connecticut hockey

Hockey History: The Beast of New Haven

/ Rich Sports Talk / 1 Comment
The team that inspired my generation

The team that inspired my generation

April 9, 1993 was the end of an era for New Haven hockey when the New Haven Senators played their final game at the New Haven Coliseum. The Senators single season in the Elm City was one that’s often forgotten. When the Ottawa Senators bought the Night Hawks in 1992 they dropped the Night Hawks namesake, which was blasphemous among fans who supported the team for 20 years. The diehard Night Hawks’ fans despised the change so much that they decided not to attend Senator’s games. After a terrible lone season the Senators left and with them professional hockey in New Haven.

Fast forward to the summer of 1997, when David Gregory purchased the Carolina Monarchs brought a franchise back to New Haven. After years of an empty arena, a team would once again breathe life into the old Coliseum. Still this new team needed an identity. It was decided that the team would be called the “Beast” in order to pay homage to the city of New Haven. The Beast mascot symbolized the gothic architecture, especially the gargoyles, that the city was famous for. While this logo drew criticism for looking like a goofy gremlin, or a bad comic book character,  to New Haven hockey fans it was a cool and unique look that represented the great history

A logo that will always be one of my favorites

A logo that creatively represented the great history of New Haven

of the city. The Beast colors were derived from their parent clubs, the Hurricanes and Panthers, and soon Beastmania swept the city. The games were soon packed and hockey was once again the pulse of the city. Heck the New Haven green even had Beast paw prints on the sidewalk! The new minor league club was one of the more talented rosters in the AHL as they went 71-68-14 in their tenure while also added a dimension the Constitution state. Now with two minor league teams in Hartford and New Haven it created a bitter rivalry between the two cities,  a new dynamic that Connecticut had never experienced. While the Sound Tigers and Whale continue a similar rivalry today, Bridgeport vs. Hartford was nothing compared to New Haven vs. Hartford. We’ve battled it out for who should have been the capital and which city was the best in the state. The rivalry between the Wolf Pack and Beast went further than geography, but old hockey wounds. First, the Beast were the last piece of the Hartford Whalers to remain in the state which stirred up frustration since their was no NHL team in the state while also having people support the Beast since they were part of the former Whalers. Another reason this rivalry was so bitter was because of the Wolf Pack affiliation with the hated Rangers. Despite being told over and over again that the new minor league team would look nothing like the Rangers, it was funny how the Wolf Pack had the same colors and uniforms the Rangers had. This rivalry had everything from geography, passionate fans, and history.

The Beast left a lasting legacy on the Elm city

The Beast left a lasting legacy on the Elm city

Throughout their run the Beast had great rivalries with Hartford, Springfield, and Providence and provided the city with the with the high level of hockey the city had missed for years. Sadly the Beast, much like their predecessors would not last. By the end of 1999 the Beast would end their run in New haven as they left the Coliseum. There were many reasons the Beast left, but the primary reason was the declining Coliseum that desperately needed a makeover. Other factors included a somewhat declining attendance, and a general lack of support from the city of New Haven especially the mayor. While they may be gone, and there are many people who can be blamed for their departure, the Beast left a great legacy that many people wonder what would have happened if they stayed? The Beast provided my generation with great hockey and helped to inspire generations of kids to lace up their skates and become hockey players. In my previous article (click the link) I talked about how the Beast provided the spark for their passion and love I have for sports today.

I can still remember the life-long memories of going to the games with my dad and that my ultimate goal was to be a Beast player when I grew up. While only certain fragments of the Beast remain today, this is the only live action I could find click here, for my generation their legacy will live on in our memories. While the city tried once again to revive hockey with the New Haven Knights in the United Hockey League they faced many problems like the Beast. First fans were frustrated with the drop from the AHL to UHL and did not support the team like they had with the Beast of Night Hawks. Confronted with frustrated fans, falling attendance, and the same Coliseum problems confronting previous tenants, predictably the Knights didn’t last. It’s been years since the Beast put on those Gargoyle jerseys and skated on the freshly polished Coliseum ice, but for me it seems just like yesterday. While they may be gone they will never be forgotten.  Who was your favorite New Haven hockey team? Please take our poll below! Don’t forget to subscribe and follow my blog for my weekly posts. Please comment and let me know what topic you’d like me to write about. Thanks.

