1994 Off-Season

1994 Entry Draft

Entering the 1994 PHL draft, young power forward Randy McAllen was highly touted as the top prospect. Both expansion clubs Dallas and Cleveland hoped to get the first overall pick and a chance to select the 50-goal scorer first overall. Unfortunately for both teams, the Seattle Grey Wolves won the draft lottery and happily took the big center with the first pick, anchoring their offence for years to come. After the Stingers took Chris Cassidy second, Cleveland made Russian sensation Alexei Stepanov their first-ever draft pick. At number six, the Dallas Desperadoes selected rugged forward AJ Vernon as the first draft pick in their franchise history. Other interesting picks included Washington’s Jakob Olsen, the first Danish player in PHL history, and Edmonton’s Jeff Reed, the son of former PHL forward Ed Reed.

1.      SEA – Randy McAllen, F, CAN

2.      PIT – Chris Cassidy, F, CAN

3.      CLE – Alexei Stepanov, F, RUS

4.      WPG – Taylor White, D, USA

5.      NS – Petr Horak, F, CZE

6.      DAL – AJ Vernon, F, CAN

7.      CAL – Ryan Lockhart, D, USA

8.      STL – Mats Haglund, F, SWE

9.      OTT – Eric Gilliard, F, CAN

10.   BOS (From DEN) – Scott Rose, F, USA

11.   DET – Andrei Levkin, D, RUS

12.   MIA – Jason Murphy, F, CAN

13.   MIL – Thomas Suchy, D, CZE

14.   KC – Blair Horton, F, CAN

15.   LA – Eric Hunt, D, USA

16.   LI – Jyrki Raisanen, D, FIN

17.   WSH – Jakob Olsen, D, DEN

18.   VAN – AJ Devries, F, CAN

19.   PHI – Dustin Cole, F, USA

20.   QUE – Patrice Gamache, F, CAN

21.   EDM – Jeff Reed, D, CAN

22.   MIN – Simon Brassard, D, CAN

23.   MTL – Aaron Pogue, F, CAN

24.   BOS – Jarkko Nikula, F, FIN

25.   CGY – Trevor Simms, D, CAN

26.   NS (From TOR) – Viktor Holmqvist, G, SWE

27.   NYC – Bryan Briggs, D, USA

28.   CHI – Vincent Lavoix, F, CAN

Notable Retirements:

Emmett Blake, D, CHI, 1974-1994

Although Emmett Blake was never a very flashy player, that didn’t stop him from being a fan favorite in the Windy City for 20 years. His sound defensive play and work ethic endeared him to the Chicago fans and made him one of the most difficult players in the league to play against. Blake won two Lewis Cups with the Shamrocks, in 1983 and in his final season in 1994.

Dennis Aguilar, F, NY, PIT, DET, 1974-1994

One of the toughest players ever to don a Civics’ sweater, Dennis Aguilar put fear in opposing defenders for 20 years, 14 of which were spent in New York, where Aguilar was one of the most players ever to play for the Civics. Aguilar also spent three years in Pittsburgh and three more in Detroit before returning to the Big Apple for one last season in ’93-94.

Pascal Renaud, G, WPG, LI, QUE, 1975-1994

Pascal Renaud may be one of the most underrated goaltenders of all time. Playing much of his career with a struggling team in Winnipeg, Renaud avoided the spotlight yet was probably the only reason the Pioneers ever reached the playoffs. Renaud caught his big break in 1987, when he was signed by the Long Island Concordes. Renaud won his first and only Lewis Cup with Long Island in 1990. He eventually signed with his hometown team, the Quebec Nationale, where he played the remainder of his career.

Ron Borden, F, CGY, MTL, 1975-1994

Borden played a key role in the Wranglers ascent from struggling through the 70s to claiming the Lewis Cup in 1981. In 1987, Borden signed with Montreal, where he won his second championship in 1992, proving to be a valuable mentor to young superstars Vincent Ducharme, and Sergei Vetrov.

