Hall of Fame Profile: Hockey pioneer Mandy Cronin parlayed her UMaine experience into an impressive pro career
10/12/2026 12:34:00 PM | Women's Ice Hockey, Hall of Fame
Orono, Maine -- Mandy Cronin confronted numerous challenges during her hockey career. Throughout, she demonstrated a knack for facilitating growth and success.
Cronin's path took her from a fledgling team at New Hampton School, to a new varsity program at the University of Maine. Then she was a professional player in Canada and a pro hockey executive.
Cronin's multifaceted career has landed her in the UMaine Sports Hall of Fame. She was the first scholarship player to sign for coach Rick Filighera in the Black Bears' inaugural Division I season (1998-1999). She also was a goalkeeper on the soccer team that year.
Cronin, a 2002 graduate, and her fellow goalies saw a lot of rubber in those early years, but she stood tall.
"Those are hard things to deal with when you're a first-year Division I freshman, especially if you're a goalie," Filighera said. "She wasn't afraid to step forward."
Cronin demonstrated grit at UMaine, where she was a two-year captain. She amassed a program-record 66 saves in a 1999 game, a mark that stood until 2010.
The Black Bears posted a 54-68-8 overall record and qualified for the ECAC playoffs in 2002. Cronin shares the career record with nine shutouts and ranks fourth in games played (66) and saves (1,751).
"Mandy was talented and she was a good teammate. She was well-liked and respected by her teammates," Filighera said. "She helped build that culture of having that resilience you were going to need when you're starting a program from scratch."
Cronin, the youngest of Jim and Rose Cronin's five children, was born in Ohio. The family moved to York when she was 3. At New Hampton (NH) School, which had recently committed to girls hockey, she was among the catalysts.
"It was challenging, but it was cool to know that we were a part of building a new program," said Cronin, who was inducted into the New Hampton Athletic Hall of Fame in 2008.
After UMaine, Cronin was eager to explore professional opportunities in Canada. Pete Perram was the new coach of the Telus Durham Lightning of the National Women's Hockey League and he needed a goalie.
"Mandy was passionate for the game and she was coming off an amazing career at Maine and was really somebody we wanted to target as far as building a team around," Perram said.
He found in Cronin someone who was committed and willing to work hard. The Lightning were winless that first season and won only 12 games in her three years there.
"We had our struggles early, but we came together as a team, and a big part of that was Mandy's leadership," Perram said, noting that Cronin was elected team captain during the 2003-2004 season.
Cronin spent 10 seasons in pro hockey, including three with Brampton of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (2007-2010), which won league titles in 2007 and 2008. She capped her playing career with Burlington in 2012.
She supported herself in the meantime by founding and running M-Power Hockey, which offered development programs in Greater Toronto.
"I never made a penny playing hockey, but I had amazing experiences," Cronin said.
In the offseason, Cronin played ball hockey. After a game in the spring of 2007, she was approached in the parking lot by a man in a suit, Mike Salamon. He needed a goalie for an upcoming charity tournament.
Cronin eventually agreed, but could never have imagined where the relationship would lead. Salamon, a partner at Birch Hill Equity Partners, had an immediate impact on women's pro hockey.
"We had just finished the [NWHL] season and the owners had just pulled the plug," Cronin said. "All of a sudden, we have no league."
Cronin worked tirelessly to find a solution. With financial and advisory support from Salamon, Birch Hill Equity and Deloitte, she was among the co-founders of the CWHL, which was launched later that year.
"It was like a four-month turnaround," said Cronin, still amazed at how the league came together so quickly.
The CWHL remained solvent for 12 years. Cronin completed her playing career in 2012, but remained active behind the scenes. In 2020, she was hired as the general manager of the new Buffalo Beauts NWHL franchise.
She started from scratch, procuring an arena and hiring players, coaches, trainers and staff. Cronin chose Perram as her head coach.
And for the first time, she actually earned a small paycheck for her pro hockey involvement.
"She truly was and is a pioneer in the game," Perram said.
Cronin capped her career in 2021 with one year as the GM of another startup NWHL franchise, the Toronto Six.
"I just always wanted to see girls and women get equal opportunities to play. It was getting better and we were improving it," Cronin said.
"I know I'm very blessed to have been in the right place at the right time for a lot of these things."
Cronin is the vice president of female hockey with PLAY Hockey, based in Canada, which hosts international tournaments, development camps, team programs and tours. She lives in Toronto with her wife Mandy Cole, their daughter Logan, 9, and son Brody, 6.
The University of Maine Sports Hall of Fame induction banquet will take place on Friday, Oct. 16 at Jeff's Catering in Brewer, Maine. For tickets, please visit GoBlackBears.com/Tickets. The banquet will also be live streamed at www.youtube.com/@MaineBlackBears/streams.
