Abbotsford Heat | |
City: | Abbotsford, British Columbia |
---|---|
League: | American Hockey League |
Conference: | Western Conference |
Division: | West Division |
Founded: | 2009 |
Home Arena: | Abbotsford Entertainment & Sports Centre |
Colors: | White, Red, Black, Silver
|
Head Coach: | Troy Ward |
Affiliates: | Calgary Flames (NHL) Utah Grizzlies (ECHL) |
Franchise history | |
1977–1987: | Maine Mariners |
1987–1993: | Utica Devils |
1993–2003: | Saint John Flames |
2005–2007: | Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights |
2007–2009: | Quad City Flames |
2009–2014: | Abbotsford Heat |
2014-present: | Adirondack Flames |
The Abbotsford Heat were a professional ice hockey team that played in the American Hockey League. The team was based in Abbotsford, British Columbia. The Heat began to play during 2009-10 season, and were the affiliate of the National Hockey League's Calgary Flames. There home games were played at the 7,046 seat Abbotsford Entertainment & Sports Centre. They were the only AHL team in the Pacific Time Zone, and were also two time zones from the nearest team in the league, as there were also no teams in the Mountain Time Zone.
History[]
The Flames moved their affiliate to the Fraser Valley after playing two seasons in Moline, Illinois as the Quad City Flames. The team's transfer was approved on April 28, 2009, and as a result, Abbotsford became the westernmost city in the AHL. The team closest to the Heat in distance, the Oklahoma City Barons, is away in Oklahoma City, and the Heat were the only AHL team west of the Central Time Zone or the Rocky Mountains. As such, to reduce travel costs, the road team that played two consecutive road games in Abbotsford, and in some cases, the Heat played consecutive road games at the same arena.
The team hosted a "Name the Team" contest and on May 14, 2009, the Heat was announced as the team's new name.
On June 5, 2009, the Calgary Herald reported that Jim Playfair would debut as head coach of the Abbotsford Heat after spending 2 seasons with the Calgary Flames.
The Heat played there final AHL season in the 2013-14 AHL season. on May 5, 2014 the team relocated to Glens Falls, New York to become the Adirondack Flames.
Mascot[]
The Heat's mascot was Hawkey, an anthropomorphic red-tailed hawk; a species that is native to the Fraser Valley. Hawkey could be seen at home games wearing jersey #00.
Season-by-Season Results[]
Regular Season[]
Season | Games | Won | Lost | OTL | SOL | Points | Goals For |
Goals Against |
Standing |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2009–10 | 80 | 39 | 29 | 5 | 7 | 90 | 217 | 231 | 3rd, North |
2010–11 | 80 | 38 | 32 | 4 | 6 | 86 | 186 | 212 | 4th, North |
2011–12 | 76 | 42 | 26 | 3 | 5 | 92 | 200 | 201 | 2nd, West |
Playoffs[]
Season | 1st Round | 2nd Round | 3rd Round | Finals |
---|---|---|---|---|
2009–10 | W, 4-3, Rochester | L, 2-4, Hamilton | — | — |
2010–11 | Out of playoffs | |||
2011–12 | W, 3-0, Milwaukee | L, 1-4, Toronto | — | — |