From the dressing room to the office
In 1968, Lou Nanne was named captain of Team U.S.A.
at the Winter Olympic Games in Grenoble, France.
For many athletes, the Olympic Games are their pinnacle sporting moment. For RBC Dain Rauscher's Lou Nanne, his Olympic moment was only the beginning of an illustrious career in sports.
Born in Sault Saint Marie, Ontario, Lou Nanne's hockey career started in the minor hockey ranks alongside the legendary Esposito brothers, Tony and Phil. In 1959, he moved to America's hockey hotbed, Minneapolis, to play for the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers. In his senior year, as a defenseman, Nanne led the league in points scored, earned All-American honours and was awarded the league MVP award.
In 1968, after becoming a naturalized U.S. citizen, Nanne was named captain of Team U.S.A. at the Winter Olympic Games in Grenoble, France.
"Playing in the Olympics is much different from playing professional hockey. There was an immense pride in being able to play for your country, transcending the game itself," recalls Nanne.
After the 1968 Olympic games, Nanne returned to Minnesota to play professionally for the National Hockey League's North Stars. After 11 seasons, Nanne retired with career totals of 72 goals scored and 167 assists for 239 points.
Though his playing days were over, Lou would have one more role with a certain U.S. Olympic hockey team.
"In 1980, head coach Herb Brooks came to me to get a competitive schedule for the U.S. Olympic team prior to the Lake Placid Olympic Games. I knew we couldn't get meaningful games against NHL teams - just exhibitions. At that time I was the chairman of the board of a minor professional league, so with the help of president Bud Poile, I was able to have the Olympic team temporarily join the league. The games counted in the standings, and the U.S. Olympic team played 30 or 40 games against professionals before the Olympic tournament. Herb said it was the biggest thing that helped the team."
It was that 1980 team that has been dubbed 'Miracle on Ice' after their upset win over Russia in the gold medal game. In fact, Disney released a feature film about the team's journey to Olympic gold.
Lou Nanne's distinguished hockey career, both as an amateur and professional, has led to inductions in both the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame and the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame.
Now plying his trade away from the rink with RBC Dain Rauscher, Lou Nanne is national sales manager of the America's eighth largest full-service securities firm with 1,800 financial consultants and 6,000 employees. RBC Dain Rauscher serves investors coast-to-coast, and capital markets and correspondent clients in select U.S. and international markets.
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