Jani Kaaleppi, F, DEN, 1975-1994

One of the first big Finnish stars in the league, Kaaleppi brought the fans in Denver out of their seats with his speed and skill. At 37 years old, he will now return to Finland to finish his career.

Notable Trades

Calgary trades D Elliot Andrews to Kansas City in exchange for F Roni Laukkanen.

In perhaps the biggest trade of the summer, the Wranglers significantly upgrade their now-stacked offense. Andrews joins his fifth franchise in a ten-year career to add depth the Twisters’ blueline.

California trades F Ilya Severov to Long Island in exchange for D Doug Lyons.

The Nuggets part with one of their young star forwards to add veteran depth on defense. Long Island, no longer true contenders, get younger up front.

Cleveland trades F Rex Hull to Toronto in exchange for F Brett Wilson

Cleveland gets a younger player in Wilson who can help them in the future while Toronto fan-favorite Hull has an opportunity to play out his entire career with the Racers.

Key Free Agents

Karl Magnusson (VAN) signs 5-year deal with New York worth $3 Million/year.

The Civics now boast one of the strongest bluelines in the league with the addition of 30-year-old Magnusson.

Tim Craft (NS) signs 3-year deal with Quebec worth $1.5 Million/year.

The exodus from Halifax continues as tough winger Craft leaves for the Nationale.

Brett Flores (MIA) signs 2-year deal with Philadelphia worth $1 Million/year.

Flores, looking to finally win a championship as he enters his 17^th season, will add important depth up front for the Redshirts.

News

The news Nova Scotian PHL fans had been dreading finally came on July 20^th, 1994. The Claymores would officially relocate to New Orleans at the beginning of the 1995-96 season. Delays in the construction of the team’s new arena forced them to stay put for one more season. Potential hockey fans in Louisiana would have to wait one more year while fans in Nova Scotia would have one last season to say goodbye. “This is probably about the toughest day of my life” said team captain and Nova Scotia native Dave Mack. “I just can’t believe it’s come to this”. League commissioner Darryl Byrd once again angered many Canadian fans when he gave a press conference welcoming New Orleans into the league, but never once thanked Nova Scotia or Halifax for the decades of support, never even mentioned the city. Jim McDonald, the Claymore’s founder had some choice words for the Commissioner; “That man has zero respect for the game and its history. Our team won a championship for crying out loud! But no, he’s just going to pretend we never existed. Somebody needs to stop him before he kills the sport.” Former Commissioner Alan Garcia did release a statement thanking the province and the city of Halifax for their support of the league and the team over the years.

For the Claymores, 1994-95 would be a celebration. The team surprised fans when they announced they would return to the original logo and uniforms from 1959 for the final season. The team would also open the year by honouring all their star players from throughout their history. In New Orleans, the city prepared to welcome their new team. Owner Sam Bendt announced that the team would be named the New Orleans Sound, a nod to the city’s musical heritage, and would wear the classic New Orleans colors of Purple, Green, and Gold.

Meanwhile, another Canadian franchise appeared to be in trouble. In June, the Ottawa Beavers stated they have been losing money for nearly a decade. Terry Goren has been trying to sell the team to a local buyer since 1991, with little to no success. Multimillionaire David Marriott has expressed interest, but won’t commit until a new arena for the team is secured. “The city will have to at least help make this happen, I just don’t have $150 Million lying around” said Marriott. The Capital Arena in the Byward Market area was built in 1941 and has been the team’s home since their inception in 1959.

While the Beavers struggled to find a new home, the Boston Bulldogs prepared to move into theirs. The team would begin the year at the hallowed Boston Arena before moving into the new Global Bank Arena on December 1^st. The new building will seat 20,500 and will feature 90 private boxes.

The new season took on a whole new meaning in early September when Spirits’ legend David Appleby announced that the 1994-95 season would be his last in the PHL. Appleby enters his 21^st year just two goals shy of the unprecedented 1,000 goal mark, and will retire as the league’s all-time leading scorer. “I don’t really know how to explain it other than its just the right time” said Appleby. “This will be a great year, I can’t wait to see what we can do this year.”

