Toronto Marlies
Toronto Marlies | |
---|---|
City | Toronto, Ontario |
League | American Hockey League |
Conference | Eastern |
Division | North |
Founded | 1978 |
Home arena | Coca-Cola Coliseum Scotiabank Arena (occasional home games) |
Colours | Blue, white |
Owner(s) | Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment |
General manager | Ryan Hardy |
Head coach | John Gruden |
Captain | Logan Shaw |
Media | The Sports Network Sportsnet 590 TSN 1050 AHL.TV (Internet) |
Affiliates | Toronto Maple Leafs (NHL) Cincinnati Cyclones (ECHL) |
Franchise history | |
1978–1982 | New Brunswick Hawks |
1982–1986 | St. Catharines Saints |
1986–1991 | Newmarket Saints |
1991–2005 | St. John's Maple Leafs |
2005–present | Toronto Marlies |
Championships | |
Regular season titles | 2 (2015–16, 2017–18) |
Division titles | 7 (2007–08, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2015–16, 2017–18, 2022–23) |
Conference titles | 2 (2012, 2018) |
Calder Cups | 1 (2018) |
Current uniform | |
Current season |
The Toronto Marlies are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the American Hockey League (AHL) as a member of the North Division of the Eastern Conference. The Marlies are owned by Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, a company that owns several professional sports teams in the city, including their NHL affiliate, the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Marlies have played their home games at Coca-Cola Coliseum since 2005.
The Marlies were established as the New Brunswick Hawks in 1978. The team relocated three times, to St. Catharines, Newmarket, and St. John's, before relocating to Toronto in 2005. As a part of its relocation to Toronto, the team was renamed the Marlies, after the Toronto Marlboros, a junior hockey team formerly sponsored by the Maple Leafs. The Marlies have advanced to the Calder Cup Finals in 2012 and 2018, with the Marlies having won the latter series.
History
[edit]The Marlies trace their history back to the New Brunswick Hawks, which were founded in 1978 as the first professional ice hockey team in New Brunswick, and were jointly operated by the Maple Leafs and Chicago Black Hawks as a farm team.[1][2] Maple Leaf Gardens Limited (MLGL) and the Black Hawks each owned half of the franchise.[3][4][5]
The Hawks played until 1982 when they relocated to St. Catharines, Ontario[6] as the St. Catharines Saints, this time as a sole Leafs affiliate; the Hawks had opted to affiliate with the Springfield Indians. After four seasons, the team moved to Newmarket, Ontario as the Newmarket Saints, where they played for five seasons before moving to St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador[7][8] as the St. John's Maple Leafs, the first professional ice hockey team in Newfoundland and Labrador. The team played their home games at Memorial Stadium until 2001, when they moved to Mile One Centre.
The AHL had a strong presence in Atlantic Canada in the 1980s and 1990s. However, after the turn of the millennium, NHL teams sought to have their AHL affiliates located geographically closer to their parent clubs in order to ease the movement of players between the minors and the NHL. By 2004, St. John's was the only remaining team in the region. Although the team was extremely popular and had excellent attendance, the parent Maple Leafs wanted to cut back on escalating travel costs. By the time of the team's final season in Newfoundland, their nearest opponent was the Portland Pirates, 1,781 km (1,107 mi) away. Additionally, Ricoh Coliseum (formerly CNE Coliseum and now Coca-Cola Coliseum) had recently been renovated for hockey use, and the NHL Leafs were looking to place a team there. The Coliseum had been home to the Toronto Roadrunners, top affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers, in the 2003–04 season. These factors resulted in the team's relocation to Toronto for the 2005–06 season.
The team is named after the former Toronto Marlboros, a junior hockey team that played in Toronto from 1904 to 1989, the last 62 years of that time under common ownership with the Leafs. The team was long known as the "Marlies" to fans and media alike. To avoid any potential association with the similarly named cigarette brand, MLSE uses the abbreviated form as the team's official nickname.
During the 2011–12 AHL season, the Marlies advanced to the Calder Cup Finals, the deepest playoff run for a Toronto-based team since the Leafs won the Stanley Cup in 1967. They lost to the Norfolk Admirals in a four-game sweep.
In 2015–16 season, the Marlies moved from the Western Conference to the Eastern Conference due to the relocation of five teams to California.
The Marlies compete against Ontario rivals the Belleville Senators in the "Battle of the 401" or "Battle of Ontario" since the 2017-18 season.
During the 2017–18 AHL season, the Marlies won their first Calder Cup after a 4–3 series win over the Texas Stars in the finals.[9] It was the first professional hockey title for a Toronto-based team since 1967.
On December 1, 2019, Greg Moore was named as head coach of the Marlies, replacing Sheldon Keefe who was promoted to head coach of the Maple Leafs.[10]
On May 21st, 2023, Moore was relieved of his duties. John Gruden was announced as the teams new Head Coach on July 4th, 2023.
