AMHERST — Jack Arena, the longtime Amherst College men’s hockey coach, has announced his retirement, the Mammoths’ athletic department announced on Monday.

Arena was behind the bench for 42 years and amassed 537 wins for Amherst, which ranks 26th-most of any hockey head coach across the entire NCAA and 12th-most among Division III coaches.

“I still love the on-ice piece, my relationships with the team and the students, and I love practices more than anything else,” Arena said in a statement. “I think it’s all the other stuff that goes along with the job that has become less enjoyable. So it was important to me that I leave while I still enjoyed what I was doing.”

Arena will remained involved with the Purple and White in other capacities, including roles that “will cover talent evaluation and recruiting support for both the men’s and women’s hockey programs as well as coaching development and mentorship,” according to an athletic department news release.

In 41 seasons, Arena led the Mammoths to a pair of ECAC championships (1992, 1996), three NESCAC championships (2009, 2012, 2015) and advanced to the Div. III Frozen Four twice (2009, 2015). Arena also is a former two-time ACHA National Coach of the Year and three-time NESCAC Coach of the Year recipient.

“Jack has been the heart and soul of the men’s hockey program for over four decades,” Amherst College Director of Athletics Don Faulstick said. “His dedication to the school where he once played, and later led, is deeply impressive. His legacy will live on through the countless lives he’s impacted, both on and off the ice.”

Amherst College said it will conduct a nationwide search to fill Arena’s vacancy.

“I always thought it would be better to leave a year early than a year late,” Arena said.