Fresno Falcons | |
---|---|
City | Fresno, California |
League | Pacific Coast Hockey League (1946–50) Pacific Coast Senior League (1952–53) Cal-Neva Hockey League (1968–72) Pacific Southwest Hockey League (1972–95) Sunshine Hockey League (1994–95) West Coast Hockey League (1995–2003) ECHL (2003–08) |
Home arena | Selland Arena Save Mart Center |
Championships | |
Taylor Cups | 1 (2001–02) |
PSHL champions | 10 (1972–73, 1973–74, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1977–78, 1979–80, 1983–84, 1985–86, 1986–87, 1993–94) |
ECHL Division Champions | 1 (2005–06) |
The Fresno Falcons were a minor league hockey team. They were charter members of several long standing leagues in the western United States including the Pacific Southwest Hockey League and the West Coast Hockey League. In their final years, they were members of the ECHL (formerly East Coast Hockey League). They were located in Fresno, California.
The Fresno Hockey Club, originally known as the Flyers, was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the Pacific Coast Hockey League, where they played until the league folded in 1950. The all time goal leader is Adrian Marin with 40 goals in a season
The team picked up in 1952 for a season in the Pacific Coast Senior League. Following just one season, hockey was dormant in Fresno until 1968, when the Fresno Aces were introduced for a season in the short-lived Cal-Neva Hockey League.
Cal-Neva was a loosely linked group of professional and semi-pro teams from around the West Coast. The league lacked structure, and played games for a selection of regional championships rather than a league championship. In the 1970–71 season, the Las Vegas Gamblers club was expelled from the league, following numerous rules violations. The Gamblers were in first place at the time, and all records of games involving them were voided. The league was dissolved following the 1971-72 season, as league commissioners cited the need for more structure, and without a Nevada team, a need for a new name.
During the 1968–69 season, Fresno's team was officially known as the Fresno Aces. For 1969–70, the name was changed back to the Fresno Falcons.
The Pacific Southwest Hockey League was founded in 1972 following the dissolution of the Cal-Neva Hockey League. and the Falcons were one of the league's staples, as the only franchise in the league that was present from its beginning, throughout to the 1995–96 merger that formed the West Coast Hockey League.
The Falcons were the PSHL's signature franchise largely due to convenience and the availability of a then-relatively new showcase arena, Selland Arena in Fresno's Convention Center. At times throughout the league's history, some games even if not involving the Falcons were held at Selland Arena, including several Championship Finals series throughout the 1970s.
A PSHL season ranged from 15 to 30 games each between anywhere from 4 to 8 teams. Franchises shifted frequently, often with new teams appearing the next season from the same cities. The mainstays of the league were the Falcons, the Los Angeles Bruins and later in the league's history, the Burbank or Los Angeles Jets and the West Covina or California Blackhawks (later just Hawks).
Falcons games were often paired with side attractions when it came to teams' marketing, including broomball and roller derby.
Following an experimental partnership with the Sunshine Hockey League in 1994–95, The Falcons became a charter member of the professional West Coast Hockey League to begin the 1995–96 season. The team was a member throughout the league's eight-year existence. During the 1997–98 season they were known as Fresno's Fighting Falcons. Fresno won the league's Taylor Cup championship for the 2001–02 season, defeating the Idaho Steelheads in the finals.
Along with other active WCHL teams, the Falcons joined the ECHL after the West Coast Hockey League was absorbed by the larger league in 2003.
Years | NHL team | AHL team [1] |
---|---|---|
2004–2006 | San Jose Sharks | Cleveland Barons |
2006–2008 | Worcester Sharks | |
2008–2009 | Chicago Blackhawks | Rockford IceHogs |
For most of its history, the team played at Fresno's Selland Arena, and their green and gold colors and hard-knocks play made them a staple of sports and entertainment in Fresno. The Falcons were the centerpieces of the league, as the Falcons dominated, winning sixteen league championships in 24 seasons.
The Falcons moved to the Save Mart Center on the campus of California State University, Fresno to coincide with their transfer to the ECHL in 2003. They played there until returning to Selland Arena in 2008.
