West Coast Hockey League

Last updated
West Coast Hockey League
West Coast Hockey League logo.png
Logo from 1997 to 2003
Formerly Pacific Hockey League
Sport Ice hockey
Founded1995
FounderBruce Taylor
Ceased2003
Replaced by ECHL (partial)
No. of teams14 (6–9 in any single season)
CountryUnited States
Last
champion(s)		 San Diego Gulls
Most titles San Diego Gulls (5)

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.

Contents

The surviving teams of the West Coast Hockey League are part of the ECHL.

History

Beginnings

Original WCHL logo Wchl.PNG
Original WCHL logo

The WCHL was a successor organization of the semi-professional Pacific Hockey League. Three former PHL teams, the Alaska Gold Kings (Fairbanks, Alaska), Anchorage Aces (Anchorage, Alaska), and Fresno Falcons (Fresno, California) were joined by the Bakersfield Fog (Bakersfield, California), Reno Renegades (Reno, Nevada) and San Diego Gulls (San Diego, California) to become the founding member teams of the WCHL, with British Columbia businessman Bruce Taylor recognized as the league's founding father. The league retained these teams in a single division for its first two seasons, and played regular season games against a "Red Army" team from Russia (CKA-Amur, now Amur Khabarovsk) for the 1995–96 and 1996–97 seasons. [1] [2]

Expansion

In the league's third season in 1997–98 the Alaska Gold Kings suspended operations. The remaining teams were joined by the expansion Idaho Steelheads (Boise, Idaho), Phoenix Mustangs (Phoenix, Arizona), Tacoma Sabercats (Tacoma, Washington) and Tucson Gila Monsters (Tucson, Arizona). The larger league was then split into Northern and Southern Divisions. The teams in Reno and Fresno changed their names to the Reno Rage and Fresno's Fighting Falcons respectively.

The following season the Gold Kings relocated to Colorado Springs, Colorado, and rejoined the league as the Colorado Gold Kings. The Fresno team reverted to its original name and the Bakersfield Fog renamed themselves the Bakersfield Condors. However, the Reno Rage ceased operations before the 1998–99 season while the Tucson Gila Monsters folded 21 games into the season. The WCHL then remained stable as an eight-team league after Tucson's departure and through the 1999–2000 season.

In 2000–01, the Long Beach Ice Dogs of the International Hockey League joined the WCHL.

Decline and absorption into ECHL

The league began to contract in 2001–02 after the Phoenix Mustangs folded before the season. Before the 2002–03 season, the WCHL's last as an independent league, the Tacoma Sabercats and Colorado Gold Kings folded. The WCHL played as a single-table league in 2002–03 as it had its first two seasons.

In 2003, the WCHL was absorbed by the East Coast Hockey League. In a change reflective of the nationwide presence of the ECHL, the East Coast Hockey League changed its name to "ECHL" on May 19, 2003, as a direct result of the absorption. The six remaining WCHL teams (Alaska, Bakersfield, Fresno, Idaho, Long Beach and San Diego) joined the West and Pacific Divisions of the ECHL's National Conference, as did a planned WCHL team in Las Vegas, Nevada, which became the Las Vegas Wranglers. The Anchorage Aces renamed themselves the Alaska Aces before joining the ECHL.

Legacy

With the 2015 move of the Bakersfield Condors to Norfolk, Virginia, to become the Norfolk Admirals and the Alaska Aces folding in 2017, only one former WCHL team, the Idaho Steelheads, remain active in the ECHL in their original market. Efforts to resurrect the Reno Renegades/Rage organization as an ECHL team have been repeatedly delayed by problems in finding a suitable home arena in the Reno area. [3] However, since 2003 former WCHL teams have accounted for five Kelly Cup championships in the ECHL, Idaho in 2004 and 2007, and Alaska in 2006, 2011 and 2014. The ECHL's Bruce Taylor Trophy, presented to the Western Conference playoff champion, is named in recognition of the WCHL's founding father. [4]

Teams

USA Region West location map.svg
Black pog.svg
Black pog.svg
Black pog.svg
Red pog.svg
Black pog.svg
Black pog.svg
Black pog.svg
Black pog.svg
Black pog.svg
Black pog.svg
class=notpageimage|
Location of historical WCHL teams, 1995–2003. Red dots indicate teams active in the ECHL as of the 2015–16 season. Note teams were not necessarily contemporaneous with each other. For Alaska-based teams, see map below.
USA Alaska location map.svg
Black pog.svg
Black pog.svg
class=notpageimage|
Location of historical WCHL teams in Alaska.

Timeline

West Coast Hockey League

Taylor Cup

The WCHL's championship trophy was known as the Taylor Cup. It was named after the founder of the league, Bruce Taylor, who also originally owned three of the six founding teams (Bakersfield, Fresno and Reno). The San Diego Gulls were by far the most successful postseason team in WCHL history, winning five of the eight Taylor Cup championships awarded.

