Trenton Titans
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (August 2011) |
"Trenton Devils", "Trenton Devils ECHL Membership", and "Trenton Membership" redirects here.
| Trenton Titans | |
|---|---|
| File:TrentonTitans.png | |
| City | Trenton, New Jersey |
| League | ECHL |
| Conference | Eastern Conference |
| Division | Atlantic Division |
| Founded | 1999 |
| Home arena | Sun National Bank Center |
| Colors | Red, black, silver, white |
| Owner(s) | Blue Line Sports, LLC |
| General manager | Richard Lisk |
| Head coach | Vince Williams |
| Media | The Trenton Times, The Trentonian, WZBN |
| Affiliates | Philadelphia Flyers (NHL) Adirondack Phantoms (AHL) |
| Franchise history | |
| 1999–2007 | Trenton Titans |
| 2007–2011 | Trenton Devils |
| 2011–current | Trenton Titans |
| Championships | |
| Regular season titles | 2001–02 |
| Division titles | 2000–01, 2001–02 |
| Conference titles | 2000–01, 2004–05 |
| Kelly Cups | 2004–05 |
The Trenton Titans are a professional minor league ice hockey team based in Trenton, New Jersey. The Titans play in the Atlantic Division of the ECHL's Eastern Conference. They play their home games at the Sun National Bank Center. Established in 1999, the team is currently owned by Blue Line Sports, LLC, a local ownership group.[1] They will be affiliated with the NHL's Philadelphia Flyers and the AHL's Adirondack Phantoms for the 2011–12 ECHL season.
The Titans have finished with the best record in the ECHL once (in 2002), and have qualified for the playoffs for eight out of their twelve seasons to date. They won the league's Kelly Cup championship in 2005.
History
Trenton Titans (1999–2007)
Franchise inception
The ECHL awarded Trenton an expansion team in 1996, three years before the club played a game. The franchise started as the Trenton Titans and played their first season in 1999. The Titans were affiliated with the Philadelphia Flyers (NHL) and the Philadelphia Phantoms (AHL) from 1999-2000 to 2006-07 and with the New York Islanders (NHL) and the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (AHL) from 1999-2000 to 2002-03, and again for the 2005-06 season.
2004–2005 Kelly Cup champions
Following the 2004–05 ECHL season, the Titans won the Kelly Cup by defeating the Florida Everblades, four games to two. Leon Hayward was named the MVP of the Kelly Cup Finals. Rick Kowalsky was Trenton's captain.
- Trenton beat the Alaska Aces in the National Conference finals, four games to three.
- Trenton beat the Reading Royals in the Northern Division finals, three games to one.
- Trenton beat the Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies in the Northern Division semifinals, three games to none.
After the season, head coach Mike Havilland was hired by the AHL's Norfolk Admirals. Assistant coach Ted Dent was hired by the Columbia Inferno.
Trenton Devils (2007–11)
Re-branding
On May 18, 2007, the team announced they were changing their name to the Trenton Devils following the sale of the team to the NHL's New Jersey Devils, who also took over the club's affiliation.[2] This re-branding alienated fans in the Trenton area, many of whom were part of the Philadelphia Flyers' fan base. This combined with a lackluster record led to a significant decline in attendance over the franchise's final seasons, positioning Trenton at or near the bottom of the league in attendance.[3] The only exception to this was on February 21, 2009, when the Trenton Devils retired former Titan Kelly Cup champion Scott Bertoli's No. 19 in front of a crowd of 6,013 fans.[4]
Franchise operations suspended
On July 6, 2011 the New Jersey Devils announced that the Trenton Devils would be suspending operations immediately, citing a desire to restructure their player development system to more closely mirror those of other NHL franchises. New Jersey was the only NHL team to wholly own its ECHL affiliate. Trenton had failed to qualify for the playoffs for three out of the previous four seasons and had regularly posted league-low attendance numbers. Prior to folding, the team lost $1.5 million during the 2010–11 ECHL season.[3]
The ECHL worked to find an ownership group for a franchise in Trenton, with the NHL's Philadelphia Flyers eager to affiliate with franchise and help in cross-promotion. The Flyers, however, were not interested in owning the ECHL franchise.[5] Two weeks prior to the announcement of the Trenton Devils' suspension of operations, the ECHL registered the Trenton Titans name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, with a logo description that was similar to the logo used by the Titans from 1999–2007.[6] One week after the Devils suspended operations, a group of local fans began lobbying investors to restart the franchise under the Titans name.[7]
