Athletic Director's Blog

Darrin Madeley  - I am a former NHL player and Division I, two time 1st Team All-American and 1992 College Player of the Year.  I started working at LFA in 2005 after coaching the USA National Team Development Program (NTDP) where I was part of four World Championships where Team USA won two Golds and one Silver. Prior to retiring, I played for the Ottawa Senators and the San Jose Sharks of the NHL and Detroit Vipers of the IHL.  I also played in Europe with TPS Turku (Finnish Elite League) and Rosenheim (German Elite League). I earned a bachelor’s degree in physical and health education from Lake Superior State University and a teaching certificate (K–12) from Saginaw Valley State University where I graduated Cum Laude. I coach the Prep Hockey and Softball Teams at the Academy. I live on campus with my wife Jennifer and we have two LFA graduates Jenna ’11 and Tyler ’14.

The Prep Hockey team at Lake Forest Academy provides its athletes with an opportunity to develop as individuals while preparing them for the next level of hockey after high school. The players are challenged to achieve academic success alongside improvement on the ice both as individuals and as a unit. The team practices five days a week or so beginning in the fall through playoffs in February. The amount of time that the team spends together forges strong bonds among the players. One of the team’s captains, Will Soloway , said his favorite part about being on Prep this year has “definitely been how close our team is.” He commented how the team is “all very committed” and how “this feels like one of the closest groups I’ve been a part of in my entire hockey career.”  Lake Forest Academy is a member of the Midwest Prep Hockey League, or “MPHL”, with LFA being the only team in Illinois. The other schools in the MPHL are located in Vermont, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Canada. League games ar