Take a great love of the sport, add a desire to teach the mechanics of the game and a dedication to his players and you’ve defined Dan Bergan.
After eight years, seven state tournament appearances and five league titles, Bergan has decided to resign as ice hockey coach at Robbinsville.
“It was a near-impossible decision,” Bergan said. “I’m so attached to the kids and I feel so disconnected a day later. It’s been quite an emotional roller coaster the last 48 hours. You go through so much together and look forward to all the time together.”
Bergan’s record was 103-52-13 during his final seven seasons for an overall record of 107-72-13 during his time behind the Ravens bench. During the last few years the Robbinsville team was a co-op with Allentown.
The 2012-13 season certainly had some high points.
The Ravens reached the Mercer County Tournament finals, defeated Roxbury in the second round of the state tournament and lost to Randolph (three-time state champ) in the third round in overtime.
One of the pitfalls all high school coaches are dealing with these days is travel teams. Ice hockey is no different, and it is taking a toll on the leagues.
The CVC will be down another team next year as Hightstown joins a co-op with Lawrence and West Windsor-Plainsboro North picks up Ewing. There are several programs in the conference that are struggling with numbers.
“The CVC is at a crossroads,” Bergan said. “On the bright side, there has been an infusion of new coaches in the CVC that bring energy to their programs.”
There have been more ups than downs at Robbinsville under Bergan, and his highlights appeared to come every day.
“There is no fondest moment per se,” Bergan said. “There is only a constant stream of daily happenings that make you grin from ear to ear. As the kids move forward and do more amazing things, I hope once in a while they’ll look back and remember the old coach that had a hand in it. I will think of them daily for the rest of my days.”
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