Trenton Titans (2011–current)
The Titans return
On July 27, an announcement was made that an ECHL franchise for Trenton had been bought and the market would re-enter the ECHL for the 2011–12 season as the Trenton Titans, with a press conference officially announcing the team occurring on July 28.[1] The ECHL Board of Governors announced on July 28 that the Titans' membership application had been approved. The franchise replaced the previous Devils franchise but retained the Titans identity. The team will take over the Trenton Devils' place in the Eastern Conference's Atlantic Division and will play according to the Devils' original schedule for the 2011–12 ECHL season.[8] Former Titan all-time scoring leader Scott Bertoli, whose number 19 is the only one to be retired by the franchise, was named senior adviser of hockey operations for the team. Richard Lisk, the Titans' general manager from 2001–05, was appointed to be the franchise's president and CEO.[9]
Former Titans defenseman and previous Devils assistant coach Vince Williams was named head coach of the Titans on August 1, 2011.[10][11]
It is currently uncertain if the current Trenton Titans are automatically considered to be the same franchise that played as the Trenton Devils for the last four seasons and played as the original Titans for the last eight seasons starting in 1999, before the franchise was renamed Trenton Devils. The current Trenton Titans was created before the Trenton Devils suspended operations and later surrendered to the ECHL. Between two to three weeks that the Trenton Devils suspended operations, it was announced that the Trenton Titans will return to the ECHL for the 2011–12 ECHL season. The league reported that the new Titans are not the same Trenton Devils franchise. However, the records from the Trenton Devils were transferred to the new Titans, which the league might automatically allow them to operate as the same continuing franchise instead of them operating as a new franchise. Thus, the timeline would be that the franchise was founded as the Trenton Titans in 1999, renamed Trenton Devils in 2007, and renamed back to Trenton Titans in 2011. Currently it is stated simply that the Trenton Titans replaced the Trenton Devils for the upcoming season and will take over their schedule.
As of August 10, the Titans traded one of their players who played with the Trenton Devils last season to Greenville in exchange for another player from the same hockey club.[1] This gives more reasoning that the Titans will automatically be the same continuing Trenton ECHL franchise that was previous known as the Trenton Devils.
The ECHL sometimes had called the Trenton Devils the Trenton Membership, which is common with mostly every team in the ECHL. Currently, the league sometimes calls the new Titans the Trenton Membership also, which the ECHL used this name previously for the Trenton Devils.
Intrastate rivalry
Before moving to Stockton, California to become the Stockton Thunder in 2005, the Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies were rivals of the Titans. They played for the Garden State Cup, which was awarded to the regular season series winner between New Jersey's two ECHL teams.
- 2001-02: Trenton wins, 6 games to 4
- 2002-03: Atlantic City wins, 6 games to 4
- 2003-04: Trenton wins, 6 games to 4
- 2004-05: Trenton wins, 5-3-2
Season-by-season record
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime losses, SOL = Shootout losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes
| Season | GP | W | L | T | OTL | SOL | Pts | GF | GA | PIM | Finish | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999–2000 | 70 | 37 | 29 | 4 | — | — | 78 | 233 | 199 | 1461 | 4th Northeast Division | Lost in conference finals |
| 2000–01 | 72 | 50 | 18 | 4 | — | — | 104 | 236 | 164 | 1284 | 1st Northeast Division | Lost in Kelly Cup finals |
| 2001–02 | 72 | 46 | 16 | 10 | — | — | 102 | 238 | 178 | 1822 | 1st Northeast Division | Lost in divisional finals |
| 2002–03 | 72 | 38 | 24 | 10 | — | — | 86 | 229 | 207 | 1860 | 4th Northeast Division | Lost in divisional semifinals |
| 2003–04 | 72 | 37 | 28 | 7 | — | — | 81 | 222 | 193 | 1569 | 6th North Division | Out of playoffs |
| 2004–05 | 72 | 42 | 21 | 9 | — | — | 93 | 213 | 197 | 1441 | 2nd East Division | Won Kelly Cup |
