History
The franchise was originally known as the Wenatchee Wild in Wenatchee, Washington, before relocating to Hidalgo, Texas, to become the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees. [1]
On June 1, 2015, NAHL insiders began reporting the Killer Bees franchise was going to relocate to Philadelphia suburb of Aston, Pennsylvania, and the IceWorks Skating Complex. [2] The Killer Bees would subsequently announce that the team was ceasing operations for the 2015–16 season unless the team president, Gilbert Saenz, could find a local alternative to save the team. However, on June 9, the NAHL announced that the franchise was relocating to become the Aston Rebels. [3] Joe Coombs remains as the head coach. The Rebels were placed in the NAHL's new East Division for their inaugural season.
In 2017, the team relocated to the Class of 1923 Arena at the University of Pennsylvania in nearby Philadelphia and became the Philadelphia Rebels. [4] The Philadelphia Rebels again finished at the top of their division in the regular season before losing to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights in the division finals of the playoffs. After one season, the Rebels faced poor attendance numbers and scheduling issues. In June 2018, the team was relocated to Northwest Arena in Jamestown, New York and became the Jamestown Rebels. [5] [6] The Rebels are the second NAHL team to play in Jamestown after the Jamestown Ironmen ceased operations in 2013.
Due to the on-going restrictions in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic in the state of New York, the team suspended operations for the 2020–21 season. [7] [8]
On May 17, 2022, the NAHL announced that it had sold the franchise to another owner and was relocating the Rebels back to suburban Philadelphia, playing out of Hollydell Ice Arena in Washington Township, Gloucester County, New Jersey. [9]
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.
Kevin Lars Constantine is an American ice hockey coach who previously served as the head coach of the Wenatchee Wild of the Western Hockey League (WHL). The Wenatchee Wild’s first coach in franchise history was suspended on Sept. 24, 2023, after the league received a complaint regarding his conduct and began an investigation. Constantine has coached hockey teams in the NHL, WHL, IHL, AHL and numerous major junior hockey leagues. He was also the former head coach of HC Ambri-Piotta in the Swiss National League A. He also coached the North Iowa Huskies for a brief time. Since 2022, he is the head coach of the Hungarian national ice hockey team.
The North American Hockey League (NAHL) is one of the top junior hockey leagues in the United States and is in its 49th season of operation in 2023–24. It is the only Tier II junior league sanctioned by USA Hockey, and acts as an alternative for those who would not or did not make the roster of a team in the Major Junior Canadian Hockey League (CHL) nor Tier I United States Hockey League (USHL). The NAHL is one of the oldest junior hockey leagues in the United States and is headquartered in Addison, Texas.
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 Payne Arena is a multi-purpose complex, in Hidalgo, Texas. It was formerly known as Dodge Arena from 2003 until February 2010, State Farm Arena from 2010 to September 2018, and then State Farm Hidalgo Arena for one year.
The Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees were a Tier II Junior A ice hockey team playing in the North American Hockey League. The team was based in the Rio Grande Valley in Hidalgo, Texas, just south of McAllen, and played their home games at State Farm Arena.
The Bozeman Icedogs are a Tier III Junior ice hockey team located in Bozeman, Montana. The team is a member of the North American 3 Hockey League (NA3HL). The Icedogs play home games at the Haynes Pavilion located at the Gallatin County Fairgrounds.
The Fairbanks Ice Dogs are a Tier II junior ice hockey team in the North American Hockey League's Midwest Division. The Ice Dogs play home games at the 2,200-seat Big Dipper Ice Arena in Fairbanks, Alaska.
The Eastern Hockey League (EHL) is an American junior ice hockey league with teams in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic United States. The EHL was officially announced on June 6, 2013, after the Atlantic Junior Hockey League welcomed six new members from the old Eastern Junior Hockey League and the AJHL re-branded itself under the EHL banner
The Amarillo Wranglers are a Tier II junior ice hockey team in the North American Hockey League's South Division. The team's home arena is the Amarillo Civic Center in Amarillo, Texas.
The North American 3 Hockey League (NA3HL) is an American Tier III junior ice hockey league that consists of teams from Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Sanctioned by USA Hockey, for most of the league's existence, the winner of the NA3HL playoffs would advance to play for the Tier III National Championship, however, this has not been held since 2015.
The Jamestown Ironmen were a Tier II junior ice hockey team in the North American Hockey League. The Ironmen played their home games at the Jamestown Savings Bank Ice Arena in Jamestown, New York.
The Wenatchee Wild were a Junior A ice hockey team. The team played its home games at the 4,300-seat Town Toyota Center in Wenatchee, Washington. The team joined the North American Hockey League as an expansion club for the 2008–09 season, and in that time they were well known for their rivalry with the Fairbanks Ice Dogs. The Wild moved to the British Columbia Hockey League for 2015–16, after seeking approval from both Hockey Canada and USA Hockey for three years. In 2023, the ownership of the Wild purchased and relocated the Winnipeg Ice, a major junior Western Hockey League franchise, under the Wenatchee Wild brand, but ceased operations of their junior A team.
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.
The Amarillo Bulls were a Tier II junior ice hockey team based in Amarillo, Texas. They were a member of the North American Hockey League's South Division and played home games in the Amarillo Civic Center.
The Corpus Christi IceRays are a Tier II junior ice hockey team playing in the North American Hockey League (NAHL). The IceRays are based in Corpus Christi, Texas, and play in the North American Hockey League's South Division. The "IceRays" moniker derives from the many different species of stingrays that inhabit the nearby Gulf of Mexico.
North American 3 Eastern Hockey League (NA3EHL) was a USA Hockey-sanctioned Tier III junior ice hockey league. The league had teams in the New England and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. In 2016, the league merged with the North American 3 Hockey League.
The Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees were a minor league professional ice hockey team that played in the Central Hockey League. The team was based in the Rio Grande Valley in Hidalgo, Texas, just south of McAllen, and played their home games at State Farm Arena.
The USA Central Hockey League (USACHL) was a junior ice hockey league based in Texas. The league was not sanctioned by any outside hockey governing body, but was structured as a "free-to-play" junior league similar to USA Hockey's Tier I and Tier II as opposed to the "pay-to-play" Tier III leagues.
The Danbury Jr. Hat Tricks are a USA Hockey-sanctioned junior ice hockey organization based in Danbury, Connecticut. The organization has junior teams in the Tier II North American Hockey League and the Tier III North American 3 Hockey League, both of which play home games at the Danbury Ice Arena.