1994-95 Uniform Updates

The look of the PHL continued it's rapid transformation in 1994. Three teams made changes to their identities, with two of those teams introducing entirely new logos and uniforms. The Long Island Concordes were the first team to unveil their new look. The new primary logo features a much more detailed jet than it's predecessor in the new team colors of teal, purple, orange, and black. The secondary logo features a set of pilot wings stylized to look like a seagull. The team will wear teal uniforms on the road and white at home with both jerseys featuring a sublimated design on the bottom that resembles jets flying through the air. "We felt it was time to update our look and we really wanted a look that connects well with our community and our fanbase" said team owner Ed Jeffreys.

The Pittsburgh Stingers also overhauled their look, abandoning the basic, overhead image of a bee used since their GHL days for a more dynamic and aggressive logo featuring a bee brandishing a hockey stick. The team retains their classic color scheme of black, gold and white, but made significant changes to the design of their jerseys. 

The Milwaukee Choppers made the fewest changes to their look, slightly adjusting the shade of orange while adding a silver and black outline to the primary logo. The team also added a secondary logo featuring a skull placed inside a flaming shield similar to the one used in the team's main logo. The biggest changes were made to the uniforms, with a large dose of silver now added to accompany the black and orange, while the waist stripes have been made to resemble the lines on a highway.

Finally, the league made a fairly big announcement in July, 1994. A new program would allow teams to introduce new alternate or "third" jerseys beginning in the 1994-95 season in addition to their standard home and away uniforms. The jerseys could be worn 1-5 times each season and would provide teams with an opportunity to experiment with new designs. Any team that has not made significant changes to their uniform for at least two full seasons can introduce a third jersey. The first five teams unveiled alternates in 1994. The Boston Bulldogs will wear a red jersey that had been considered as their new away jersey when the team made changes in 1991, The St. Louis Spirits will wear a second white jersey featuring the gateway arch with their primary logo appearing to fly through it, The California Nuggets unveiled a new teal jersey featuring a wrap-around logo design around the chest, Minnesota will use a black uniform featuring a 3D-looking version of their classic saw logo with a sublimated tree design at the waist, and finally, Kansas City will wear blue jerseys with their tornado logo appearing to stir up "debris". "These uniforms are definitely not like anything PHL fans have seen before" said the league's director of marketing Jim Rudd. "This is an opportunity for our teams to think outside the box a little bit and I think the fans will really enjoy it."

Expansion Draft Results

The PHL held an expansion draft on June 20 to fill the rosters of the Dallas Desperadoes and the Cleveland Cosmos. Each existing team was allowed to protect one goalie, three defensemen, and four forwards from their twelve-man roster. Teams also had the option of protecting two goalies, as long as they made a second defenseman available. Kansas City and Miami, the league's most recent expansion teams, were each allowed to protect two extra players. Once a team lost on player, they could not lose any more. The draft went twelve rounds, with goalies selected first, defensemen next, followed by forwards. 

Cleveland was awarded the first pick and used it to select goaltender Jim Cochran from Winnipeg. Dallas then used the second pick to take Jimmy Goren from Nova Scotia. With the fourth pick, the Cosmos selected St. Louis goaltender Jaroslav Danek, the man who had backstopped the Spirits to a dynasty in the 1980s. Cleveland mainly focused on veteran players who had been successful in the past and in addition to Danek also filled their roster with other big names such as Ottawa captain Joe Fletcher and Toronto's Rex Hull. 

Dallas also made some very interesting picks, including Reijo Rantala, who had also been selected in the 1989 expansion draft by Kansas City, and defenseman Olivier Meloche, who would likely become the only player in PHL history to play for both Dallas franchises. The Desperadoes also selected tough defenseman Brent McGill from New York. McGill will not play Dallas' first six games as he will be serving the remainder of a 20-game suspension received during the Civics' first-round series with Long Island.