Team information
[edit]Logo
[edit]The Toronto Marlies' primary colours are blue and white, which is used in the team's logo. The present logo for the Marlies, introduced in 2016, is based on the Toronto Marlboros' logo. The Marlboros were a junior ice hockey team that was formerly sponsored by Maple Leaf Gardens Limited.
Broadcast information
[edit]All regular season home games, as well as all home and away playoff games air on AHL.TV, with Todd Crocker as the play-by-play announcer. Select games such as playoff games are also simulcast on The Sports Network.
Season-by-season results
[edit]Calder Cup Champions | Conference Champions | Division Champions | League leader |
Records as of the end of the 2023–24 season.[11]
Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Season | Games | Won | Lost | OTL | SOL | Points | PCT | Goals for |
Goals against |
Standing | Year | Prelims | 1st round |
2nd round |
3rd round |
Finals |
2005–06 | 80 | 41 | 29 | 6 | 4 | 92 | .575 | 270 | 263 | 4th, North | 2006 | — | L, 1–4, GR | — | — | — |
2006–07 | 80 | 34 | 39 | 2 | 5 | 75 | .469 | 220 | 270 | 6th, North | 2007 | Did not qualify | ||||
2007–08 | 80 | 50 | 21 | 3 | 6 | 109 | .681 | 246 | 203 | 1st, North | 2008 | — | W, 4–3, SA | W, 4–3, SYR | L, 1–4, CHI | — |
2008–09 | 80 | 39 | 29 | 5 | 7 | 90 | .563 | 240 | 229 | 4th, North | 2009 | — | L, 2–4, MTB | — | — | — |
2009–10 | 80 | 33 | 35 | 6 | 6 | 78 | .488 | 193 | 261 | 5th, North | 2010 | Did not qualify | ||||
2010–11 | 80 | 37 | 32 | 1 | 10[1] | 85 | .531 | 228 | 219 | 5th, North | 2011 | Did not qualify | ||||
2011–12 | 76 | 44 | 24 | 5 | 3 | 96 | .632 | 217 | 175[4] | 1st, North | 2012 | — | W, 3–0, RCH | W, 4–1, ABB | W, 4–1, OKC | L, 0–4, NOR |
2012–13 | 76 | 43 | 23 | 3 | 7 | 96 | .632 | 237 | 199 | 1st, North | 2013 | — | W, 3–0, RCH | L, 2–4, GR | — | — |
2013–14 | 76 | 45 | 25 | 2 | 4 | 96 | .632 | 223 | 202 | 1st, North | 2014 | — | W, 3–0, MIL | W, 4–0, CHI | L, 3–4, TEX | — |
2014–15 | 76 | 40 | 27 | 9 | 0 | 89 | .586 | 207 | 203 | 2nd, North | 2015 | — | L, 2–3, GR | — | — | — |
2015–16 | 76 | 54 | 16[3] | 5 | 1 | 114 | .750 | 294 | 191 | 1st, North | 2016 | — | W, 3–0, BRI | W, 4–3, ALB | L, 1–4, HER | — |
2016–17 | 76 | 42 | 29 | 4 | 1 | 89 | .586 | 245 | 207 | 2nd, North | 2017 | — | W, 3–1, ALB | L, 3–4, SYR | — | — |
2017–18 | 76 | 54 | 18[2] | 2 | 2 | 112 | .737 | 254 | 170[3] | 1st, North | 2018 | — | W, 3–2, UTI | W, 4–0, SYR | W, 4–0, LV | W, 4–3, TEX |
2018–19 | 76 | 39 | 24 | 9 | 4 | 91 | .599 | 248 | 243 | 3rd, North | 2019 | — | W, 3–0, RCH | W, 4–0, CLE | L, 2–4, CHA | — |
2019–20 | 61 | 29 | 27 | 3 | 2 | 63 | .516 | 206 | 212 | 7th, North | 2020 | Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | ||||
2020–21 | 35 | 16 | 17 | 0 | 2 | 34 | .486 | 111 | 119 | 4th, Canadian | 2021 | No playoffs were held | ||||
2021–22 | 72 | 37 | 30 | 4 | 1 | 79 | .549 | 243 | 244 | 6th, North | 2022 | Did not qualify | ||||
2022–23 | 72 | 42 | 24 | 4 | 2 | 90 | .625 | 229 | 225 | 1st, North | 2023 | BYE | W, 3–1, UTI | L, 0–3, ROC | — | — |
2023–24 | 72 | 34 | 26 | 10 | 2 | 80 | .556 | 249 | 220 | 5th, North | 2024 | L, 1–2, BEL | — | — | — | — |
Totals | 1400 | 753 | 495 | 83 | 69 | 1658 | .592 | 4360 | 4055 | 13 playoff appearances |
[1]-Indicates league leading: most shootout losses
[2]-Indicates league leading: fewest losses
[3]-Indicates league leading: fewest goals against
Players and personnel
[edit]Current roster
[edit]Updated December 10, 2024.[12][13][14]
Team captains
[edit]- Marc Moro, 2005–2007
- Ben Ondrus, 2007–2010
- Alex Foster, 2010–11
- Ryan Hamilton, 2011–2013
- Trevor Smith, 2013–2015
- Troy Bodie, 2015
- Andrew Campbell, 2015–2017
- Ben Smith, 2018[15]
