| Portland Pirates | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| City | Portland, Maine |
| League | American Hockey League |
| Conference | Eastern Conference |
| Division | Atlantic Division |
| Founded | 1993 |
| Home arena | Cumberland County Civic Center |
| Colors | Black, red, silver, white |
| Owner(s) | Brian Petrovek |
| General manager | Bob Murray |
| Head coach | Kevin Dineen |
| Media | Portland Press Herald |
| Affiliates | Buffalo Sabres (NHL) |
| Franchise history | |
| 1975 to 1982 | Erie Blades |
| 1982 to 1993 | Baltimore Skipjacks |
| 1993 to present | Portland Pirates |
| Championships | |
| Division Championships | 1 (2005–06) |
| Conference Championships | 1 (1995–96) |
| Calder Cups | 1 (1993–94) |
The Portland Pirates are a minor professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League, serving as the top farm team for the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League. They play in Portland, Maine, at the Cumberland County Civic Center. The franchise was previously known as the Baltimore Skipjacks from 1982 to 1993.
Contents |
History
The Portland Pirates were founded in 1993–94 as an affiliate of the Washington Capitals. The team was previously known as the Baltimore Skipjacks, who relocated to Maine. The Pirates replaced the void made by the Maine Mariners who departed to become the Providence Bruins a year earlier. The Capitals affiliation ended after 12 seasons in 2005.
The Pirates first season proved to be their most successful one, as they won the Calder Cup with a 43–27–10 record. Their next season they had 104 points, but were upset in the 1st round of the playoffs. In the 1995–96 season, they again reached the Calder Cup Finals, despite a subpar record of 32–34–10, but lost to the Rochester Americans.
Since then, it has been a roller coaster ride for the Pirates. Despite an excellent 100 point season, they were eliminated from the playoffs in the first round in 1999–00.
For the first four seasons, they were coached by current Nashville Predators head coach Barry Trotz. They played host to the AHL All-Star Classic in 2003.
In the 2006 AHL playoffs, the Pirates went for a thrilling playoff run, only to be defeated by the eventual Calder Cup-winning Hershey Bears in a dramatic seven-game series.
In 2005 the Pirates announced a five year lease extension at the Cumberland County Civic Center, ending speculation that the team might relocate. The Pirates also signed a three year affiliation agreement with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in 2005, but the Ducks announced on June 3, 2008, that they were affiliating with the Iowa Stars instead of renewing the agreement.
The Sabres era
On June 10, 2008, the Pirates and the Buffalo Sabres announced that they had reached a new affiliation agreement, ending several months of speculation.[1]
On August 5, 2008, the team announced that Kevin Dineen has been retained as head coach.[2]
On February 10, 2009, the team played in Buffalo at HSBC Arena for the first time before a crowd of 11,144. The Pirates lost 4-3 in a shootout to the Albany River Rats. The Sabres faithfull were pleased with the aggressive play and numerous fights during the game. It has been announced that the Pirates will play in Buffalo twice in 2009-10. The first game will be played on November 12 and the second will be March 7; both games will be against the Rochester Americans (the Sabres' previous AHL affiliate).
- The market was previously home to
- Maine Mariners (1977–1992)
Season-by-season results
Regular season
| Season | Games | Won | Lost | Tied | OTL | SOL | Points | Goals for |
Goals against |
Standing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993–94 | 80 | 43 | 27 | 10 | 0 | — | 96 | 328 | 269 | 2nd, North |
| 1994–95 | 80 | 46 | 22 | 12 | 0 | — | 104 | 333 | 233 | 2nd, North |
| 1995–96 | 80 | 32 | 34 | 10 | 4 | — | 78 | 282 | 283 | 3rd, North |
| 1996–97 | 80 | 37 | 26 | 10 | 7 | — | 91 | 279 | 264 | 3rd, New England |
| 1997–98 | 80 | 33 | 33 | 12 | 2 | — | 80 | 241 | 247 | 3rd, Atlantic |
| 1998–99 | 80 | 23 | 48 | 7 | 2 | — | 55 | 214 | 273 | 5th, Atlantic |
