Long Island Ducks (ice hockey)
Encyclopedia
The Long Island Ducks were a minor league hockey
team in the Eastern Hockey League
owned by Al and Renee Baron that played their home games at the Long Island Arena
(usually referred to as Commack Arena). The team played from 1959 until 1973, when the Eastern League folded.
The Ducks are most famously known for player-head coach John Brophy
, who is believed to be the role model for Paul Newman
's character of Reggie Dunlop in the movie Slap Shot
. Brophy encouraged and epitomized "old-time hockey" and brash physical play, retired as the league's career leader in penalty minutes, and was once suspended for half of a season for knocking down a referee. Brophy was quoted as saying, "Once you're a Duck, you're a Duck for the rest of your life," as Ducks General Manager John Muckler
traded Brophy six times and got him back seven times.
The Ducks won the Eastern Hockey League North Division in 1964-65 and 1965-66. They were the Eastern Hockey League playoff champions and won the Walker Cup Trophy on April 7, 1965.
The New York Islanders
of the National Hockey League
, who began play in 1972-73, had originally been widely expected to adopt the Long Island Ducks name. The name was later taken by the Long Island Ducks
minor league baseball team in Central Islip
, which began play in 2000.
was also made infamous for several events that took place during the tenure of the Ducks:
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team in the Eastern Hockey League
Eastern Hockey League
-Eastern Amateur Hockey League :The league was founded in 1933 as the Eastern Amateur Hockey League . The league was founded by Thomas Lockhart, who served as its commissioner from 1933 to 1972...
owned by Al and Renee Baron that played their home games at the Long Island Arena
Long Island Arena
Long Island Arena was a 4,000-seat indoor arena in Commack, New York from 1959 until 1996. The Long Island Ducks of the Eastern Hockey League, a popular team in the small community, called the Arena home from 1959 until the league folded in 1973, one year after the New York Islanders came into...
(usually referred to as Commack Arena). The team played from 1959 until 1973, when the Eastern League folded.
The Ducks are most famously known for player-head coach John Brophy
John Brophy (ice hockey)
John Brophy is a Canadian ice hockey coach and former hockey player who has spent most of his career in minor professional leagues, including 18 years as a player in the Eastern Hockey League and 13 seasons as a coach in the East Coast Hockey League...
, who is believed to be the role model for Paul Newman
Paul Newman
Paul Leonard Newman was an American actor, film director, entrepreneur, humanitarian, professional racing driver and auto racing enthusiast...
's character of Reggie Dunlop in the movie Slap Shot
Slap Shot (film)
Slap Shot is a 1977 film comedy starring Paul Newman and Michael Ontkean directed by George Roy Hill. It depicts a minor league hockey team that resorts to violent play to gain popularity in a declining factory town.- Plot :...
. Brophy encouraged and epitomized "old-time hockey" and brash physical play, retired as the league's career leader in penalty minutes, and was once suspended for half of a season for knocking down a referee. Brophy was quoted as saying, "Once you're a Duck, you're a Duck for the rest of your life," as Ducks General Manager John Muckler
John Muckler
John Muckler is a professional hockey coach and executive, most recently serving as the general manager of the Ottawa Senators of the NHL. Muckler has over 50 years of professional hockey experience as a part owner, general manager, director of player personnel, director of hockey operations, head...
traded Brophy six times and got him back seven times.
The Ducks won the Eastern Hockey League North Division in 1964-65 and 1965-66. They were the Eastern Hockey League playoff champions and won the Walker Cup Trophy on April 7, 1965.
The New York Islanders
New York Islanders
The New York Islanders are a professional ice hockey team based in Uniondale, New York. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
of the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
, who began play in 1972-73, had originally been widely expected to adopt the Long Island Ducks name. The name was later taken by the Long Island Ducks
Long Island Ducks
The Long Island Ducks is an American professional baseball team based in Central Islip, New York. They are a member of the Liberty Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
minor league baseball team in Central Islip
Central Islip, New York
Central Islip is a hamlet and census-designated place in Suffolk County, New York, U.S.. The population was 31,950 at the 2000 census.-History and overview:...
, which began play in 2000.
Long Island Arena
The Ducks' arena in CommackCommack, New York
Commack is a census-designated place that roughly corresponds to the hamlet by the same name in the towns of Huntington and Smithtown in Suffolk County, New York, United States on Long Island...
was also made infamous for several events that took place during the tenure of the Ducks:
- Because of the poorly-run heating inside the small arena, fans often attended games freezing. During one game, fans affected by the cold temperatures lit a bonfire in the arena, prompting Al Baron to joke, "Tonight's game is brought to you by the Smithtown Fire Department".
- One night the Ducks' plane was delayed and a game did not begin until 11:30 pm. The game didn't end until 2:30 am, with 2,500 fans still in attendance.
- Chicken wire originally separated the players from the fans above the dasher boards. It was eventually replaced with glass, which was taken from the old Madison Square GardenMadison Square Garden (1925)Madison Square Garden was an indoor arena in New York City, the third of that name. It was built in 1925 and closed in 1968, and was located on Eighth Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets in Manhattan on the site of the city's trolley car barns. It was the first Garden that was not located near...
after it closed in 1967. One night, a player jumped over the boards and punched a fan, which prompted owner Al Baron to say, "This is the only rink in organized hockey where the players stand on the ice and watch the fights in the stands." - The Ducks' bus from JohnstownJohnstown, PennsylvaniaJohnstown is a city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States, west-southwest of Altoona, Pennsylvania and east of Pittsburgh. The population was 20,978 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Cambria County...
arrived four hours late before one game against New Haven, so they put on unwashed uniforms and began the game with a large brawl. - The visitor's locker room was located just 20 feet away from the main entrance to the arena so many opposing players got into fights with the fans when entering and leaving the building.
- The opening face-off of one game was delayed by 20 minutes because there were no pucks, which were later found in an ice cream freezer.