On December 22, 2008, Fresno Hockey Club, LLC announced that the Fresno Falcons team would cease operations immediately citing operating cost due to dwindling attendance, lack of corporate sponsorships and the faltering economy. [2]
President Dave Dakers of the Victoria Salmon Kings ECHL team expressed some negative commentary on the Falcons team management abilities, but praised the team itself as being "competitive". The owners did not do all they could to salvage the situation, according to Dakers and gave up too easily as there were still other options available to minimize the economic damage. He was rather disappointed and not too pleased as quoted in the Victoria Times Colonist newspaper article. [3]
The Falcons were the second team that season to fold, following the Augusta Lynx. Arguments were made that the ECHL had expanded into markets that were unable to sustain their market, though the perception in Fresno's case was that the franchise had issues beyond that which prevented the team from being profitable. Fresno was without hockey at any level until the Fresno Monsters began play in the 2009–10 season in the Tier III Junior A Western States Hockey League. The city briefly hosted two junior teams called the Monsters from 2010 to 2013 when the Tier II North American Hockey League expanded into Fresno. In 2013, the NAHL Monsters relocated to Wenatchee, Washington; however, the Monsters continue to field a team in the WSHL.
Season | League | Division | GP | W | L | T | OTL | SOL | PTS | PCT | GF | GA | PIM | Coach(es) | Result |
1968–69 | Cal-Neva | CA-NV | 12 | 7 | 5 | 0 | - | - | 14 | 0.583 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Stuart Beaulne | San Joaquin Valley Champions |
1969–70 | Cal-Neva | CA-NV | 20 | 8 | 11 | 1 | - | - | 17 | 0.425 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | Did not qualify |
1970–71 | Cal-Neva | CA-NV | 13 | 10 | 1 | 2 | - | - | 22 | 0.846 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | Cal-Neva Hockey League Champions |
1971–72 | Cal-Neva | CA-NV | 19 | 14 | 5 | 0 | - | - | 28 | 0.737 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | Lost in Cal-Neva Finals to West Covina Eagles |
1972–73 | PSHL | PSHL | 15 | 12 | 2 | 1 | - | - | 25 | 0.833 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | PSHL champions |
1973–74 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 13 | 2 | 3 | - | - | 29 | 0.806 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | PSHL champions |
1974–75 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 14 | 2 | 2 | - | - | 30 | 0.833 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | PSHL champions |
1975–76 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 14 | 1 | 3 | - | - | 31 | 0.861 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | PSHL champions |
1976–77 | PSHL | PSHL | 22 | 8 | 11 | 3 | - | - | 19 | 0.432 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | Did not qualify |
1977–78 | PSHL | PSHL | 20 | 13 | 5 | 2 | - | - | 28 | 0.700 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | PSHL champions |
1978–79 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 12 | 3 | 3 | - | - | 30 | 0.750 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | Lost in PSHL Finals to Los Angeles Bruins |
1979–80 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 11 | 5 | 2 | - | - | 24 | 0.667 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | PSHL champions |
1980–81 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 11 | 6 | 1 | - | - | 23 | 0.639 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | Lost in PSHL Finals to Los Angeles Bruins |
1981–82 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 16 | 2 | 0 | - | - | 32 | 0.889 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | Lost in PSHL Finals to Los Angeles Bruins |
1982–83 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 14 | 3 | 1 | - | - | 29 | 0.806 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Lorne Nadeau | Lost in PSHL Finals to Los Angeles Bruins |
1983–84 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 13 | 3 | 2 | - | - | 28 | 0.778 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Darryl Lauer | PSHL champions |
1984–85 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 10 | 7 | 1 | - | - | 21 | 0.583 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Darryl Lauer | Lost in PSHL Finals to Los Angeles Bruins |
1985–86 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 15 | 2 | 1 | - | - | 31 | 0.861 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Darryl Lauer | PSHL champions |
1986–87 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 16 | 1 | 1 | - | - | 33 | 0.917 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Darryl Lauer | PSHL champions |
1987–88 | PSHL | PSHL | 20 | 12 | 5 | 3 | - | - | 24 | 0.675 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Darryl Lauer | Lost in PSHL Finals to Los Angeles Bruins |
