Manchester Storm
Encyclopedia
| Manchester Storm | |
 |
|
| League | British Hockey League British Hockey League The British Hockey League was the top-flight ice hockey league in the United Kingdom from 1982 until 1996, when it was replaced by the Ice Hockey Superleague and the British National League... Ice Hockey Superleague Ice Hockey Superleague The Ice Hockey Superleague was a professional ice hockey league in the United Kingdom between 1996 and 2003. Formed in 1995, it replaced the Premier Division of the British Hockey League, it was the highest level of ice hockey competition in the United Kingdom... |
| Founded | 1995 |
| History | 1995 - 2002 |
| Arena | Manchester Evening News Arena Manchester Evening News Arena The Manchester Evening News Arena is an indoor arena situated in Manchester, England. It is adjacent to Manchester Victoria station near Corporation Street... |
| Capacity | 17,245 |
| City | Manchester Manchester Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater... , England England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental... |
| Team Colours | White, Purple & Blue |
The Manchester Storm were an ice hockey
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 from Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The team formed in 1995, playing their home games at the then newly built Nynex Arena
Manchester Evening News Arena
The Manchester Evening News Arena is an indoor arena situated in Manchester, England. It is adjacent to Manchester Victoria station near Corporation Street...
(since renamed to the Manchester Evening News Arena). Storm won the British Hockey League
British Hockey League
The British Hockey League was the top-flight ice hockey league in the United Kingdom from 1982 until 1996, when it was replaced by the Ice Hockey Superleague and the British National League...
Division One in their first season, watched by an average crowd of 6,342. Success in the end of season promotion/relegation play-offs followed, resulting in Storm being promoted to the Premier Division of the British Hockey League. However, Britain's league structure was changed in 1996, with the formation of the Ice Hockey Superleague
Ice Hockey Superleague
The Ice Hockey Superleague was a professional ice hockey league in the United Kingdom between 1996 and 2003. Formed in 1995, it replaced the Premier Division of the British Hockey League, it was the highest level of ice hockey competition in the United Kingdom...
, of which the Manchester team were a founder member. This was alongside Ayr Scottish Eagles
Ayr Scottish Eagles
The Ayr Scottish Eagles were a professional Scottish ice hockey club, from Ayr, Scotland. They were formed in 1996 and played their home games at the Centrum Arena. The team competed in the Ice Hockey Superleague and the club's main sponsor was Barr Construction...
, Basingstoke Bison
Basingstoke Bison
The Basingstoke Bison are an English Ice Hockey club from Basingstoke. They currently compete in the English Premier Ice Hockey League and have previously been members of the Ice Hockey Superleague and its successor the Elite Ice Hockey League- History :...
, Bracknell Bees
Bracknell Bees
The Bracknell Bees are an ice hockey team from Bracknell, Berkshire, UK.-Early years:The Bracknell Bees were formed in 1987, under the ownership of John Nike OBE. Bees began life in the Heineken League Division Two, under the leadership of former Durham Wasps and Nottingham Panthers forward, Jamie...
, Cardiff Devils
Cardiff Devils
The Cardiff Devils are a Welsh ice hockey team who play in the British Elite Ice Hockey League. The team currently plays in the temporary Cardiff Arena...
, Newcastle Riverkings
Newcastle Vipers
The Newcastle Vipers were an ice hockey club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Former members of the Elite Ice Hockey League, the club previously held membership in the British National League.- History :...
, Nottingham Panthers
Nottingham Panthers
The Nottingham Panthers are a British professional ice hockey club based in Nottingham, England. They are members of the Elite Ice Hockey League...
and Sheffield Steelers
Sheffield Steelers
The Sheffield Steelers are a British ice hockey club, from Sheffield, England. They were formed in 1991 and play their home games at the Sheffield Arena. They are currently members of the Elite Ice Hockey League...
. The highs of the inaugural season weren't matched in season 2 though, and Storm finished a disappointing seventh in the league. This led to the sacking of coach John Lawless.
