Utica Comets

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Utica Comets
2022–23 AHL season
200px
City Utica, New York
League American Hockey League
Conference Eastern
Division North
Founded 1932 (first franchise)
1998 (second franchise)
Home arena Adirondack Bank Center
Colors Red, black, white
              
Owner(s) Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment
(leased to Robert Esche)
General manager Dan MacKinnon
Head coach Kevin Dineen
Captain Ryan Schmelzer
Media WKLL (94.9 FM)
Observer-Dispatch
WKTV NewsChannel 2
WUTR Eyewitness News
AHL.TV (Internet)
Affiliates New Jersey Devils (NHL)
Adirondack Thunder (ECHL)
Franchise history
First franchise
1932–1935
1935–1951		 Quebec Beavers
Springfield Indians
1951–1954
1954–1967		 Syracuse Warriors
Springfield Indians
1967–1974
1974–1994		 Springfield Kings
Springfield Indians
1994–2005
2005–2013		 Worcester IceCats
Peoria Rivermen
2013–2021 Utica Comets
2021–present Abbotsford Canucks
Second franchise
1998–2006
2006–2010		 Lowell Lock Monsters
Lowell Devils
2010–2017 Albany Devils
2017–2021 Binghamton Devils
2021–present Utica Comets
Championships
Division Championships 2 (2014–15, 2021–22)
Conference Championships 1 (2014–15)

The Utica Comets are a professional ice hockey team based in Utica, New York, with home games at the Adirondack Bank Center. They are members of the North Division in the Eastern Conference of the American Hockey League (AHL) and affiliated with the National Hockey League's (NHL) New Jersey Devils. The team was established when the Vancouver Canucks relocated their AHL franchise to Utica for the 2013–14 season.

The Comets are the second AHL team to call Utica home; another New Jersey Devils-affiliated team, the Utica Devils played in the city from 1987 until 1993. Before the 2021–22 AHL season, the Canucks relocated the franchise used by the Comets to Abbotsford, British Columbia, and the Devils relocated their franchise, the then-Binghamton Devils, to Utica to play as the Comets.

History

Establishment of the Comets

On March 29, 2013, a deal was announced for the Peoria Rivermen franchise to be purchased by Canucks Sports & Entertainment (CS&E), owners of the National Hockey League's (NHL) Vancouver Canucks. The deal was later approved by the American Hockey League (AHL) on April 18.[1] The Canucks-owned franchise is one of the oldest professional hockey franchises in existence, dating back to 1932, when the team was known as the Quebec Beavers. In 1935, the franchise moved to Springfield and became the Indians, reviving the name after the original Indians franchise ceased operations during the 1932–33 Canadian-American Hockey League season. In addition to the Indians, the team has been known as the Syracuse Warriors, Springfield Kings, Worcester IceCats and then the Rivermen.

After purchasing the franchise, CS&E intended to have the franchise located in a market close to Vancouver, British Columbia. Their initial preference was Abbotsford, British Columbia, which was home to the Calgary Flames' AHL farm club, the Abbotsford Heat. The Heat had been rumored to have plans to relocate to Utica at the time.[2] Negotiations between the Canucks and Abbotsford broke down by April 22, ensuring the Heat would remain in the city.[3] Media reports speculated that the Canucks would move the team to Vancouver and share Rogers Arena, which is also owned by CS&E, with the Canucks. This proved impossible as Vancouver is within Abbotsford's 50-mile territorial radius provided by the AHL.[4] A reported plan to have the team play in Seattle's KeyArena was disallowed by the NHL, as Seattle was reportedly a candidate to land the troubled Phoenix Coyotes franchise. However, the Coyotes eventually found a new owner with intentions to keep the franchise in Arizona and Seattle eventually received an expansion team in the Seattle Kraken to play in the arena.[5]

By May 2013, CS&E's options for the franchise were dwindling; it did consider keeping the franchise in Peoria,[6] but notified the city on May 13 it would not operate in that city, and the Rivermen were replaced by a Southern Professional Hockey League team of the same name.[7] CS&E did consider placing the franchise in dormancy for the 2013–14 season, with the Canucks loaning their AHL prospects to other teams.[8] Facing an extended deadline by the AHL to find a new home,[9] CS&E agreed to a deal with Utica, New York, to relocate the franchise to the city's soon-to-be-renovated Memorial Auditorium.[10] The deal was confirmed on June 14 with an official announcement revealing the Utica Comets name and affiliation, along with logo and jerseys patterned after the Canucks' blue, green and silver color scheme.[11] The Comets' nickname honors several prior professional hockey teams in the Mohawk Valley, most notably the Clinton and Mohawk Valley Comets, which played from 1927 until 1977 (as the Mohawk Valley Comets, they called the Memorial Auditorium home); the Atlantic Coast Hockey League's Mohawk Valley Comets, which played from 1985 until 1987; and a third team of the same name, which played in the North Eastern Hockey League during the 2003–04 season.

