AMESBURY, Mass. - The Hockey East Association announced today that Doug Poole has been named the recipient of the 2025 Joe Concannon Award. The prestigious honor, named in 2001 in memory of beloved Boston Globe sportswriter Joe Concannon, is presented to an individual who has demonstrated an outstanding body of work in covering and/or promoting the interests of the Hockey East Association.
“It is our pleasure to honor Doug with this prestigious award and he is the first to receive the recognition for a career spent primarily within the women’s league,” said Hockey East Commissioner Steve Metcalf. “Doug has been working with and supporting women’s hockey for the entire existence of the Hockey East and no one is more deserving.”
Poole has supported the UNH women’s hockey program since before Hockey East’s women’s league was founded, helping to promote the Wildcats’ run to the 1999 American Women’s College Hockey Alliance championship game. During that season, two UNH players were named Top 10 Patty Kazmaier Award Finalists.
“Doug’s commitment to his profession, to UNH, UNH Athletics, and specifically UNH Women’s Hockey, has spanned decades,” said Hilary Witt, head coach of the New Hampshire women’s program. “His passion and commitment to assuring visibility for the sport and the student-athletes he advocates for is exactly why he is such a deserving recipient of the prestigious award.”
A 1993 graduate of UNH with a B.S. in Sports Communication, Poole joined the Wildcats’ athletic media relations staff in May of 1997. In addition to nearly three decades supporting UNH women’s hockey, Poole has spent time as the primary sports contact for nearly every Wildcat athletics program, which includes over 25 years of coverage to women’s lacrosse and field hockey. Poole is currently the primary sport contact for UNH football, field hockey, men’s and women’s basketball, and outdoor track & field.
“No individual has done more to promote UNH women’s hockey than Doug Poole,” said Mike Murphy, Associate Athletic Director, Marketing & Communications at UNH. “His tireless efforts and heartfelt devotion have shaped the sport’s legacy at UNH. Doug’s passion for women’s athletics is unmatched, and his loyalty to the Wildcats is second to none.”
Prior to joining the UNH athletic media relations staff, Poole was a sportswriter at two local New Hampshire newspapers. He served as a correspondent for Foster’s Daily Democrat (Dover, N.H.) from 1997-98 and held an interim staff position at Portsmouth Herald (Portsmouth, N.H.) from 1996-97. Poole also was a correspondent at Portsmouth Herald from 1993-96.
Poole will be honored on Sunday, January 4 during the New Hampshire game against LIU.