- Rich Clune, 2021–2022[16]
- Logan Shaw, 2022–present
Head coaches
[edit]- Paul Maurice, 2005–2006
- Greg Gilbert, 2006–2009
- Dallas Eakins, 2009–2013
- Steve Spott, 2013–2014
- Gord Dineen, 2014–2015
- Sheldon Keefe, 2015–2019
- Greg Moore, 2019–2023
- John Gruden, 2023–present
Notable alumni
[edit]The following players have played both 100 games with the Marlies and 100 games in the National Hockey League:
- Joey Anderson
- Bates Battaglia
- Joseph Blandisi
- Connor Brown
- Sam Carrick
- Richard Clune
- Joe Colborne
- Matt Frattin
- Frederik Gauthier
- Colin Greening
- Jay Harrison
- Justin Holl
- Korbinian Holzer
- Andreas Johnsson
- Nazem Kadri
- Kasperi Kapanen
- Brendan Leipsic
- Josh Leivo
- Timothy Liljegren
- Mason Marchment
- Greg McKegg
- Brendan Mikkelson
- John Mitchell
- Trevor Moore
- Jiri Tlusty
- Michael Zigomanis
Team records
[edit]Single season
[edit]- Goals: John Pohl, 36 (2005–06)
- Assists: Jeremy Bracco, 57 (2018–19)
- Points: Tim Stapleton, 79 (2008–09); Jeremy Bracco, 79 (2018–19)
- Penalty minutes: Andre Deveaux, 216 (2009–10)
- Point streak: Spencer Abbott, 13 (Oct. 6, 2013 – Nov. 16, 2013)
- GAA:[a] Garret Sparks, 1.79 (2017–18)
- SV%:[a] Garret Sparks, .936 (2017–18)
- Wins:[a] Garret Sparks, 31 (2017–18)
- Shutouts:[a] Garret Sparks, 6 (2017–18)
Career
[edit]- Career goals: Ryan Hamilton, 94
- Career assists: Mike Zigomanis, 116
- Career points: Kris Newbury, 168
- Career penalty Minutes: Kris Newbury, 475
- Career goaltending wins: Garret Sparks, 80
- Career shutouts: Garret Sparks, 15
- Career games: Alex Foster, 312
Other records and firsts
[edit]- First game: October 7, 2005. Rochester Americans 8, Marlies 5
- First home game and first win: October 12, 2005. Marlies 5, Syracuse Crunch 2.
- First goal: October 7, 2005. Rochester Americans 8, Marlies 5. Goal scored by Colin Murphy
- First shutout: December 14, 2005. Jean-Sebastien Aubin. Marlies 5, Grand Rapids Griffins 0.
- First hat trick: January 2, 2006. Luke Fulghum. Marlies 6, Cleveland Barons 1.
- Most goals scored in a game: 10 (twice): February 8, 2009. Marlies 10, Grand Rapids Griffins 5. February 27, 2016. Marlies 10, Rochester Americans 5.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Sports roundup". The Globe and Mail. 1978-06-24.
- ^ "Leafs, Hawks to Moncton". Toronto Star. 1978-06-20.
- ^ "Ballard wants Leafs to have own farm club". The Globe and Mail. 1980-03-21.
- ^ "Across Canada: No liquor licence for Leafs-Hawks farm club". The Globe and Mail. 1978-11-09.
- ^ "AHL Hawks get Tessier". The Globe and Mail. 1981-08-22.
- ^ "Leafs place AHL team in St. Kitts". The Globe and Mail. 1982-06-22.
- ^ "AHL History". Toronto Marlies. Archived from the original on 2014-03-17. Retrieved 2014-01-26.
- ^ Ballou, Bill (2013-04-04). "AHL: Bracken Kearns easy Worcester Sharks MVP choice". Telegram & Gazette. Retrieved 2014-01-26.
- ^ McGran, Kevin (June 14, 2018). "Toronto Marlies capture first Calder Cup". The Toronto Star. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
- ^ "Greg Moore Named Head Coach of Toronto Marlies". NHL.com. Retrieved 2019-12-02.
- ^ Hockeydb.com, Toronto Marlies season statistics and records.
- ^ "Toronto Marlies roster". Toronto Marlies. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
- ^ "Toronto Marlies Roster". American Hockey League. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
- ^ "Toronto Marlies Transactions 2024-25 Regular Season". American Hockey League. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
- ^ "Toronto Marlies name a captain and official alternates". SB Nation. 3 January 2018.
- ^ "Rich Clune Named Toronto Marlies Captain". OurSports Central. 1 March 2021.