Vancouver Canucks affiliation (2013–2021)

After establishing the team, CS&E began hiring operations personnel. Travis Green became the first head coach,[12] while Paul Jerrard and Nolan Baumgartner were named assistant coaches, and Pat Conacher was hired as the director of hockey operations.[13] Utica played its first game on October 11, 2013, a 4–1 loss to the Rochester Americans. In the game, Pascal Pelletier scored the first goal in Comets' history.[14] Utica lost two more games before making their home debut. Before the game, the Comets celebrated the region's hockey history with a slide show, Gordie Howe dropped the ceremonial puck and the Hanson Brothers from the movie Slap Shot made an appearance. Utica lost the game 4–1 to the Albany Devils.[15][16] One week after their home opener, Colin Stuart was named team captain.[17] The Comets finished their debut season with 35 victories and 79 points, four points behind the last spot of the playoffs. Seventeen of the team's thirty-eight home games were sold out.[18]

File:Utica Comets logo.svg
Comets' logo from 2013 to 2021 with colors reflecting those of the Canucks.

Before the 2014–15 season, Cal O'Reilly was named the team's new captain.[19] The Comets saw much improvement in their second season, and after Sven Baertschi and Cory Conacher were acquired in trades, the team soon dominated the Western Conference, finishing the regular season as the top seed.[20] During the playoffs, the Comets won the Robert W. Clarke Trophy as Western Conference champions, advancing to the Calder Cup finals against the Manchester Monarchs;[21] the Comets would fall to the Monarchs in five games. Following the season, O'Reilly joined his brother Ryan with the Buffalo Sabres.

The 2015–16 season saw the departure of many Comets players. Jacob Markstrom became the backup goaltender for the Canucks, Brendan Gaunce and newly-named captain Alex Biega also spent significant time with the Canucks, while Nicklas Jensen and Hunter Shinkaruk were traded mid-season to the New York Rangers and Calgary Flames, respectively. The Comets placed third in the North Division, which was moved to the Eastern Conference at the start of the season. They were eliminated in the first round of the 2016 playoffs, losing the series 3–1 to the Albany Devils.

At the start of the 2016–17 season, Carter Bancks was named team captain, replacing Alex Biega, who became a full-time player for the Canucks. The Comets were unable to clinch a playoff berth, falling four points short. However, the team managed to sellout every home game, extending their sellout streak.

On April 26, 2017, the Canucks hired Green as their new head coach after leading the Comets to a 155–110–39 record through their first four seasons.[22] He was replaced by Trent Cull as head coach of the Comets.[23] The Comets continued their sellout streak through the 2017–18 season. They qualified for the 2018 playoffs as the fourth seed in the North Division. They lost the opening round in five games to the Toronto Marlies, the eventual Calder Cup champions.

On October 19, 2018, the Utica Comets sold out their 121st consecutive regular season game, establishing a new AHL record. They also sold out all of their 17 playoff games hosted during this span, for a combined streak of 138 consecutive sellouts.[24] They reached 200 consecutive regular season sellouts on February 29, 2020.

On December 29, 2018, during the final season of their initial six-year affiliation agreement, the Canucks and Comets extended their affiliation agreement for up to an additional six years, with potential opt outs every two seasons.[25][26]

The Comets played their first 61 games of the 2019–20 season, but the last 15 games of the season were postponed on March 12, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and then cancelled entirely.[27] The start of the 2020–21 season was also pushed back to February 2021. The Comets also agreed to a one-year dual affiliation with the St. Louis Blues after the Springfield Thunderbirds opted out of the 2020–21 season.[28] Prior to the pandemic-related schedule changes, the Comets planned to host the Syracuse Crunch in an outdoor game at the Griffiss Business and Technology Park in Rome, New York, on February 13, 2021,[29] however, the game was not held as the season had not started.[30]

New Jersey Devils affiliation (2021–present)

In April 2021, a new trademark was filed for the brand "Utica Devils" by Robert Esche, the operator of the Utica Comets, for a potential relocation of the Binghamton Devils.[31] On May 4, the Canucks announced that they plan to relocate the Comets' franchise to Abbotsford, British Columbia, pending final discussions with the city of Abbotsford and league approval.[32] On May 6, the league approved of both relocations while the Comets and the Devils announced a ten-year affiliation agreement for the Comets to operate the Devils' AHL franchise.[33] The Utica team remained branded as the Comets[34] but changed their team colors to match the Devils.[35] Kevin Dineen was brought on as the first head coach under the Devils' affiliation.[36]

The Comets started the 2021–22 AHL season with an 11–game winning streak, tying the 1984–85 Rochester Americans for the most consecutive wins to start a season by an AHL team. They would win their next game against the Charlotte Checkers to break the previous record, with a 12–0–0–0 record to start the regular season. The Comets would use this winning streak to help them finish with a North division regular season championship, and with the best points percentage in the Eastern Conference. They would have a bye in the first round, but would lose in five games to the Rochester Americans in the North Division Semifinals.

