Director of Athletics Anthony Francis is pleased to announce the elevation of the third head coach of the Bearcat Men's Division One Ice Hockey program in Granite City, Ill. Native, Brett DeNap, who has been serving on an interim basis for the last two months.
From the middle of November when DeNap took over, the Bearcats went 11-6-1, leading them to the 3 seed in the Midwest College Hockey conference tournament. They finished the regular season on a 7-game winning streak and ranked 25th in the ACH Division I national rankings. McKendree also picked up an all-conference honoree in Connor Mullins on the MCH 2nd team.
This is third separate occasion in which he has been on a McKendree bench, both as a player and a coach. DeNap previously led the Division Three program in 2017 to 2019. During his tenure as the Division III head coach, he posted a record of 28-16, including 19-3 in his first season.
"It is a great honor to serve McKendree University in this capacity. I would like to thank Anthony Francis and President Daniel Dobbins for this opportunity; I am very proud," said head coach Brett DeNap. "I would also like to thank to my predecessor, Garry Henson, for his hard work and commitment to McKendree Hockey for so many years."
Over the previous four years, he founded a youth hockey non-profit called MPI Hockey Academy that works with upwards of 400 St. Louis youth hockey players each season. DeNap has even worked on the international stage, as he was a private skills coach for players in the following leagues: NCAA D1, ECHL, KHL, AHL, and NHL.  Players he has trained include NCAA D1 Champions, members of Team USA (IIHF Bronze Medal), Team USA (Women's Olympic Silver Medal), & multiple Stanley Cup Champions.
As a student at McKendree University in 2011-12, DeNap was a member of the hockey and golf teams. After transferring to Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, he served as the team captain and president of the Cougars' program. He earned his bachelor's degree from SIUE as well as a master's degree from Lindenwood University.
DeNap has a vast background of coaching experience at the collegiate level. He has coached at the former Lindenwood University – Belleville, and Marian University.
