HOF CLASS OF 2026: The Ron Vincent story
June 16, 2026 | Men's Hockey
Ron Vincent looked over the old yellow piece of paper and tried to conjure up some perspective.
He was checking out a tattered lineup sheet from a Wisconsin men’s hockey game versus Denver in February of 1979. Vincent, a freshman from Victoria, British Columbia, was playing right wing on the No. 1 line. On the left side was senior captain Les Grauer from Regina, Saskatchewan. Their center was a junior from Madison by the name of Mark Johnson.
So, how did Vincent get from there to being the latest member of the UW Athletic Hall of Fame?
After all, that Badgers’ lineup for that game at the Dane County Coliseum included two future U.S. Olympians in Johnson and senior defenseman Bob Suter; the first Wisconsin player chosen in the opening round of the NHL draft in freshman right winger Mike Blaisdell; and four of the six players who would wind up in the rarified air of the 200 career points club in Johnson (256), sophomore defenseman Theran Welsh (228), sophomore right winger Scott Lecy (210) and Vincent (206).
“A lot of talent and heavy on freshmen,” Vincent noted.
As for the foursome of future 200-point producers, Vincent described them thusly: “Skilled and great on the power play. Welsh was a magician and, of course, Mark could shoot. Lecy could thread a needle and was good from the blue line in.”
As for Vincent?
“Well, I knew my abilities,” he said. “I had 176 points in 66 games the year before in (juniors). I just needed the chance/ice time.”
Paul Braun, the hall of fame radio and TV voice of Badgers hockey, said Vincent stood out in a couple of ways.
“He seemed like he was a good teammate,” Braun said. “Overall, I would have called him a team leader in his own way. He seemed to be that type of person.
“The big thing about ‘Vinny’ that I remember was the scoring. Vinny was a finisher. He wanted the puck. He wanted to score.”
Vincent didn’t disagree.
“I had some decent speed and I was a smart player,” he said. “I’d read the plays well. I’d go to the right areas.
“I’d consider myself more of a playmaker than a goal scorer, though. I enjoyed setting up a player than actually scoring the goal. I think that had a lot to do with what I accomplished.
“My points speak for themselves, but to be a teammate of some of the quality players and to be elected captain my senior year to lead the team. I think that was special.”
Vincent, who was inducted into the Wisconsin Hockey Hall of Fame in 1994, played for the legendary Bob Johnson and skated alongside some of the most memorable players in program history, from Marc Behrend and Bruce Driver to John Newberry and Pat Flatley.
Vincent played in back-to-back NCAA title matches in 1981 and ’82, accounting for three assists in a 6-3 conquest of Minnesota before enduring a 5-2 loss to North Dakota. He earned Most Valuable Player honors from his teammates at the conclusion of his senior season.
Upon arriving in Madison in the fall of 1978. Vincent noticed that there was a “disconnect” from the upperclassmen and the 11 freshmen, almost all of whom lived in the dorms.
Vincent said while Grauer and Rod Romanchuk were decent captains, “they just didn’t spend much time with us.”
So, Vincent said he made it a point to fill that camaraderie gap.
“I was always the kind of guy to organize, to keep guys together,” he said. “If we were going to try to go out as a team, I would usually put it together.”
That hands-on approach continued through Vincent’s senior season when he was named a co-captain along with classmate and fellow forward Peter Johnson.
“I think I got a lot of respect (from) a lot of my teammates, which was important,” Vincent said. “You get elected captain it shows the respect they have for you.”
He had a terrific career as a Badger both on and off the ice. He epitomizes the saying, ‘Once a Badger, always a Badger.’”Peter Johnson, on Vincent as a teammate
Peter Johnson described Vincent as a “great” classmate and teammate.
“He had a terrific career as a Badger both on and off the ice,” Johnson said. “He epitomizes the saying, ‘Once a Badger, always a Badger.’”
Vincent continued to make an impact as a National W Club board member from 1996 to 2003, serving as president in 2003-04. He also helped establish an endowed scholarship for men’s hockey.
“He loved being a Badger and the fans and the community loved him,” Peter Johnson said.
BEST OF THREE
One: Vincent joined a long list of UW men’s hockey players who have been inducted in the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame, including one-time teammates Mark Johnson, Bob Suter, Welsh, Chris Chelios, Bruce Driver and Marc Behrend. “I was excited about it,” Vincent said. “To see all the guys who’ve gone in before me and what it means and such.”
Two: Vincent said he took 20 credits in his final semester as a senior to graduate in four years. “I was never a great student, but I worked hard at it,” he said.
Three: One of the most significant developments in Vincent’s time at UW was the way he was accepted in the hockey and business community.
“They used to have this thing called the Badger Buddy program,” he said. “My Badger Buddy was (former UW football player and prominent businessman) Jim Heineke. He introduced me to so many people. Made me feel like I was part of the community. To be part of the community really meant a lot.”
At Camp Randall Stadium on Thursday, May 28, University of Wisconsin Interim Director of Athletics Marcus Sedberry revealed that Ron Vincent will be inducted into the UW Athletic Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2026.
The class of legendary Badgers will be inducted into the Hall of Fame later this fall during a weekend of celebration on September 18 and 19. The inductees will be honored inside Camp Randall Stadium during Wisconsin Football's meeting with Eastern Michigan (Sept. 19 – 11:30 a.m. CT).