American Kurt Kleinendorst
Kurt Kleinendorst
Kurt Kleinendorst is the current head coach of the AHL ice hockey team Binghamton Senators. He previously coached the Under-18 team of the USA Hockey National Team Development Program and the Lowell Devils, the AHL affiliate of the New Jersey Devils. He also served as an assistant coach and later...
was brought in for the 1997–98 season and he completely changed the face of the playing staff. There were 12 new faces on the 19 strong roster when the season started and they went on to make history for a British club in the European Hockey League. As well as holding Dynamo Moscow
HC Dynamo Moscow
HC Dynamo Moscow was a Russian professional ice hockey club based in Moscow. They were members of the Bobrov Division in the Kontinental Hockey League...
to a regulation time draw (losing 2–3 in overtime
Overtime (ice hockey)
Overtime is a method of determining the winner and loser of an ice hockey match when the scores are tied after regulation. The two main methods are the overtime period and the shootout.-Overtime periods:...
), they beat Sparta Prague
HC Sparta Praha
HC Sparta Praha is a Prague based Czech ice hockey team playing in Czech Extraliga.-Team History:Founded in 1903 by Canadian expatriate Lyle P. O'Connor, HC Sparta Praha was among the first bandy teams to play on a semi-professional level in the Austro-Hungarian Empire...
home and away — winning 7–0 at home and 4–3 in the Czech
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
capital.
Storm hold the record for the largest ice hockey attendance at a UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
league game, set on February 23, 1997, when 17,245 people watched a match against Sheffield Steelers. At the time, this was also a European record. The record for the largest attendance at any ice hockey game in the UK is 17,551 at The O2 arena (London)
The O2 arena (London)
The O2 Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in the centre of The O2, a large entertainment complex on the Greenwich peninsula in London, England.With a capacity of up to 20,000 depending on the event, it is second largest...
on 30 September 2007 for a NHL
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...
game between the Los Angeles Kings
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
and the Anaheim Ducks
Anaheim Ducks
The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California, USA. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
.
Manchester Storm folded in 2002 after owner Gary Cowan refused to continue on moral grounds.
A supporters group was formed following the collapse of Manchester Storm, and launched a new team called the Manchester Phoenix
Manchester Phoenix
Manchester Phoenix are a professional ice hockey team from Altrincham, Greater Manchester, England. The club was formed in 2003 as a result of the efforts of supporters group Friends of Manchester Ice Hockey to bring top-level ice hockey back to Manchester after Manchester Storm folded in...
.
Past Managers/Head Coaches
- John Lawless 1995–1997
- Kurt KleinendorstKurt KleinendorstKurt Kleinendorst is the current head coach of the AHL ice hockey team Binghamton Senators. He previously coached the Under-18 team of the USA Hockey National Team Development Program and the Lowell Devils, the AHL affiliate of the New Jersey Devils. He also served as an assistant coach and later...
1997–2000 - Terry Christensen 2000–2001
- Daryl Lipsey 2001–2002
- Rob Wilson 2001-2002 (assistant)
Honours
- Superleague Winners 1998-1999
- Benson and Hedges Cup Winners (former Autumn Cup) 1999-2000
- First Team All-StarsISL All-Star TeamThe All-Star Teams for the now defunct British Ice Hockey Superleague were voted for by members of The British Ice Hockey Writers Association to honour the best players at the end of each season.- 1996-1997 :...
- 1997-98 Kris Miller, Craig Woodcroft
- 1998-99 Frank PietrangeloFrank PietrangeloFrank Pietrangelo is a retired Canadian ice hockey goaltender.Pietrangelo started his National Hockey League career with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1988, winning the Stanley Cup in 1991. He also played for the Hartford Whalers. He left the NHL after the 1994 season...
, Troy Neumeier
- Second Team All-StarsISL All-Star TeamThe All-Star Teams for the now defunct British Ice Hockey Superleague were voted for by members of The British Ice Hockey Writers Association to honour the best players at the end of each season.- 1996-1997 :...
- 1998-99 Kris Miller, Jeff Tomlinson, Jeff Jablonski
- 2000-01 Greg Bullock