YearWinnerRunner up
1996 San Diego GullsFresno Falcons
1997 San Diego GullsAnchorage Aces
1998 San Diego GullsTacoma Sabercats
1999 Tacoma SabercatsSan Diego Gulls
2000 Phoenix MustangsTacoma Sabercats
2001 San Diego GullsIdaho Steelheads
2002 Fresno FalconsIdaho Steelheads
2003 San Diego GullsFresno Falcons

Taylor Cups by team

TeamsChampionshipsRunner up
San Diego Gulls51
Tacoma Sabercats12
Fresno Falcons12
Phoenix Mustangs10
Idaho Steelheads02
Anchorage Aces01

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ECHL</span> Ice hockey league in North America

The ECHL is a minor professional ice hockey 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 league serves as a farm system to the AHL and the National Hockey League (NHL).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Idaho Steelheads</span> Professional minor league ice hockey team in Boise, Idaho

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fresno Falcons</span> Former ice hockey team in Fresno, California

The Fresno Falcons are an adult travel inline hockey team and were a minor league hockey team. The ice hockey Falcons 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. In 2024, a new iteration of the Falcons would be formed as an adult travel inline hockey team, They are located in Fresno, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Las Vegas Wranglers</span> Defunct minor professional ice hockey team

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alaska Aces (ECHL)</span> Defunct ice hockey team

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.

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western States Hockey League</span> Amateur ice hockey league

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kimbi Daniels</span> Canadian ice hockey player

Kimball J. Daniels is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played parts of two seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Philadelphia Flyers.

Christopher Jon Marinucci is an American former professional ice hockey player who played briefly in the NHL with the Los Angeles Kings and the New York Islanders. He also played with the Denver Grizzlies, Utah Grizzlies, Phoenix Roadrunners, Chicago Wolves, Kokudo Tokyo, Eisbären Berlin, Idaho Steelheads, IF Björklöven and Storhamar Dragons.

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colorado Gold Kings</span> Minor league ice hockey team

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tacoma Sabercats</span> Ice hockey team in Tacoma, Washington

The Tacoma Sabercats were an American professional minor league ice hockey team based in Tacoma, Washington. The team began play in the West Coast Hockey League as of the 1997–98 season.

John Olver is a Canadian ice hockey player and coach known for his league championship teams in the West Coast Hockey League and ECHL.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Idaho Jr. Steelheads</span> Ice hockey team in McCall, Idaho

The Idaho Jr. Steelheads, also called the Idaho IceCats, were a junior ice hockey team based in McCall, Idaho. The team played in the Western States Hockey League (WSHL) and home games were held at Manchester Ice & Event Centre in McCall. The team previously played some home games at Idaho Ice World and CenturyLink Arena in Boise, the latter being the home of the ECHL Idaho Steelheads. The team had been one of the most successful in the WSHL, winning five Thorne Cup championships over six seasons and appeared in seven straight between 2010 and 2017.

The 1997-98 West Coast Hockey League season was the third season of the West Coast Hockey League, a North American minor professional league. Nine teams participated in the regular season, and the San Diego Gulls were the league champions. In addition to league play, WCHL teams played regular season games against the Russian Superleague team CKA-Amur.

The 1998–99 West Coast Hockey League season was the fourth season of the West Coast Hockey League, a North American minor professional league. Nine teams began the regular season, although the Tucson Gila Monsters folded after 21 games. Tucson's unexpected mid-season exit created schedule irregularities, causing some teams to play 70 regular season games while others played 71.

The 2014 Kelly Cup Playoffs of the ECHL started following the April 13th conclusion of the 2013–14 ECHL regular season.

The Pacific Hockey League (PHL) was a short lived semi-professional ice hockey league in the western United States in the 1990s. The league was formed by a merger of two previous semi-professional leagues, the Pacific Southwest Hockey League and Pacific Northwest Hockey League. Several PHL teams became charter members of the professional West Coast Hockey League in 1995.

Jack Michaels is an American ice hockey announcer who is currently the play-by-play announcer for Edmonton Oilers broadcasts on 630 CHED and Sportsnet television. He was previously the announcer for the Colorado Gold Kings of the West Coast Hockey League (WCHL) from 1999 to 2002, and the Alaska Aces of the ECHL from 2002 to 2010.

References

  1. ↑ "Puget Sound's last pro hockey team, the Tacoma Sabercats, didn't last long but won big". www.nhltoseattle.com. Retrieved 2024-10-23.
  2. ↑ "Red Army hockey team [WCHL] statistics and history". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved 2017-12-15.
  3. ↑ Developer is working to bring pro team back to Reno
  4. ↑ "ECHL TROPHIES". www.echl.com. Retrieved 2024-10-23.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.