Move over Boston there’s a new home for college hockey

/ Rich Sports Talk / 1 Comment
Quinnipiac is now #2 in the nation

Quinnipiac is now #2 in the nation

Yale is # 8 in the nation

Yale is # 8 in the nation

If Detroit is known as hockey town for the NHL, there is no question that Boston has been known as the college hockey town. Four college teams have dominated the bean pot region and the kings of this hockey kingdom are the Boston College Eagles and the Boston University Terriers. Both programs are perennial contenders with the Eagles winning three of the past five National Championships and the Terriers winning it all in 2009. While these two superpowers of college hockey have dominated for years Boston is also home to the Harvard Crimson and NorthEastern which have also had a major impact on college hockey. But hang on, because the power maybe shifting south and more specifically to Whitney Avenue. Only seven miles apart are two of the hottest teams in college hockey and what is fast becoming one of, if not the biggest rivalry in college hockey. The Yale Bulldogs and Quinnipiac Bobcats have always made noise in the ECAC Division but now they have roared into the national spotlight. In the most recent USCHO national poll both teams have cracked the top 10. While both have been in the top 10 before this is the first time that both schools have been in the top 10 at the same time. Both teams are riding major winning streaks and have been forces in the college hockey landscape. The Yale Bulldogs are currently riding a five game win streak and  defeated both Harvard and Dartmouth this past weekend. The Quinnipiac Bobcats have remained unbeaten in their last sixteen games and have achieved the highest ranking in the University’s history as the second best team in the nation. Both Yale and Quinnipiac have dominated the national field with a combined 13-0-2 record against ranked opponents this season. This will only add fuel to an already heated rivalry as both teams still have to play each other for their annual meetings at both Ingalls Rink, and TD Bank Center. Not only are these two teams pushing Connecticut into the national picture but another college team could soon enter the race. Just by saying Uconn or Connecticut the first thing people think of is basketball. Maybe a few people might think of the Huskies football team but when asked about the hockey program most people say wait, Uconn has a hockey team? Indeed they do and the so called forgotten child in the Uconn athletic department is now making a major splash. This past weekend the Huskies played tough against the Bobcats and lost 2-1 in

Uconn is joining Hockey East in 2014

Uconn is joining Hockey East in 2014

 the inagural meeting between the two. Uconn made  headlines this summer when it was announced that the hockey program would be getting a major overhaul. Not only would the program be joining the prestigious Hockey East conference but it would also be adding 18 scholarships for the program. Another major announcement was that for the Hockey East conference games is that the Huskies would move from the Mark Edwards Freitas Ice Forum to the XL center in Hartford. While the basketball program has the proper facilities the Hockey team doesn’t and is now exploring new options which include building a new ice rink on the Storrs campus. For the short term this is great news for the XL Center whose contract with the Connecticut Whale will expire at the end of the upcoming season and whose future is up in the air. However, the XL Center may not be the the longterm solution for the program because of it’s age and size. Uconn can just look at the blueprint Quinnipiac used for their success. The key cog in building the Quinnipiac machine came with the construction of the TD Bank Center in 2007 for 52 million dollars. The arena has been a major tool in recruitment and one of if not the major reason behind the success of the Bobcats over the past few seasons. While Connecticut has been known for the success of it’s college basketball teams, it is also famously known for losing it’s NHL franchise the Hartford Whalers in 1997, the only professional franchise the state has had. Connecticut hasn’t had the same identity since the Whalers departed for Carolina but now thee college hockey teams could put Connecticut back on the national hockey map. Now if the Huskies continue building in the right direction while Yale and Quinnipiac continue to dominate in the national field Connecticut may soon well dethrone Boston as the mecca for college hockey. Even though these hockey teams have a long way to go before the national tournament the buzz they’ve been creating cannot be ignored. Before we know it Yale or Quinnipiac may not only be in the Frozen Four, but they also may bring back the states first national championship in ice hockey.