Overall, experts felt that both teams were a little weaker after the expansion draft then the 1989 expansion teams. Though Cleveland appeared to be the stronger team on paper, Dallas seemed more focused on their future, selecting mainly younger players. "While Cosmos GM Bill Kelly boldly predicted a playoff appearance, Desperadoes GM Ross Becker tried to be realistic. "To be candid, I don't expect us to be a very good team at first" said Becker. "We want to build a team that can bring a championship to Dallas, not just make the playoffs. It's going to take a lot of hard work and patience but I think we got off to a good start today."

G - Jimmy Goren (NS)
G - Dan Pilford (MTL)
D - Brent McGill (NY)
D - Wesley Cole (CHI)
D - Olivier Meloche (MIL)
D - Reijo Rantala (CAL)
F - Scott Crook (DEN)
F - Patrick Garnier (CGY)
F - Ken Peters (BOS)
F - Grant Sibley (WSH)
F - Mike Wheeler (LI)
F - Jeff Jones (VAN)

G - Jim Cochran (WPG)
G - Jaroslav Danek (STL)
D - Justin Brand (DET)
D - Jeff Whittle (LA)
D - Brett Caldwell (SEA)
D - Svell Pahlsson (EDM)
F - Elliott Reese (PHI)
F - Patrice Labrecque (QUE)
F - Risto Ratianen (PIT)
F - Hindrik Hjertsson (MIN)
F - Joe Fletcher (OTT)
F - Rex Hull (TOR)

Dallas, Cleveland Unveil Uniforms

The two expansion teams set to begin play in the 1994-95 season took another big step towards their first season just days after the Lewis Cup Finals ended. The Dallas Desperadoes and Cleveland Cosmos both unveiled their inaugural logos and uniforms on June 10, 1994.

The Desperadoes' primary logo features a cow skull stylized to resemble a goalie mask placed over a gold star, while the alternate mark, which will be worn on the left leg of the pants rather than the shoulder, features a pair of revolvers crossed over a map of Texas. The team colors of black, gold, orange and white were unveiled last year and are a sort of tribute to the city's former team, the Dallas Metros. The Home uniform will be white, trimmed with black, gold, and orange, while the road uniform will be black.

The Cleveland Cosmos, whose name was selected through a "name the team" contest, will wear one of the most unusual-looking jerseys ever to see PHL ice. The "out of this world" primary logo features a planet with the team name appearing to form a ring around it and an asteroid striking it. The uniforms feature the team colors of purple, silver, and black with purple serving as the main color for the road jersey and white as the home uniform. both uniforms feature a starry sky pattern sublimated onto the bottom of the jersey with stripes styled to look like a streaking asteroid running down both arms. "It's certainly very different"said GM Bill Kelly, who himself was no stranger to wild expansion team uniforms. Kelly played goal for the neon green-clad Edmonton Northern Lights in their first season in 1976-77. "It definitely reminds me of my time in Edmonton in the late 70s" he said. We didn't have a wonderful team but those blue and green sweaters certainly got us noticed. Hopefully fans will like these sweaters, but more importantly, I hope we can give them a winning team to watch too."

1994 Lewis Cup Finals

Heading into the 1994 Lewis Cup Finals, Vincent Ducharme was playing the best hockey of his career after scoring nine goals in the Eastern Conference Finals. Meanwhile, the Chicago Shamrocks were coming off one of the most successful seasons for any team in PHL history. On their way to the Finals, the Shamrocks lost only two games in the entire playoffs.

Ducharme continued his strong play in game one, scoring twice in a 4-1 Montreal win in Chicago. The Shamrocks responded with a win in game two, thanks to an early third period goal from Vladimir Kozakov. Chicago hung on for a 4-2 win to tie the series. In Montreal for game three, the teams battled to a 2-2 tie and the game went into overtime. Halfway through the overtime, JC Girard’s shot beat Chicago goaltender John Gage and appeared to go into the net before Gage grabbed it with his glove. Officials reviewed the play and ruled that the puck never crossed the line and the game went on. With just three minutes left in the first overtime, Ducharme entered the Chicago zone and released a slapshot on net. The puck dipped and beat Gage to give Montreal a 3-2 win.