1988–89 | PSHL | PSHL | 21 | 8 | 9 | 4 | - | - | 20 | 0.476 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Darryl Lauer | Lost in PSHL semi-finals to Burbank Jets |
1989–90 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 9 | 9 | 0 | - | - | 18 | 0.500 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Darryl Lauer | Lost in PSHL Finals to San Diego Surf |
1990–91 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 5 | 12 | 1 | - | - | 11 | 0.306 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Darryl Lauer | Did not qualify |
1991–92 | PSHL | PSHL | 18 | 12 | 4 | 2 | - | - | 26 | 0.722 | 106 | 82 | n/a | Darryl Lauer | Lost in PSHL Finals to Lake Arrowhead/Los Angeles Jets |
1992–93 | PSHL | PSHL | 24 | 16 | 5 | 3 | - | - | 35 | 0.729 | 208 | 115 | n/a | Darryl Lauer | Lost in PSHL Finals to California Hawks |
1993–94 | PSHL | PSHL | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | n/a | n/a | n/a | John Olver | PSHL champions |
1994–95 | PSHL | PSHL | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | n/a | n/a | n/a | John Olver | |
1995–96 | WCHL | WCHL | 58 | 30 | 21 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 67 | 0.578 | 270 | 232 | 1454 | John Olver | Lost in finals |
1996–97 | WCHL | WCHL | 64 | 38 | 20 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 82 | 0.641 | 313 | 254 | 1851 | Guy Gadowsky | Lost in round 1 |
1997–98 | WCHL | WCHLS | 64 | 33 | 29 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 68 | 0.531 | 273 | 262 | 2018 | Guy Gadowsky | Lost in round 1 |
1998–99 | WCHL | WCHLS | 70 | 35 | 31 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 74 | 0.529 | 257 | 296 | 2172 | Guy Gadowsky | Lost in round 2 |
1999–00 | WCHL | WCHLS | 72 | 27 | 38 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 61 | 0.424 | 262 | 307 | 2181 | Blaine Moore | Did not qualify |
2000–01 | WCHL | WCHLS | 72 | 44 | 22 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 94 | 0.653 | 259 | 221 | 1746 | Blaine Moore | Lost in round 1 |
2001–02 | WCHL | WCHLS | 72 | 33 | 31 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 74 | 0.514 | 242 | 267 | 2108 | Blaine Moore | WCHL Taylor Cup Champions |
2002–03 | WCHL | WCHL | 72 | 35 | 28 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 79 | 0.549 | 243 | 235 | 2170 | Blaine Moore | Lost in finals |
2003–04 | ECHL | Pacific | 72 | 23 | 43 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 52 | 0.361 | 187 | 275 | 1815 | Blaine Moore, Greg Spenrath | Did not qualify |
2004–05 | ECHL | West | 72 | 39 | 25 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 86 | 0.597 | 204 | 217 | 1800 | Greg Spenrath | Did not qualify |
2005–06 | ECHL | Pacific | 72 | 43 | 15 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 0.694 | 230 | 205 | 1572 | Matt Thomas | Lost in National Conference Finals (Alaska) |
2006–07 | ECHL | Pacific | 72 | 34 | 29 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 77 | 0.535 | 195 | 197 | 1555 | Matt Thomas | Lost in round 1 (Bakersfield) |
2007–08 | ECHL | Pacific | 72 | 42 | 22 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 92 | 0.639 | 242 | 216 | 1565 | Matt Thomas | Lost in round 1 (Utah) |
2008–09 | ECHL | Pacific | 30 | 18 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 38 | 0.633 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Matt Thomas | Team suspends operations |
Totals | 1333 | 725 | 473 | 85 | 49 | 0 | 1584 | 0.594 | 3491 | 3411 | 24007 |
1968–69 San Joaquin Valley Champions
1970–71 Cal-Neva Hockey League Champions
1972–73 PSHL champions
1973–74 PSHL champions
1974–75 PSHL champions
1975–76 PSHL champions
1977–78 PSHL champions
1979–80 PSHL champions
1983–84 PSHL champions
1985-86 PSHL champions
1986-87 PSHL champions
1993–94 PSHL champions
2001–02 Taylor Cup Champions (WCHL)
2005–06 Pacific Division Champions (ECHL)
The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). For the 2023–24 season, 31 of the 32 NHL teams have official affiliations with an AHL team, with only the Carolina Hurricanes having no such affiliation. When NHL teams do not have an AHL affiliate, players are assigned to AHL teams affiliated with other NHL franchises. Twenty-six AHL teams are located across the United States whereas the remaining six are situated in Canada. The league offices are located in Springfield, Massachusetts, and its current president is Scott Howson.
The ECHL is a professional ice hockey minor league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams across the United States and Canada. Competitively, it is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL).
The West Coast Hockey League was a professional minor ice hockey league active in the western United States from 1995 to 2003. The number of teams ranged from six to nine. The teams were located in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada and Washington.
The Idaho Steelheads are an American professional minor league ice hockey team based in Boise, Idaho, and a member of the ECHL. The Steelheads play in the Mountain Division of the ECHL's Western Conference since the 2016–17 season.
The Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL), founded in 1921, was a major professional ice hockey league originally based in the prairies of Canada. It was renamed the Western Hockey League (WHL) in 1925 and disbanded in 1926.
The Las Vegas Wranglers were a professional ice hockey team based in Las Vegas Valley. The Wranglers were members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the ECHL. The Wranglers were founded as an expansion franchise in 2003 following the ECHL's takeover of the West Coast Hockey League.
The Alaska Aces, known as the Anchorage Aces until 2003, was a professional ice hockey team in Anchorage, Alaska. Home games were played at Sullivan Arena in Anchorage. The Aces won three Kelly Cup championships, with their last championship following the 2013–14 ECHL season.
Selland Arena is a multi-purpose arena built in 1966 that makes up part of a four-venue complex of the Fresno Convention and Entertainment Center in Fresno, California. It is named after former Fresno mayor Arthur L. Selland and has had over 10 million people walk through its doors in its over 50-year history. The arena originally had a 6,582 seating capacity, but a US$10 million expansion project in 1981 increased the seating to its current capacity of 10,132. Before the 1997-1998 Fresno State basketball season, capacity was increased to 10,220. The Selland Arena underwent an additional $15 million renovation in November 2006, that included the installation of new seats, a new video replay scoreboard, message boards and a new ice-cooling system for hockey games.
The 2003–04 ECHL season was the 16th season of the ECHL. This was the first season that the league would be known as only the ECHL instead of East Coast Hockey League after the absorption of the former West Coast Hockey League teams. The Brabham Cup regular season champions were the San Diego Gulls and the Kelly Cup playoff champions were the Idaho Steelheads.
The 1925 Stanley Cup Finals saw the Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL) champion Victoria Cougars defeat the National Hockey League (NHL) champion Montreal Canadiens three games to one in a best-of-five game series. The Canadiens were substitute NHL representatives, as the final series to decide the NHL champion was not played.
The 2008–09 ECHL season was the 21st season of the ECHL.
The Pacific Southwest Hockey League was a semi-professional ice hockey league that operated in California, Nevada and Alaska starting in 1972 and ran through 1995, when its members were incorporated into the upstart professional West Coast Hockey League. The league operated as the California-Nevada Hockey League from 1968 to 1972.
The Colorado Gold Kings, previously known as the Alaska Gold Kings, were an American professional minor league ice hockey team based in Fairbanks, Alaska, and later Colorado Springs, Colorado. The Gold Kings were members of the West Coast Hockey League.
Stephen Paul Martinson is an American former professional ice hockey player and coach. He played 49 games in the National Hockey League with the Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, and Minnesota North Stars between 1987 and 1992. The rest of his playing career, which lasted from 1981 to 1996, was spent in various minor leagues. After retiring as a player he turned to coaching, and his 1,123 career professional coaching wins are the most ever for an American born ice hockey head coach.
The San Diego Gulls were a professional ice hockey team in the West Coast Hockey League (WCHL) and later in the ECHL. The team, the third to use the Gulls nickname, was founded in 1995 immediately upon the departure of the IHL team of the same name. The Gulls played at the San Diego Sports Arena.
Glen Gulutzan is a Canadian ice hockey coach and former player. He is currently an assistant coach for the Edmonton Oilers.
John Olver is a Canadian ice hockey player and coach known for his league championship teams in the West Coast Hockey League and ECHL.
The Reno Renegades were a short-lived American professional minor league ice hockey team based in Reno, Nevada. The team was a founding member of the West Coast Hockey League (WCHL).
The 2009–10 ECHL season was the 22nd season of the ECHL. It ran from October, 2009 until April, 2010, followed by the Kelly Cup playoffs which lasted until May 21, 2010 as the Cincinnati Cyclones won their second Kelly Cup championship in three years by defeating the Idaho Steelheads in five games. The league welcomed two franchises to the league for the 2009–10 season with the return of the Toledo Storm as the Toledo Walleye, who will play in the Lucas County Arena in Toledo, Ohio, after a two-year suspension of the franchise to allow for the construction of their new arena, and the admission of the Kalamazoo Wings as an expansion franchise who will play in Wings Stadium in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The ECHL held its annual All-Star Game and Skills Challenge on January 19–20 at Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, California, home of the Ontario Reign.
The Fresno Monsters are a junior ice hockey team based in Fresno, California. The team is a member of the United States Premier Hockey League and plays in the Premier Division. The Monsters' home venue is Gateway Ice Center.