UWSP's new men's hockey coach is a familiar face to team, fans

STEVENS POINT - Never in his wildest dreams did Tyler Krueger think he would end up coaching University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point hockey.

Not when he played Mite and PeeWee hockey as part of Portage County Youth on Ice.

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Not when the former defenseman played at Stevens Point Area Senior High.

Not even when he arrived at UWSP to continue his hockey career after playing juniors.

But here he is.

The Stevens Point native was introduced as the interim UWSP men's hockey coach on July 20.

"I wanted to get into the health and fitness field," Krueger said. "(Coaching) wasn't the dream or vision or path I expected. ... I feel very blessed."

A defenseman during his four-year Pointers playing career, he has an affinity for UWSP hockey few can match.

Krueger, 27, played under former coach Chris Brooks, who stepped down in late June to accept an assistant coaching position at Division I Michigan Tech.

Upon graduation in 2014 with a bachelor of science degree in health promotion/fitness, Krueger joined the Pointers coaching staff as a volunteer assistant.

He was elevated to assistant coach prior to the 2015-16 season and became the associate head coach last season.

Now the program is in his hands.

"I would say my junior and senior seasons as a player, (coaching) came on the radar," Krueger said. "I experienced as a player how much a coach can impact your life. How much a coach can have an influence on somebody."

Brooks groomed his protege over the past three seasons they shared on the bench.

Whether he realizes it or not, Brooks is the reason Krueger changed his mind about a career in coaching.

"I owe a ton of gratitude to (coach Brooks). He's helped me out more the last six years, three years as a player and then three as a coach, more than he knows," the 2007 SPASH graduate said. "He's the reason I wanted to get into coaching when I stopped playing."

Together Brooks and Krueger resurrected one of the most storied Division III men's hockey programs in the country.

UWSP won four national championships over a five-year span ending in 1993. Following a national runner-up finish in 1998, the program fell on some hard times.

Fifteen years would pass before Brooks, who was in his third season at the helm, would return the Pointers to the NCAA tournament again. Krueger was a senior captain on that 2013-14 team that reached the Frozen Four.

UWSP was officially back among the elite of Division III hockey. Three consecutive trips to the Frozen Four served as proof, culminating in the school's fifth national championship in 2016.

Now the son of Jeff and Sheri Krueger is now charged with maintaining that success. He says his goal is to turn the interim job into a permanent one, but he insists he feels no pressure.

"Pressure is something that only happens when you're not prepared," he said.

Scott A. Williams can be reached at 715-345-2282, or by email at ssswilliam@stevenspoint.gannett.com. Find him on Twitter as @SPJScottWill