s championship tenure as a Falcon, you would see his name all over those tournament scoresheets.

“His goal in our 2-0, 2009 NCAA tournament victory over mighty Michigan and his goal in our 1-0, 2011 Atlantic Hockey championship game win over a terrific RIT team are the ones that stand out most in my mind. Until the hockey gods change the way games are decided, coaches aspiring to win championships pray to have a goal scorer in their lineup in the mold of Jacques Lamoureux.”

A 2022 inductee into the Air Force Athletics Hall of Fame, Lamoureux began his military service following graduation from the academy and is now a major with the 378th Expeditionary Contracting Squadron.

Photo/Air Force Athletics

(February 14, 2023)

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