Background
Gacek grew up in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and played for the Saint James Canadians, a Winnipeg team that played in the 1944 western Canada junior hockey championship.
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Wally Gacek
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He played four years of hockey at Michigan from 1946-1949. Gacek later enrolled at the Four teams were selected to play in the first Frozen Four tournament, held at The Broadmoor World Arena in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The four teams were Michigan, Boston College, Dartmouth College, and Colorado College.
The semifinal game went into overtime, and Gacek scored 18 seconds into the overtime period, and then scored again with a half minute left in overtime, as Michigan beat Boston College 6-4.
Gacek starred as the center on Michigan"s famous "G" line, which included Wally Grant and Ted Greer. Each of the three linemates scored a third-period goal in Michigan"s championship game against Dartmouth.
Gacek led all scorers in the first Frozen Four with five goals and three assists for eight points. His six points in the championship game (3 goals, 3 assists) remains the record for an National Collegiate Athletic Association championship game.
Gacek and Gordon McMillan scored goals five seconds apart in the third period against Dartmouth, which also remains a record for the fastest consecutive goals by a team in the championship round.
Gacek was named a second-team All-American forward in 1948 and a first-team All-American in 1949.
