Joe Howe, a former standout goaltender at Colorado College who later won a national championship as a member of the University of Denver coaching staff, joined the Yale men’s hockey program as an assistant coach in July 2021. Following the retirement of longtime head coach Keith Allain, Howe was elevated to Interim Malcolm G. Chace Head Coach of Men’s Hockey in August 2025.
On the international stage, Howe has also earned opportunities with USA Hockey. In July 2025, he was named an assistant coach for the U.S. Under-18 Men’s Select Team that captured gold at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in Czechia and Slovakia, which was Team USA’s first championship at the event since 2003, and only the second in the tournament's history. The previous summer, in August 2024, Howe served as an assistant coach for the U.S. Under-17 Men’s Select Team at the Five Nations Tournament in Slovakia.
Prior to joining Yale, Howe spent the previous three winters at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks, where he worked with all three positions as well as the power play for the Nanooks.
Before UAF, he spent three seasons with Denver, serving as the team's volunteer assistant coach and goalie coach from August of 2015 through July 2017 before being promoted to the Director of Hockey Operations for the 2017-18 season.
Howe helped the Pioneers claim the 2017 NCAA Championship after winning the NCHC regular season title. Denver made it to the 2016 Frozen Four and won the 2018 NCHC Tournament.
While working as the goalie coach for DU, his netminders improved in goals against average, save percentage, games played and wins from the previous seasons. Howe coached Tanner Jaillet, who was the 2017 Mike Richter Award winner, the NCHC Goalie of the Year and a second-team All-American.
Hailing from Plymouth, Minn., Howe played four seasons with Colorado College from 2009-2013. He appeared in 119 career games with the Tigers and is currently ranked third in career saves at CC. Howe was a three-time Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) All-Academic Team selection before graduating with a bachelor's degree in mathematical economics in May of 2013.
From 2013-2015, Howe played professionally in the Central Hockey League (CHL), the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) and the American Hockey League (AHL).
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