Early years Clarkson College of Technology started its hockey team in 1921, only 25 years after the school's founding. The program played as a minor sport until the mid 1930s but routinely finished with winning records. In 1937–38 The Golden Knights completed a 13–1–1 record and were named the US Intercollegiate champions. The Golden Knights wouldn't have to wait long for their first tournament appearance, however, as they were invited the following year and finished in third place. After a second consecutive third-place head coach
Bill Harrison resigned and turned the team over to
Len Ceglarski. The first few years under Ceglarski saw the team's record dip slightly but stating in his third season the Golden Knights became a constant power in college hockey.
ECAC powerhouse Clarkson was one of 28 founding members of the
ECAC in
1961 and finished in second place both in the conference and the ECAC tournament. Clarkson was invited to the NCAA tournament, boasting the top offense in the nation and used its firepower to down
Michigan in the semifinal but couldn't repeat the performance in the title match and fell to
Michigan Tech 1–7. Clarkson made the tournament the following year but finished with its third #3 finish. In 1966 Clarkson posted a superb season, winning the
ICAC and ECAC crowns before taking its first
ECAC Tournament. In the tournament Clarkson faced relatively weak opponents (the 4th- and 6th-place teams from the
WCHA) and though they managed to win their semifinal matchup, they couldn't take advantage in the title tilt and fell to
Michigan State 1–6. Tech continued to play well over the next few years but would not return to the NCAA tournament until
1970. After defeating the top western team in the semifinal, Clarkson faced off against the undefeated
Cornell Big Red and fought tooth and nail for their first championship. The game was tied after both the first and second period with the Golden Knights having taken the lead twice on the strength of
Bruce Bullock's goaltending but a natural hat trick by Cornell's
Dan Lodboa in the third frame put the game out of reach and Clarkson had to settle for runner-up for the third time. The following year Clarkson finished in second place for both the ECAC and their conference tournament but received a slap in the face from the selection committee when they were passed over for
Boston University as the second eastern team. To add insult to injury, the Terriers went on to claim the championship that year. A year later Len Ceglarski would leave the program to take over at his
alma mater Boston College, having led Clarkson to 12 consecutive seasons of at least a .600 winning percentage.
Intermittent success in 1987
Jerry York, another BC grad, would take over in
1973 and, as it had under Ceglarski, the program's record slumped. It took four years for Tech to climb back to its lofty perch and in
1977 it did just that with future
NHL all-star
Dave Taylor leading the way. Clarkson finished with the best record in the ECAC and went into the postseason as one of the favorites for the national championship. Unfortunately the team hit a roadblock in the semifinal, losing to Boston University 6–7 and finished the ECAC tournament in 4th place. Once Taylor left the program dipped but still performed well. However, in 1979 York left for greener pastures, turning the team over to Clarkson alumnus
Bill O'Flaherty. In O'Flaherty's six seasons behind the bench the Golden Knights never finished with a record below .600 and captured two ECAC titles. Though Tech wouldn't win any of those ECAC tournaments, the expanded NCAA tournament allowed Clarkson to earn three at-large bids into the national tournament. The Golden Knights record in the NCAA tournament was disappointing, going 1–4–1 in three tries and losing in the first round each time. O'Flaherty would turn the team over to former NHL-er
Cap Raeder in 1985 and the new coach would shepherd the team well over three seasons but it wasn't until
Mark Morris took the reins in 1988 that the program would return to prominence once more.
1990s resurgence opened in 1992 Though Clarkson hadn't had a losing season since 1975 when Morris took over, the team had an air of underachieving about it especially when it came to postseason results. Tech proceeded to produce steadily increasing results in Morris' first three seasons, culminating with a program-record 29-win season in
1991 that also saw the Golden Knights win their first ECAC tournament since 1966. Despite the top finish Clarkson received no respect from the selection committee and was seeded 4th in the eastern bracket despite having a better record than the 2nd- and 3rd-seeded schools. Clarkson pushed past the slight and defeated defending champion
Wisconsin in the first round series. In the Quarterfinals Tech took on the top western seed,
Lake Superior State, and triumphed in the series 2 games to 1. The Golden Knights reached the frozen four for the first time in 21 years but the magic wore off once they did and they fell to BU 3–7. Clarkson's performance in the
1991 tournament gave them enough credibility to earn an NCAA bid despite flaming out in the ECAC tournament the following year. Similar to what they had done under Ceglarski, Clarkson never had a sub-.600 record during the entire decade, winning four ECAC titles, three conference tournaments and making the NCAA tournament nine out of ten seasons. Despite the success the Golden Knights wilted once they entered the national tournament. Aside from their semifinal run in 1991 Clarkson won only one game in eight other appearances.
Firing and decline Tech's record slipped with the dawn of a new millennium but Morris' teams still produced winning records. Clarkson was expected to continue this trend for years to come but in November 2002 Morris was suspended following an altercation with one of his players after a team practice. After a 10-day inquiry Morris was dismissed from the team and his assistant
Fred Parker took over in the interim. The team played flat most of the rest of the season, posting the program's first losing record in almost 30 years and their worst winning percentage in over 40 seasons. Parker was replaced by
George Roll the following year and after a slow start, the Golden Knights recovered and finished as runner-ups in the ECAC tournament. After two middling seasons Clarkson returned to its superior success with a 25-win season in
2007 where the team captured its fifth ECAC tournament title. After winning the regular season ECAC crown the next season Clarkson dropped in the standings, finishing the next three seasons with losing records and, in
2010, posting the program's worst season since before the second world war.
Slow climb back Roll was fired in 2011 with the program at its nadir, becoming the only full-time head coach to finish his tenure at Clarkson with a losing record. His former assistant
Casey Jones was eventually selected as the replacement and a slow climb out of the cellar began. It took three seasons before Tech had another winning season and wasn't until
2018 that Clarkson made an appearance in the NCAA tournament. The Golden Knights would lose in the first round that year but with four players making the ECAC all-rookie team over the previous two seasons Clarkson was well placed to improve their standing over the next few years. Clarkson, which became the fastest Division I college hockey program to compile 1,000 victories and one of only a few to reach that mark, has compiled a 1436–862–160 record for an all-time winning percentage of , which is among the best in the country. Clarkson has had 36 individuals earn All-American honors since 1928, including 13 who have won the honor twice. Defenseman Fred Dion and center Buzz Williams were the first Golden Knights to receive the honor in 1928–29. The 2020–21 season was cancelled prior to the ECAC tournament due to the team violating COVID-19 protocols. On June 13, 2024, it was announced that Casey Jones would leave the program to return to his alma mater, Cornell, as a Head Coach Elect. On June 21, 2024, Clarkson University announced the hiring of Jean-François Houle as the next head coach of the program. ==Season-by-season results==