Gwinnett Gladiators
| Gwinnett Gladiators | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| City | Duluth, Georgia |
| League | ECHL |
| Conference | Eastern Conference |
| Division | South Division |
| Founded | 1995 |
| Home arena | Arena at Gwinnett Center |
| Colors |
Brick, black, bronze, white |
| General manager | Steve Chapman |
| Head coach | John Wroblewski |
| Affiliates | Phoenix Coyotes (NHL) Portland Pirates (AHL) |
| Franchise history | |
| 1995–2002 | Mobile Mysticks |
| 2003–present | Gwinnett Gladiators |
| Championships | |
| Division Championships | 2005–06, 2011–12, 2012–13 |
| Conference Championships | 2005–06 |
The Gwinnett Gladiators are a professional minor league ice hockey team based in Duluth, Georgia. The Gladiators play in the South Division of the ECHL's Eastern Conference. The Gladiators play their home games at the Arena at Gwinnett Center.
The franchise originated as the Mobile Mysticks in 1995. The team suspended operations in 2002 and moved to Duluth in 2003. They have qualified for the Kelly Cup playoffs for six out of their eight seasons of play as the Gladiators. They were the South Division and Eastern Conference champions in 2006, falling one game to four to the Alaska Aces in the finals.
The Gladiators announced their affiliation with the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes and their AHL affiliate Portland Pirates on August 17, 2011.[1] They later announced an affiliation agreement with the Buffalo Sabres, and their AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans.[2] The Gladiators renewed their affiliation with Phoenix for the 2012–13 season, but did not continue their secondary affiliation with Buffalo.[3]
Contents |
History [edit]
![[icon]](/wiki/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} |
This section requires expansion. (August 2011) |
Inception [edit]
The franchise originated as the Mobile Mysticks who played in Mobile, Alabama from 1995 to 2002. It suspended operations in 2002 due to declining attendance.
Birth of the Gladiators (Jeff Pyle, 2003–11) [edit]
The franchise moved to Gwinnett County in 2003 and was rebranded the Gladiators. Jeff Pyle—who served as the team's head coach starting in 1998, when they were still the Mysticks—remained with the franchise.
The Gladiators made an appearance in the 2006 Kelly Cup Finals, losing to the Alaska Aces in five games.
New blood (John Wroblewski, 2011–present) [edit]
On July 13, 2011, Pyle was named head coach of the American Hockey League's Texas Stars.[4] The Gladiators announced on August 3, 2011, that John Wroblewski, former assistant coach for the Wheeling Nailers, had been selected to take Pyle's place as the team's head coach. The Gladiators have won the ECHL South Division in the first two years of Wrobelski's tenure. [5]
Affiliations [edit]
The Gladiators served as the ECHL affiliate of the NHL's Atlanta Thrashers and their AHL affiliate Chicago Wolves from their inception in 2003 until 2011, when the Thrashers franchise moved to Winnipeg and the Gladiators left the organization. The team also served as an affiliate for the Chicago Blackhawks during the 2008–09 season and for the Columbus Blue Jackets during the 2009–10 season.[6][7]
On August 17, 2011, the Gladiators announced their affiliation with the Phoenix Coyotes and the Portland Pirates for the 2011–12 season.[1] They later announced an affiliation agreement with the Buffalo Sabres, and their AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans.[2] That affiliation lapsed at the end of the 2011–12 season, leaving the Gladiators affiliated exclusively with Phoenix for the 2012–13 season.[3]
Recent seasons [edit]
This is a partial list of the last five seasons completed by the Gladiators. For the full season-by-season history, see List of Gwinnett Gladiators seasons.
Regular season [edit]
| Season | Games | Won | Lost | Tied | OTL | SOL | Points | Goals for |
Goals against |
Standing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007–08 | 72 | 44 | 23 | — | 2 | 3 | 93 | 247 | 198 | 3rd, South |
| 2008–09 | 72 | 31 | 35 | — | 1 | 5 | 68 | 214 | 246 | 4th, South |
| 2009–10 | 72 | 31 | 33 | — | 5 | 3 | 70 | 243 | 277 | 4th, South |
| 2010–11 | 72 | 30 | 34 | — | 3 | 5 | 68 | 203 | 250 | 4th, South |
| 2011–12 | 72 | 41 | 20 | — | 7 | 4 | 93 | 214 | 200 | 1st, South |
Playoffs [edit]
| Season | Prelim | 1st round | 2nd round | 3rd round | Finals | Kelly Cup (2005–08 only) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007–08 | — | W, 3–0, CHR | L, 2–3, SC | — | — | — |
| 2008–09 | — | L, 1–4, FLA | — | — | — | — |
| 2009–10 | Out of playoffs | |||||
| 2010–11 | Out of playoffs | |||||
| 2011–12 | — | L, 1–3, SC | — | — | — | — |
Current roster [edit]
Updated April 9, 2013[8]
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title | Staff member | |||||
| Head coach | John Wroblewski | |||||
| Athletic trainer | Danielle Ellis | |||||
| Equipment manager | Patrick Houlihan | |||||
Memorable players [edit]
Played In NHL [edit]
- Cam Brown (Vancouver Canucks)
- Michael Garnett (Atlanta Thrashers)
- Adam Munro (Chicago Blackhawks)
- Simon Lajeunesse (Ottawa Senators)
- Adam Berkhoel (Atlanta Thrashers)
- Mike Dunham (Atlanta Thrashers, New York Rangers, New York Islanders, New Jersey Devils, Nashville Predators)
- Pascal Pelletier (Boston Bruins)
- Kevin Doell (Atlanta Thrashers)
- Chris Durno (Colorado Avalanche)
- Ryan Garbutt (Dallas Stars)
- Matt Anderson (New Jersey Devils)
References [edit]
- ^ a b Press release (August 17, 2011). "Glads sign affiliation agreement with Phoenix". Gwinnett Gladiators. Retrieved August 17, 2011.
- ^ a b Press Release (September 20, 2011). "Second Affiliate Added". Gwinnett Gladiators. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
- ^ a b Press release (August 7, 2012). "Glads back with Phoenix". Gwinnett Gladiators. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ Press release (July 13, 2011). "Gwinnett's Pyle named head coach of AHL's Texas Stars". ECHL. Retrieved August 12, 2011.
- ^ Press release (August 3, 2011). "Wroblewski named Gladiators head coach". ECHL. Retrieved August 12, 2011.
- ^ Michael Wagner (December 28, 2008). "Chicago Blackhawks Name Gwinnett Gladiators Their New ECHL Affiliate". bleacherreport.com. Retrieved July 2, 2011.
- ^ Bart Logan (August 25, 2009). "Blue Jackets & Gladiators Become ECHL affiliates". firethecannon.com. Retrieved July 2, 2011.
- ^ "Official Site - Gwinnett Gladiators: Team Roster". Retrieved October 12, 2012.
External links [edit]
- Official Gwinnett Gladiators site
- GladiatorsForum.org fan site
- Archive of ECHL standings and statistics
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