Eddie Miller Papers

Eddie Miller was born and raised in Leetonia, Minnesota, the son of Croatian immigrants. He played softball, hockey and football in youth recreational leagues. He attended Hibbing High School, where he lettered in football and competed in track. He graduated in 1945 and enlisted in the Navy. After serving two years he was discharged and worked in the mines for two years. During this period he played Class A the Leetonia team. In 1949, he was offered a scholarship to the University of Denver.

As one of the first members of the University of Denver hockey team, Miller helped lay the groundwork for the future success of the Pioneer hockey program. Coming to Denver in the first year of the program, Miller was a three-year letterman. He left as Denver's first-ever hockey All-American, an honor he received in 1952. During Miller's stay with the program, the team had a combined record of 50-36-3. His sophomore year, Miller led the club in number of goals scored (26) as well as total points (44). Despite moving to a defenseman position the next year, Miller was 32nd in the Midwest Hockey League in individual scoring with eight goals and 14 assists during the 1951-52 season. He was a Denver Post all-Midwest first-team selection two years in a row and served as the team's co-captain in 1952.

After DU, he taught and coached at Baudette, Minnesota before moving to Wayzata in 1955. He spend more than 30 years teaching and coaching hockey. He also played Senior Amateur Hockey for the Minneapolis Bungalow team, which won the National title in 1957. At that National tournament Eddie was named to the All-Tourney first squad and named the National Division's most valuable player in April 1957. In 1958, he was invited to play on the United States National team in the tournament in Oslo, Norway.

He was inducted into the Hibbing Hall of Fame in 1996 and the University of Denver Athletic Hall of Fame in 2000. Eddie and his wife Elizabeth are the parents of four children.