The Mercyhurst Lakers men's ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association hockey team that represents Mercyhurst University in Erie, Pennsylvania under Head Coach Rick Gotkin.

[4] The coach for the first club season was Bob Cisek who was a Mercyhurst professor at the time.

[5] After just 1 year at the club level, the Mercyhurst Lakers began an independent trial run at the varsity level, Division III in the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) South hockey league.

Mercyhurst Athletic Director John Leisering stated, “The administration was immediately enthusiastic about a possible move to varsity status and with the support of the hockey people, the move was approved after just a few months.”[6] Named head coach for the Lakers in their first season at the Division III level was Fred Lane.

In 10 seasons as the head coach for the Golden Knights, Lane had a record of 153–14–14, winning 2 Western Pennsylvania College Hockey Association league championships, 6 division championships, and was named WPCHA coach of the year 3 times.

The Lakers opened up their first NCAA Division III season on Saturday, October 31 at West Chester University of Pennsylvania playing their home games at both the Erie Civic Center and Glenwood Ice Rink.

[7] The highlight of the season being the game against Division I Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's ice hockey on November 25[7] which they lost 7–3.

[8] Following the 1987–1988 season, on April 29 of 1988, Mercyhurst College Athletic Director John Leisering named Rick Gotkin as head coach of the team saying, “Rick’s playing, coaching, and recruiting credentials were just the mix Mercyhurst was looking for.”[9] At 28 years of age, Rick Gotkin comes from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, which played at the Division I level in the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference where Gotkin served as Assistant Varsity Hockey Coach for the past 2 years (1986–1988).

[9] For the 1988–1989 season, the Mercyhurst Lakers played in the ECAC-West Division alongside SUNY-Brockport, Canisius College, SUNY-Fredonia, SUNY-Potsdam and St. Bonaventure University.

According to the first Division II poll released, the Mercyhurst Lakers ranked 2nd in the 1992–1993 season only behind Bemidji State University.

[8] In 2003, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference reorganized to create the Atlantic Hockey Association with Quinnipiac, UConn, AIC, Canisius, Holy Cross, Sacred Heart, Bentley, Army, and Mercyhurst as the 9 members of the league.

Atlantic Hockey America includes all 11 teams that played in the Atlantic Hockey Association's final season: Mercyhurst, AIC, Air Force, Army, Bentley, Canisius, Holy Cross, Niagara, RIT (in full Rochester Institute of Technology), Robert Morris, and Sacred Heart.

NCAA Division III / II AHCA Second Team All-Americans Player of the Year

Due to constantly being on the road, the Lakers team referred to themselves as “The Boys On The Bus”.