| 1999–00 | 80 | 46 | 23 | 10 | 1 | — | 103 | 256 | 202 | 2nd, New England |
| 2000–01 | 80 | 34 | 40 | 4 | 2 | — | 74 | 250 | 280 | 5th, New England |
| 2001–02 | 80 | 30 | 31 | 15 | 4 | — | 79 | 220 | 225 | 4th, North |
| 2002–03 | 80 | 33 | 28 | 13 | 6 | — | 85 | 221 | 195 | 4th, North |
| 2003–04 | 80 | 32 | 27 | 13 | 8 | — | 85 | 156 | 160 | 5th, Atlantic |
| 2004–05 | 80 | 34 | 34 | — | 6 | 6 | 80 | 175 | 242 | 6th, Atlantic |
| 2005–06 | 80 | 53 | 19 | — | 5 | 3 | 114 | 306 | 241 | 1st, Atlantic |
| 2006–07 | 80 | 37 | 31 | — | 3 | 9 | 86 | 225 | 232 | 6th, Atlantic |
| 2007–08 | 80 | 45 | 26 | — | 5 | 4 | 99 | 238 | 215 | 3rd, Atlantic |
| 2008–09 | 80 | 39 | 31 | — | 3 | 7 | 88 | 249 | 239 | 3rd, Atlantic |
Playoffs
| Season | Prelim | 1st round | 2nd round | 3rd round | Finals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993–94 | — | W, 4–1, ALB | W, 4–2, ADIR | bye | W, 4–2, MONC |
| 1994–95 | — | L, 3–4, PROV | — | — | — |
| 1995–96 | — | W, 3–1, WOR | W, 4–2, SPR | W, 4–3, SJNB | L, 3–4, ROCH |
| 1996–97 | — | L, 2–3, SPR | — | — | — |
| 1997–98 | — | W, 3–1, FRED | L, 2–4, SJNB | — | — |
| 1998–99 | Out of playoffs. | ||||
| 1999–00 | — | L, 1–3, WOR | — | — | — |
| 2000–01 | — | L, 0–3, SJNB | — | — | — |
| 2001–02 | Out of playoffs. | ||||
| 2002–03 | L, 1–2, MTB | — | — | — | — |
| 2003–04 | W, 2–0, PROV | L, 1–4, HART | — | — | — |
| 2004–05 | Out of playoffs. | ||||
| 2005–06 | — | W, 4–2, PROV | W, 4–2, HART | L, 3–4, HER | — |
| 2006–07 | Out of playoffs. | ||||
| 2007–08 | — | W, 4–1, HART | W, 4–2, PROV | L, 3–4, WBS | — |
| 2008–09 | — | L, 1–4, PROV | — | — | — |
Team records
Single season
- Goals: 41
Michel Picard (1993–94) - Assists: 73 Jeff Nelson (1993–94)
- Points: 107 Jeff Nelson (1993–94)
- Points (By a Defenseman): 51 Marc-Andre Gragnani (2008-09)
- Penalty minutes: 355 Mark Major (1997–98)
- GAA: 1.99 Maxime Ouellet (2003–04)
- SV%: .930 Maxime Ouellet (2003–04)
Career
- Career goals: 147 Kent Hulst
- Career assists: 224 Andrew Brunette
- Career points: 360 Kent Hulst
- Career penalty minutes: 797 Kevin Kaminski
- Career goaltending wins: 79 Martin Brochu
- Career shutouts: 17 Maxime Ouellet
- Career games: 473 Kent Hulst
Roster
Updated December 4, 2009.[1][2]
|
|
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Player | Catches | Birthplace | ||
| -- | |
Patrick Lalime | L | Saint-Bonaventure, Quebec | |
| 30 |  |
J.P. Lamoureux | L | Grand Folks, North Dakota | |
|
|
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Player | Shoots | Birthplace | ||
| 2 | |
Cliff Loya | L | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | |
| 3 | |
Matt MacDonald | L | Niagara Falls, Ontario | |
| 5 | |
Paul Baier | R | Summit, New Jersey | |
| 6 | |
Mike Weber | L | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | |
| 14 | |
Zach Tarkir | R | Fresno, California | |
| 17 | |
Marc-Andre Gragnani | L | Montréal, Quebec | |
| 28 | |
Mike Kostka | R | Etobicoke, Ontario | |
| 36 | |
Kenny McAulay | L | Baddeck, Nova Scotia | |
| 55 | |
Michael Funk | L | Abbotsford, British Columbia | |
|
|
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Player | Position | Shoots | Birthplace | ||
| 7 | |
Dylan Hunter | LW | R | Quebec City, Quebec | |
| 15 |  |
Felix Schutz | C | L | Erding, Germany | |
| 19 | |
Nathan Gerbe | C | L | Oxford, Michigan | |
| 21 | |
Derek Whitmore | LW | L | Rochester, New York | |
| 22 | |
Kyle Rank | RW | R | Elmira, Ontario | |
| 25 | |
Mark Mancari | RW | R | London, Ontario | |
| 47 | |
Philip Gogulla | LW | L | Düsseldorf, Germany | |
AHL awards and trophies
|
Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award |
Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award
James H. Ellery Memorial Awards
|
References
- ^ "Sabres to parent Portland". buffalonews.com. 2008-06-10. http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/story/366680.html. Retrieved 2008-06-10.
- ^ "Dineen Named Head Coach". sabres.nhl.com. 2008-08-05. http://sabres.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=379388. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
External links
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