Calgary Hitmen
Calgary Hitmen | |
---|---|
founding | 1995 |
history |
Calgary Hitmen since 1995 |
Stadion | Scotiabank Saddledome |
Location | Calgary , Alberta , Canada |
Team colors | gold, silver, copper |
league | Western Hockey League |
Conference | Eastern Conference |
division | Central Division |
Head coach | Mark French |
General manager | Mike Moore |
owner | Calgary Flames |
Memorial Cups | no |
Ed Chynoweth Cups | 1998/99 , 2009/10 |
The Calgary Hitmen are a Canadian ice hockey team from Calgary , Alberta and play in the Central Division of the Western Hockey League , one of the top three Canadian junior leagues . The Hitmen were founded in 1995, named after the former Calgary wrestler Bret "Hitman" Hart . They have been owned by the Calgary Flames since 1997 . The home game venue is the Scotiabank Saddledome . They are the third team in the city in the history of the Western Hockey League after the Calgary Centennials and Calgary Wranglers .
Since its inception, the Calgary Hitmen have finished the regular season four times as the best-point team and made it into the play-offs for 13 seasons in a row between 1998 and 2010 . In 1999 they won the President's Cup as WHL champions as the first team from Calgary , and they repeated this success eleven years later and won the championship trophy , which has now been renamed the Ed Chynoweth Cup .
history
The Hitmen were founded in 1995 by NHL professionals Theoren Fleury and Joe Sakic , wrestler Bret Hart , and 15 other investors, on the initiative of Hart. The club colors were initially pink and black, the colors Hart wore in the ring during his career.
In the first two seasons in the Western Hockey League (WHL) the success of the Hitmen failed due to poor defensive performance and so they were sold to the Calgary Flames in 1997 and the club colors were changed to gold, silver and copper.
In their possession there was an immediate increase in points of more than 100 percent and the hitmen were able to qualify for the playoffs for the first time with second position in their division. There they reached the conference finals straight away.
In the fourth year of their existence, they were able to finish the regular season in the WHL in first place in 1999 and then also won the playoffs. This qualified them for the Memorial Cup , in which they lost in the final against the Ottawa 67’s 6: 7 after overtime .
In the following season they reached 120 points and thus the highest value in club history, but were eliminated in the playoffs in the second round. In the 2009/10 season, the team won the Ed Chynoweth Cup as the WHL playoff winner .
At the U20 World Junior Championship in 2005 , the Hitmen put two players ( Andrew Ladd and Ryan Getzlaf ) for Team Canada , which won gold.
Trivia
The Teddy Bear Toss has become a good tradition among fans of the hitmen : immediately after their team's first goal in the run-up to Christmas, or alternatively after the first final siren, fans throw plush teddy bears onto the ice surface. With almost 29,000 teddy bears and other cuddly toys most recently (2015) that benefit needy and sick children and are often even given personally by the players, the fans from Calgary are currently by far the most generous.
