Phoenix Cobras | |
---|---|
City | Phoenix, Arizona |
Founded | 1994 |
Home arena | Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum |
Colors | Red, Black, Yellow, White |
Murphy Cups | None |
Conference Championships | None |
Division Championships | None |
Franchise history | |
Phoenix Cobras (1994–1995) Empire State Cobras (1997–1999) |
The Phoenix Cobras were a professional roller hockey team based in Phoenix, Arizona, United States that played in Roller Hockey International. [1]
The team folded after the 1995 season, was sold and moved to the Albany, New York, area and changed their name to the Empire State Cobras. [2]
The Arizona Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Coyotes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and play at Mullett Arena in Tempe. They first played at America West Arena in downtown Phoenix from 1996 to 2003 and then played at Glendale's Gila River Arena from 2003 to 2022.
Jerry Colangelo is an American businessman and sports executive. He formerly owned the Phoenix Suns of the NBA, the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, the Arizona Sandsharks of the Continental Indoor Soccer League, the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena Football League, and the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball. He was also instrumental in the relocation of the original Winnipeg Jets team in the NHL to Phoenix to become the Phoenix Coyotes. In 2014, Grand Canyon University renamed its Christian based school of business after Jerry Colangelo, replacing Ken Blanchard's namesake. From December 2015 to April 2016, Colangelo served as chairman of basketball operations for the Philadelphia 76ers, before serving as a special advisor to the team until December 2018.
The Albany River Rats were a minor league professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They played in Albany, New York at the Times Union Center.
Roller Hockey International was a professional inline hockey league that operated in North America from 1993 to 1999. It was the first major professional league for inline hockey.
Desert Diamond Arena is an indoor entertainment arena located in Glendale, Arizona, which anchors the 223-acre, $1 billion Westgate Entertainment District.
MVP Arena is an indoor arena located in Albany, New York. It is configurable and can accommodate from 6,000 to 17,500 people, with a maximum seating capacity of 15,500 for sporting events.
Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum is a 14,870-seat multi-purpose indoor arena in Phoenix, Arizona, United States, located at the Arizona State Fairgrounds. It hosted the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association from 1968 to 1992, as well as indoor soccer, roller derby and major and minor league ice hockey teams.
The Buffalo Stampede were a Roller Hockey International team based in Buffalo, New York that was founded in the second season of the RHI. The team played at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium from 1994 to 1995. The team won the 1994 RHI Murphy Cup.
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KGME is a commercial radio station in Phoenix, Arizona, featuring a sports format known as "Fox Sports 910." Owned by iHeartMedia, the station's studios are located in Phoenix near Sky Harbor International Airport, and broadcasts with 5,000 watts—directional at night—from a transmitter site at the intersection of 30th and Maryland Avenues in north Phoenix. In addition to a standard analog transmission, KGME is relayed over the second HD Radio subchannel of KESZ and is available online via iHeartRadio.
The Western States Hockey League (WSHL) was a junior ice hockey league established in 1993. It was sanctioned by the United Hockey Union, the junior hockey branch of the Amateur Athletic Union. Previously, it was sanctioned by USA Hockey from 1994 to 2011. Teams played approximately 50 games in the regular season schedule, mimicking what players would experience at the collegiate level. As of January 2022, there are no active teams in the league following the creation of the Can-Am Junior Hockey League by former WSHL teams.
The Denver Rangers were a professional hockey team based in Denver, Colorado that played for two seasons in the late 1980s. They were a member of the International Hockey League, and an affiliate of the New York Rangers. The team was originally known as the Indianapolis Checkers, but after the 1986–1987 season the team moved to Denver. The team was originally known as the Colorado Rangers for the 1987–1988 season. After the 1988–1989 season the team moved to Phoenix, Arizona and became known as the Phoenix Roadrunners.
The Phoenix Roadrunners were a minor league professional ice hockey team in the International Hockey League. The team was housed at Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The team played in the IHL from 1989 to 1997. The IHL Roadrunners were named for a World Hockey Association team of the same name. The IHL Roadrunners used a similar skating cartoon bird logo as the WHA team with different colors, without the outline of the state of Arizona.
Phoenix Roadrunners has been the name of several ice hockey teams in Phoenix, Arizona:
The Empire State Cobras were a one-year franchise in Roller Hockey International during the summer of 1996, based out of Glens Falls, New York. The Cobras drew fewer than 1,000 per game at home and owner Jerry Shorthouse ran out of money before the end of the season.
The Phoenix Coyotes, a professional ice hockey team now known as the Arizona Coyotes and playing in the National Hockey League (NHL), filed for bankruptcy in 2009 after incurring several hundred million dollars of losses since their move to Phoenix, Arizona from Winnipeg, Manitoba, where they were known as the Winnipeg Jets. A bankruptcy court rejected a plan to sell the team and move it to Canada, and the team was purchased by the NHL. The NHL operated the team in Phoenix for four seasons while seeking a new owner. After several prospective purchases fell through, the team was finally sold in the summer of 2013.
Sports in New York's Capital District are very popular, and there is a rich history of professional teams and college athletics.
The Utica Comets are a professional ice hockey team based in Utica, New York, with home games at the Adirondack Bank Center. They are members of the North Division in the Eastern Conference of the American Hockey League (AHL) and affiliated with the National Hockey League's (NHL) New Jersey Devils. The team was established when the Vancouver Canucks relocated their AHL franchise to Utica for the 2013–14 season.
The Albany Empire was a professional arena football team based in Albany, New York, that began play in the Arena Football League (AFL) in 2018. Home games were played at MVP Arena located in downtown Albany.