Unable to get a step ahead of the Royale, the Shamrocks were desperate for a win in game four. “We know we can beat them, we just need to keep our game simple” said Theo Sprouse. The Shamrocks committed to tighter defensive play in game four, stifling the Royale as they only managed two shots in the first period. Meanwhile, Vladimir Gaganov scored twice to give Chicago a 2-0 lead. Martin Vannier scored early in the second just before Kevin Trainor made it 4-0. Frustration took over for Montreal, as several scrums broke out near the end of the second period. Montreal managed to score once in the third period but it was too little too late, as Chicago won the game 5-1. Game five would be pivotal, with the winner getting an opportunity to claim the title. It would be a high scoring affair, as the teams were tied 3-3 with time winding down in the third. With just six minutes left, Sergei Vetrov gave the Royale the lead. Chicago entered desperation mode once again, pulling Gage with a minute to go. Martin Vannier failed to beat Jonathan Bouret, but Vladimir Kozakov banged in the rebound and the game was tied. It appeared that the game would go into overtime when suddenly, Kozakov stripped Montreal defenseman Evan Flowers of the puck and got on a breakaway. Kozakov beat Bouret with a deke to give Chicago the lead. Montreal scrambled to try to tie it but it was too late. The Shamrocks now led the series 3-2 and had a chance to claim the championship.

With the Lewis Cup in the building for game six, the burning question was whether or not the Royale could rebound from the devastating loss in game five. The question would soon be answered when Ducharme and Sylvain Landry each scored to make it 2-0 for Montreal. Gaganov scored late in the second period, closing the gap to a goal. Montreal then had a chance to increase the lead to two goals once again when Trevor Ramsey hit the post on a breakaway. Chicago withstood intense pressure from Montreal to extend the lead until Ted McDougal tied the game with just four minutes left. The game would go into overtime, where Chicago hoped to repeat their dramatic OT Cup victory from 1983. However Montreal would ensure that would not happen this time when 19-year veteran Ron Borden scored midway through the extra frame, forcing a game seven back in Chicago.

“This series has been one for the ages, we all knew it had to go to seven” said commentator Don Gillis just prior to the deciding game. 62-year-old Lincoln Sports Arena was as loud as it had ever been on June 6, 1994, the night of game seven. As the game began, both teams were clearly tense. No goals were scored in the first period, but there were some close calls. Valdimir Gaganov had a golden opportunity with a wide open net but fanned on the shot and it went wide. With just seconds left in the first period, Trevor Ramsey had a breakaway chance for Montreal. He beat Gage but failed to score as the puck went off the crossbar. Montreal would finally strike first, eight minutes into the second period when Ducharme took a pass in the slot from Ramsey and deked Theo Sprouse before beating John Gage to give the Royale the lead. Montreal would nurse the lead through the rest of the period despite constant pressure from the Shamrocks. Early in the third, Chicago finally broke the deadlock when Alexander Orlov tied the game. Chicago continued to press, but Bouret met every challenge. The 20-year-old from Granby, Quebec had been absolutely brilliant throughout most of the series and now seemed almost unbeatable. Finally with seven minutes to go in regulation, Gaganov found himself on a 2-on-1 alongside Martin Vannier. Gaganov slipped Vannier the puck and Vannier immediately redirected it into the gaping net as the crowd erupted. Chicago now held the lead. Montreal made a push, pulling Bouret in a desperate attempt to tie the game. JC Girard nearly tied it with a wide open net and just 38 seconds left but just missed. Finally, Ted McDougall got the puck in the open and dumped it toward the empty Montreal net. The puck rolled into the net with just nine seconds to go, sealing the victory for Chicago. As the crowd counted out the final seconds, the Shamrocks poured off the bench. Vladimir Gaganov, the first-ever European player to captain his team to a championship, accepted the Cup from Darryl Byrd and immediately handed it off to Emmett Blake, a 20-year veteran playing in his final game. For Don Saleski, who had served as Coach/GM since 1969, the win was his second at the helm of the franchise. The 66-year-old was expected to retire, but insisted he would be back the following year to defend the title. “We’re just getting going, I would be insane to quit now” said Saleski.