Season statistics
Abbreviations: GP = games, W = wins, L = defeats, T = draws, OTL = defeats after overtime , SOL = defeats after shootout , Pts = points, GF = goals scored, GA = goals conceded
season | GP | W. | L. | T | OTL | GF | GA | Pts | space | Play-offs |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1995-96 | 72 | 18th | 51 | 3 | - | 222 | 359 | 39 | 5th, Central | not qualified |
1996-97 | 72 | 15th | 53 | 4th | - | 199 | 360 | 34 | 4th, Central | not qualified |
1997-98 | 72 | 40 | 28 | 4th | - | 265 | 232 | 84 | 1st, Central | Lost in the Eastern Conference Final |
1998-99 | 72 | 51 | 13 | 8th | - | 319 | 187 | 110 | 1. Central | President's Cup , lost in the Memorial Cup final |
1999-2000 | 72 | 58 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 313 | 182 | 120 | 1. Central | Lost in the Eastern Conference Final |
2000-01 | 72 | 37 | 27 | 5 | 3 | 284 | 250 | 82 | 3rd, Central | Lost in the Eastern Conference semifinals |
2001-02 | 72 | 33 | 33 | 5 | 1 | 271 | 281 | 72 | 3rd, Central | Lost in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals |
2002-03 | 72 | 27 | 36 | 7th | 2 | 240 | 260 | 63 | 4th, Central | Lost in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals |
2003-04 | 72 | 34 | 24 | 8th | 6th | 220 | 187 | 82 | 3rd, Central | Lost in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals |
2004-05 | 72 | 34 | 23 | 9 | 6th | 200 | 183 | 83 | 3rd, Central | Lost in the Eastern Conference semifinals |
2005-06 | 72 | 47 | 18th | 3 | 4th | 195 | 155 | 101 | 2., Central | Lost in the Eastern Conference semifinals |
2006-07 | 72 | 39 | 26th | 3 | 4th | 251 | 205 | 85 | 3rd, Central | Lost in the Eastern Conference Final |
2007-08 | 72 | 47 | 20th | 1 | 4th | 259 | 166 | 99 | 1st, Central | Lost in the Eastern Conference Final |
2008-09 | 72 | 59 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 330 | 159 | 122 | 1st, Central | Defeat in the final |
2009-10 | 72 | 52 | 17th | 1 | 2 | 269 | 177 | 107 | 1st, Central | Ed Chynoweth Cup , loss in Memorial Cup semifinals |
2010-11 | 72 | 20th | 47 | 3 | 2 | 171 | 271 | 45 | 6th, Central | not qualified |
2011-12 | 72 | 44 | 25th | 2 | 1 | 273 | 221 | 91 | 2., Central | Lost in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals |
2012–13 | 72 | 46 | 21st | 1 | 4th | 266 | 204 | 97 | 2., Central | Lost in the Eastern Conference Final |
2013-14 | 72 | 48 | 17th | 3 | 4th | 287 | 207 | 103 | 2., Central | Lost in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals |
Internal team records
Regular season
(Status: end of season 2011/12)
|
|
|
|
|
|
NHL alumni
40 players from the Calgary Hitmen roster were selected by the teams in the annual NHL Entry Draft . The first was Borys Prozenko in the 1996 draft in the third round in a total of 77th position. The Pittsburgh Penguins brought him into their organization. The earliest picks in history are Pavel Brendl , 1999 New York Rangers, and Andrew Ladd , 2004 Carolina Hurricanes, both of whom were selected fourth overall. Nine Hitmen players were drafted in the first round.
35 players have played in the NHL. The first was Ryan Bast in the 1998–99 season, with two games for the Philadelphia Flyers . Andrew Ladd won the Stanley Cup twice , in 2006 with the Carolina Hurricanes and in 2010 with the Chicago Blackhawks. Ryan Getzlaf won the famous 2007 trophy with the Anaheim Ducks.
- Karl Alzner
- Ryan Bast
- Kris Beech
- Johnny Boychuk
- Pavel Brendl
- Barry chest
- Brett Carson
- Brodie Dupont
- Justin Falk
- Owen Fussey
- TJ Galiardi
- Ryan Getzlaf
- Darcy Hordichuk
- Martin Jones
- Dustin Kohn
- Brent Krahn
- Jordan Krestanovich
- Andrew Ladd
- Carson McMillan
- Brad Moran
- Chris Nielsen
- Stephen Peat
- Matt Pettinger
- Alex Plante
- Justin Pogge
- Paul Postma
- Konstantin Pushkarev
- Victor Rask
- Travis Sanheim
- Jeff Schultz
- Ray Schultz
- Brandon Segal
- Fredrik Sjöström
- Jerred Smithson
- Rastislav Staňa
- Michael Stone
- Brad Stuart
- Ryan Tobler
- Jake Virtanen
- Ryan White
Web links
- Official website of the Calgary Hitmen (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ N24: When suddenly 28,815 teddy bears fly onto the ice ; Retrieved December 9, 2015