| 2005–06 | 72 | 31 | 36 | 5 | — | — | 67 | 166 | 214 | 1318 | 5th East Division | Lost in divisional quarterfinals |
| 2006–07 | 72 | 36 | 31 | — | 1 | 4 | 77 | 250 | 242 | 1400 | 4th North Division | Lost in divisional semifinals |
| 2007–08 | 72 | 29 | 36 | — | 3 | 4 | 65 | 183 | 220 | 1260 | 6th North Division | Out of playoffs |
| 2008–09 | 72 | 40 | 25 | — | 2 | 5 | 87 | 236 | 206 | 1146 | 2nd North Division | Lost in divisional semifinals |
| 2009–10 | 72 | 33 | 30 | — | 4 | 5 | 75 | 244 | 252 | 1465 | 3rd East Division | Out of playoffs |
| 2010–11 | 72 | 27 | 37 | — | 2 | 6 | 62 | 218 | 257 | 1255 | 3rd Atlantic Division | Out of playoffs |
Playoffs
| Season | Prelim | 1st round | 2nd round | Conference Finals |
Kelly Cup Finals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999–2000 | — | W, 3-0, Richmond | W, 3-2, Hampton Roads | L, 2-4, Peoria | — |
| 2000–01 | — | W, 3-1, Johnstown | W, 3-0, Toledo | W, 4-3, Peoria | L, 1-4, South Carolina |
| 2001–02 | — | W, 3-1, Roanoke | L, 0-3, Atlantic City | — | — |
| 2002–03 | — | L, 0-3, Atlantic City | — | — | — |
| 2003–04 | Out of playoffs | ||||
| 2004–05 | — | W, 3-0, Atlantic City | W, 3-1, Reading | W, 4-3, Alaska | W, 4-2, Florida |
| 2005–06 | L, 0-2, Johnstown | — | — | — | — |
| 2006–07 | W, 2-0, Johnstown | L, 0-3, Dayton | — | — | — |
| 2007–08 | Out of playoffs | ||||
| 2008–09 | — | L, 3-4, Elmira | — | — | — |
| 2009–10 | Out of playoffs | ||||
| 2010–11 | Out of playoffs | ||||
Retired numbers
19 Scott Bertoli (Retired on Feb. 21, 2009)
Media
The Titans are covered by the two city newspapers, The Trenton Times and The Trentonian. Hunterdon County Democrat writer Mike Ashmore kept an active blog[12] of the team during their time as the Devils. Local television station WZBN does regular reports on the team as well.
The games were broadcast on radio during the first nine years of existence on WHWH, WBCB-AM, and WTSR, In 2008, the broadcasts switched to internet-only, and were handled by first-year play-by-play announcer Paul Roper, who was selected to broadcast the 2009 ECHL All-Star Game.
Trenton players in the NHL
- Stephen Valiquette Goalie
- Ruslan Fedotenko Right Wing
- Todd Fedoruk Left Wing
- Francis Belanger Left Wing
- Jesse Boulerice Right Wing
- Matt Henderson Left Wing
- Cody Rudkowsky Goalie
- Jerred Smithson Center
- Pat Leahy Right Wing
- David Printz Defenseman
- *Pierre-Luc Leblond Right Wing
- Brad Mills made his NHL debut this year
- Mike Haviland ASSISTANT COACH/Interim Head Coach- Blackhawks
- Mike Maday Goalie (dressed out once for a game against the Gwinnett Gladiators)
Matt Henderson's NHL debut came before his Titans* debut, but he later returned to become the first Titan* to appear in the NHL before and after Trenton.
Note: * Trenton Devils.
References
- ^ a b Rosenau, Joshua (July 27, 2011). "Trenton Titans minor league hockey team to be revived at Sun National Bank Center". The Times of Trenton. Retrieved July 28, 2011.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Kimelman, Adam (May 18, 2007). "Trenton Titans become Trenton Devils". The Times of Trenton. Retrieved July 7, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ a b Abdur-Rahman, Sulaiman (July 6, 2011). "ECHL's Trenton Devils suspend operations". The Trentonian. Retrieved July 7, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Game Summary 610". ECHL. February 21, 2009. Retrieved July 7, 2011.
- ^ Kimelman, Adam (July 6, 2011). "Flyers prospect achieves "Trial on the Isle" first". National Hockey League. Retrieved July 10, 2011.
- ^ Creamer, Chris (July 6, 2011). "Trenton Devils suspend operations... Titans returning?". SportsLogos.Net. Retrieved July 10, 2011.
{{cite web}}: External link in|publisher= - ^ Duffy, Erin (July 16, 2011). "With Trenton Devils iced, local group wants to revive hockey team's predecessor". The Times of Trenton. Retrieved July 19, 2011.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Press release (July 28, 2011). "ECHL Board of Governors approves membership for Trenton Titans". ECHL. Retrieved July 28, 2011.
- ^ Duffy, Erin (July 29, 2011). "Fans cheer the return of the Trenton Titans". The Times of Trenton. Retrieved July 29, 2011.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Williams named head coach of Titans" (Press release). ECHL. August 1, 2011. Retrieved August 1, 2011.
- ^ "Trenton Titans name Williams head coach". The Trentonian. August 1, 2011. Retrieved August 1, 2011.
- ^ Inside the Trenton Devils