Season-by-season results

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
2013–14 76 35 32 5 4 79 .520 187 216 3rd, North 2014 Did not qualify
2014–15 76 47 20 7 2 103 .678 219 182 1st, North 2015 — W, 3–2, CHI W, 4–3, OKC W, 4–2, GR L, 1–4, MCH
2015–16 76 38 26 8 4 88 .579 224 217 3rd, North 2016 — L, 1–3, ALB — — —
2016–17 76 35 32 7 2 79 .520 195 220 5th, North 2017 Did not qualify
2017–18 76 38 26 8 4 88 .579 211 216 4th, North 2018 — L, 2–3, TOR — — —
2018–19 76 34 34 6 2 76 .500 224 257 6th, North 2019 Did not qualify
2019–20 61 34 22 3 2 73 .598 210 186 3rd, North 2020 Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2020–21 28 16 11 0 1 33 .589 89 88 4th, North 2021 No playoffs were held
2021–22 72 43 20 8 1 95 .660 246 206 1st, North 2022 BYE L, 2–3, ROC — — —

Players

Current roster

Updated April 24, 2023.[37]

# Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace Contract
92 Canada Graeme Clarke RW R 23 2021 Waconia, Minnesota Devils
50 Canada Nico Daws G L 22 2021 Munich, Germany Devils
1 Canada Zach Emond G L 24 2023 St. Cyprien, Quebec Devils
16 Sweden Filip Engaras C R 25 2023 Stockholm, Sweden Comets
38 Canada Josh Filmon (ATO) LW L 20 2023 Winnipeg, Manitoba Comets
25 Canada Nolan Foote LW L 23 2021 Englewood, Colorado Devils
19 United States T.J. Friedmann F R 26 2023 St. Louis, Missouri Comets
15 United States Joseph Gambardella (A) C L 31 2021 Staten Island, New York Devils
55 Canada Mason Geertsen D L 29 2022 Drayton Valley, Alberta Devils
75 Canada Jeremy Groleau D L 25 2021 Saint-Nicolas, Quebec Devils
24 United States Brian Halonen LW R 25 2022 Delano, Minnesota Devils
61 Finland Santeri Hatakka D L 23 2023 Riihimaki, Finland Devils
8 Canada Jayce Hawryluk C R 28 2023 Yorkton, Saskatchewan Devils
65 Canada Zack Hayes D L 25 2023 Calgary, Alberta Devils
9 Sweden Alexander Holtz F L 22 2021 Saltsjö-Boo, Sweden Devils
91 United States Nick Hutchison C R 29 2022 Hicksville, New York Comets
90 Russia Timur Ibragimov LW L 24 2023 St. Petersburg, Russia Devils
79 Canada Samuel Laberge LW L 27 2021 Chateauguay, Quebec Comets
7 Slovakia Simon Nemec D R 20 2022 Liptovský Mikuláš, Slovakia Devils
67 Canada Xavier Parent LW L 23 2022 Laval, Quebec Comets
28 United States Brian Pinho C R 29 2022 North Andover, Massachusetts Devils
1 Canada Isaac Poulter G L 23 2022 Winnipeg, Manitoba Comets
5 United States Robbie Russo (A) D R 31 2021 Westmont, Illinois Devils
26 United States Ryan Schmelzer (C) C R 31 2021 Buffalo, New York Comets
21 United States Nolan Stevens C L 28 2022 Brantford, Ontario Comets
77 Finland Aarne Talvitie C L 25 2021 Espoo, Finland Devils
12 United States Tyce Thompson F R 25 2021 Oyster Bay, New York Devils
2 Canada Michael Vukojevic D L 23 2021 Oakville, Ontario Devils
22 United States Reilly Walsh D R 25 2021 North Falmouth, Massachusetts Devils
23 Canada Tyler Wotherspoon (A) D L 31 2021 Burnaby, British Columbia Devils

Team captains

There have been four players who have served as the captain in the first franchise, and one in the second. Colin Stuart was the first franchise's first captain, who was appointed until he left the team as a free agent in 2014, while Ryan Schmelzer is the first and current captain of the second franchise, holding the position since his appointment in 2021. Carter Bancks was the longest-tenured captain of either franchise, holding the position from 2016 until his retirement after the 2019–20 season.[38]

First Franchise

Second Franchise

  • Ryan Schmelzer, 2021–present

References

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  27. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  28. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  29. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  31. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  32. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  33. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  34. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  35. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  36. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  37. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  38. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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