| Evansville Thunderbolts | |
|---|---|
| City | Evansville, Indiana |
| League | SPHL |
| Founded | 2016 |
| Home arena | Ford Center |
| Colors | Red,blue, gray, white |
| Owner(s) | VW Sports, LLC. |
| Head coach | Jeff Bes |
| Website | evansvillethunderbolts |
| Franchise history | |
| 2016–present | Evansville Thunderbolts |
The Evansville Thunderbolts are a minor league ice hockey team in the SPHL. The team plays at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana. The team replaced the Evansville IceMen of the ECHL.
During the 2015–16 season, the City of Evansville and the owner of the ECHL's Evansville IceMen, Ron Geary, were unable to agree to a new lease for the IceMen to continue to operate out of the Ford Center. [1] On January 19, 2016, Geary announced that he had agreed to terms with the nearby city of Owensboro, Kentucky to relocate the team to the Owensboro Sports Center. [2]
On February 8, 2016, Evansville mayor, Lloyd Winnecke, announced that local businessman and IceMen season ticket holder, Mike Hall, had secured an expansion team in the Southern Professional Hockey League to play at the Ford Center beginning in the 2016–17 season, thus displacing the IceMen franchise from Evansville. [3] On March 1, the City of Evansville and the new team signed a five-year lease agreement to play at the Ford Center. [4] Hall would act as general manager while the majority owner was VW Sports, LLC., a subsidiary of VenuWorks, Inc., the arena management company. [5]
On March 22, 2016, former IceMen head coach Jeff Pyle was announced as the head coach for its inaugural season. [6] The new team name was announced on April 15, 2016, [7] taken from the P-47 Thunderbolt fighter aircraft which was manufactured in Evansville during the Second World War. [8] Near the end of the first season, Mike Hall sold his portion of the team to VW Sports, LLC. [5] and Pete Xander was named the new general manager for the 2017–18 season. [9]
After two seasons, head coach Pyle left for the head coaching position with the Atlanta Gladiators of the ECHL. [10] Pyle was replaced by former NHL player Ian Moran as head coach and Adam Stio was named general manager for the 2018–19 season. [11] The team finished in last place and general manager Stio was fired at the end of the season [12] and Moran resigned. [13] Longtime SPHL head coach Jeff Bes was hired as the head coach for the 2019–20 season, [14] while Patrick Kelly was hired as the new general manager. [15] The 2019–20 SPHL season was curtailed by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic while the Thunderbolts were in a position to qualify for the playoffs.
Due to the ongoing effects and restrictions during the pandemic, the Thunderbolts were one of five SPHL teams to not participate in the 2020–21 season. [16] Before returning for the 2021–22 season, the Thunderbolts hired Bob McNamara as the general manager. [17]
| Season | GP | W | L | OTL | Pts | GF | GA | Finish | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016–17 | 56 | 14 | 32 | 10 | 38 | 138 | 206 | 10th of 10, SPHL | did not qualify |
| 2017–18 | 56 | 27 | 20 | 9 | 63 | 186 | 191 | 6th of 10, SPHL | Lost Quarterfinals, 2-1 (Macon) |
| 2018–19 | 56 | 12 | 38 | 6 | 30 | 124 | 224 | 10th of 10, SPHL | did not qualify |
| 2019–20 | 46 | 25 | 14 | 7 | 57 | 153 | 151 | 5th of 10, SPHL | Season cancelled |
| 2020–21 | did not participate | ||||||||
| 2021–22 | 56 | 28 | 26 | 2 | 58 | 162 | 155 | 7th of 11, SPHL | Lost Quarterfinals, 2-0 (Huntsville) |
| 2022–23 | 56 | 32 | 22 | 2 | 66 | 172 | 165 | 5th of 11, SPHL | Lost Quarterfinals, 2-0 (Roanoke) |
The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which operated the league from 2000 to 2013, at which point it was purchased by the individual franchise owners. As of the end of its final season in 2014, three of the 30 National Hockey League teams had affiliations with the CHL: the Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, and Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Atlanta Gladiators are a professional minor league ice hockey team based in Duluth, Georgia. The Gladiators play in the South Division of the ECHL's Eastern Conference. They play their home games at Gas South Arena, approximately 22 miles (35 km) northeast of Atlanta.
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Jeff Bes is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey player who played several seasons with the Laredo Bucks. Bes has played for many minor league teams such as the Dayton Bombers, Chicago Wolves, Mississippi Sea Wolves, Orlando Solar Bears, Jacksonville Lizard Kings, SaiPa and several other teams including the Dukes of Hamilton. He also coaches in the SPHL.
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Ian Patrick Moran is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman. Throughout his 15-year professional career, Moran played for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Boston Bruins and Anaheim Ducks in the National Hockey League (NHL). He retired in 2008 after suffering a knee injury. Since 2017 he has served as the head scout and Director of Neutral Zone New England.
The Owensboro Sportscenter is a 5,000-seat multi-purpose arena in Owensboro, Kentucky. It is the home of the basketball teams of Kentucky Wesleyan College and Owensboro Catholic High School. It has been the home to three minor-pro basketball teams, the Kentucky Bisons, the Kentucky Mavericks and currently, the Owensboro Thoroughbreds.
Bob McNamara is a former professional ice hockey player and executive. He is the former general manager of the Grand Rapids Griffins of the International Hockey League and the American Hockey League and a former goaltender in the minor leagues.
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The Muskegon Lumberjacks was an International Hockey League ice hockey team located in Muskegon, Michigan. After the 2010 season, the team folded and Ron Geary, the owner of the Evansville IceMen of the AAHL, purchased the franchise rights of the former Muskegon Lumberjacks from the IHL. Geary then moved the franchise to Evansville, Indiana where they became the Evansville IceMen.
The Ford Center is a multi-use indoor arena in downtown Evansville, Indiana, with a maximum seating capacity of 11,000. It officially opened in November 2011 and is mainly used for basketball, ice hockey, and music concerts. It is home to the Evansville Thunderbolts minor league hockey team in the SPHL and the Evansville Purple Aces men's basketball team, representing the University of Evansville. The UE women's basketball team also played at Ford Center from the venue's opening, but moved its home games back to its campus starting with the 2017–18 season.
The Evansville IceMen were a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL in Evansville, Indiana. The franchise was originally a member of the United Hockey League before it merged into the Central Hockey League in 2010. The franchise won four post-season championship titles in the UHL in 1999, 2002, 2004 and 2005. The franchise played one season at Swonder Ice Arena before moving to the Ford Center beginning in the 2011–12 season.
Jeff Pyle is an American former ice hockey player and the current Director of Hockey Operations of the ECHL Atlanta Gladiators.
The 2016–17 SPHL season was the 13th season of the Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL).
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The Battle Creek Rumble Bees were a professional ice hockey team based in Battle Creek, Michigan. The team was a member of the Federal Prospects Hockey League and played at The Rink Battle Creek.
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