History of the ECHL
The Beginning
The East Coast Hockey League was founded by businessmen Henry Brabham and Bill Coffey
during the summer of 1988. They began constructing the league with teams that
they owned in the defunct All-American Hockey League: Johnstown Chiefs (Brabham),
Virginia Lancers (Brabham), and Carolina Thunderbirds (Coffey). New teams were
established in Knoxville, TN and Erie, PA.
1988/1989 (5 Teams)
A 60-game schedule was played by the league's five original teams: Johnstown Chiefs,
Erie Panthers, Knoxville Cherokees, Carolina Thunderbirds, and Virginia Lancers.
1989/1990 (8 Teams)
The Hampton Roads Admirals, Greensboro Monarchs, and Nashville Knights joined the
league. The Carolina Thunderbirds became the Winston-Salem Thunderbirds.
1990/1991 (11 Teams)
The Richmond Renegades, Louisville IceHawks, and Cincinnati Cyclones joined the
ECHL. The Virginia Lancers became the Roanoke Valley Rebels. A 64-game schedule
was adopted.
1991/1992 (15 Teams)
The Toledo Storm, Dayton Bombers, Columbus Chill, and Raleigh IceCaps joined the
league.
1992/1993 (15 Teams)
The Winston-Salem Thunderbirds became the Wheeling Thunderbirds. The Roanoke Valley
Rebels became the Roanoke Valley Rampage. The Cincinnati Cyclones were replaced by
the Birmingham Bulls when they moved to the IHL.
1993/1994 (19 Teams)
The Roanoke Valley Rampage became the Huntsville Blast. The Charlotte Checkers,
South Carolina Stingrays, Huntington Blizzard, and Roanoke Express joined the
ECHL. The regular season schedule was expanded to 68 games.
1994/1995 (18 Teams)
The Huntsville Blast became the Tallahassee Tiger Sharks. The Louisville IceHawks
did not compete.
1995/1996 (21 Teams)
The former Louisville IceHawks franchise became the Jacksonville Lizard Kings.
The Greensboro Monarchs became the AHL's Carolina Monarchs. The Louisville
RiverFrogs, Mobile Mysticks, and Louisiana IceGators joined the league for a
70-game schedule.
1996/1997 (23 Teams)
The Erie Panthers became the Baton Rouge Kingfish. The Wheeling Thunderbirds
became the Wheeling Nailers. The Nashville Knights became the Pensacola Ice
Pilots. The Peoria Rivermen (from the IHL) and Mississippi Sea Wolves joined the
league.
1997/1998 (25 Teams)
The Knoxville Cherokees became the Pee Dee Pride. The New Orleans Brass and
Chesapeake Icebreakers joined the ECHL.
1998/1999 (27 Teams)
The Raleigh IceCaps became the Augusta Lynx. The Louisville RiverFrogs became
the Miami Matadors. The Greenville Grrrowl and Florida Everblades joined the
league.
1999/2000 (28 Teams)
The Chesapeake Icebreakers moved to Mississippi as the Jackson Bandits after briefly ceasing operations. The Miami Matadors
and Columbus Chill ceased operations. The Trenton Titans, Arkansas RiverBlades, and Greensboro Generals joined the
ECHL.
2000/2001 (25 Teams)
The Hampton Roads Admirals became the AHL's Norfolk Admirals. The Huntington Blizzard ceased operations. The Jacksonville
Lizard Kings ceased operations.
2001/2002 (29 Teams)
The Birmingham Bulls became the Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies. The Tallahassee Tiger Sharks became the Macon Whoopee (from the CHL). The former Columbus Chill became the Reading Royals. The Columbia
Inferno joined the ECHL. The Cincinnati Cyclones rejoined the ECHL from the IHL using the former Miami Matadors franchise. The Columbus Cottonmouths joined the ECHL from the CHL using the former Hampton
Roads Admirals franchise.
2002/2003 (27 Teams)
The Macon Whoopee became the Lexington Men O' War. The Mobile Mysticks suspended operations with plans to return in 2003/2004 in Gwinnett County, Georgia. The New Orleans Brass suspended operations.
2003/2004 (31 Teams)
The East Coast Hockey League officially changed its name to "ECHL" with the addition of teams from the West Coast Hockey League (Alaska Aces, Bakersfield Condors, Fresno Falcons, Idaho Steelheads, Las Vegas Wranglers,
Long Beach Ice Dogs, and San Diego Gulls). The Gwinnett Gladiators (Mobile Mysticks franchise) and Texas Wildcatters (Baton Rouge Kingfish franchise) also joined the league. The Richmond Renegades, Lexington Men O' War, Baton Rouge Kingfish, Arkansas
RiverBlades, and Jackson Bandits suspended operations while the Pee Dee Pride were renamed the Florence Pride.
2004/2005 (28 Teams)
The Baton Rouge Kingfish franchise returned as the Victoria Salmon Kings. The Cincinnati Cyclones, Columbus Cottonmouths, Greensboro Generals, and Roanoke Express suspended operations.
2005/2006 (25 Teams)
The Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies became the Stockton Thunder. The Peoria Rivermen moved to the AHL, while the Utah Grizzlies joined the ECHL from the AHL. The Louisiana IceGators and Pee Dee Pride suspended operations. The Mississippi Sea Wolves
and Texas Wildcatters were granted voluntary suspensions for the season. The Phoenix RoadRunners joined the ECHL as an expansion team.