1994 Playoffs

The first round of the 1994 playoffs was full of rivalry matchups, perhaps the most intriguing of which was the “Subway Series” between the New York Civics and the Long Island Concordes. It would be the first time the two teams ever met in the post-season and the series promised to be an instant classic. 22300 packed into Broadway House for game one, the first playoff game in the arena, and the home fans were treated to a 4-2 win for the Civics. Long Island won game two in double overtime thanks to a goal from Doug Lyons to tie the series. Things began to finally get tense in game three on the Island. Pushing and shoving around the nets followed nearly every whistle, at one point culminating in two fights. The action even spilled into the stands as security was forced to break up a few altercations between fans as Long Island won to take an unexpected lead in the series. The violence in the crowd worsened in game four after Long Island’s Ashton Nichol and Brandon Fox teamed up on Civic’s star Jeremy Kitchen, tackling him to the ice. This led to a line brawl when Lamar Jackson, Brent McGill and Dennis Aguilar jumped in to defend Kitchen. When some Civics fans began yelling at the Long Island fans, calling the Concordes “thugs”, a full scale brawl broke across two sections of the arena. The game was stopped and NYPD was called in to assist the helpless security guards. As many as 19 people were arrested, while eight were taken to hospital with minor injuries. When the game finally resumed over an hour later, New York hung on for a 4-2 win. 

After the game, the league issued a strong warning that both teams would face discipline if the violence continued. Unfortunately there was another incident at the start of game five in Manhattan when more fights broke out at the gate just before the game started. Both teams were fined $10,000 and warned that the fines would be worse next time. However the increased security at both arenas did nothing to calm the tension on the ice. Game five was a physical affair that the Civics won 3-1, but there was an ugly incident toward the end of the game when New York defenseman Brent McGill sucker-punched Long Island’s Bruce Evans in front of the net, knocking him out. McGill was ejected from the game while Evans had to be stretchered off the ice. When Evans was revealed to have a severe concussion and a small spinal fracture, McGill was handed on of the most severe suspensions in PHL history at 20 games, likely the remainder of the playoffs. Evans would miss the remainder of the playoffs but was expected to recover in time for the next season. Long Island would win a tight game six, forcing a game seven back in Manhattan. Game seven fully lived up to the hype it received, going to double overtime where Clark Pratt finally ended it for the Civics, sending them to round two.

Unlike the Civics and Concordes, the Boston Bulldogs and Philadelphia Redshirts did have decades of history with eachother, and 1994 was no different than the previous meetings with fights and scrums breaking out throughout the series. The Redshirts never really showed up for the series, narrowly avoiding a sweep in game four with a 4-2 win before the Bulldogs finished them off in game five to advance. Though not as violent as the other two series, Montreal and Quebec also had their share of hostilities in a tough six-game series that went to the heavily favored Royale. In other Eastern Conference action, the Washington Generals gave Toronto all they could handle before finally succumbing to the Racers in six games.

With fewer rivalry matchups, the first round was not nearly as eventful in the Western Conference. The Kansas City Twisters made their playoff debut, facing the heavily favoured Calgary Wranglers. After dropping the first game, the Twisters bounced back with a big win in game two to steal home-ice advantage. A capacity crowd packed the KC Sportsplex for game three, the first playoff game ever played in Kansas City and the Twisters rode the loud crowd presence to a 4-2 win and a series lead. Calgary was desperate, knowing they had to win game four or their very successful season would be in jeopardy. Head coach Bruce Ricketts decided to sit goaltender Ron Tatum, who had struggled mightily in the first three games, in favour of Darren Beauport for game four. The decision proved to be a good one as Beauport played very well as the game was tied at the end of regulation. However, just minutes into overtime, Wranglers defenseman Drew Morgan turned the puck over to Travis Watson. Watson deked Beauport and beat him on the left side as the Kansas City crowd erupted. The Twisters now led the series 3-1 and had a chance to complete the upset in Calgary in game five. Beauport played well again in game five, stopping 32 shots as the game went into overtime. This time the game turned into a marathon as one extra period turned into two, then three. Less than five minutes into overtime number three, Twisters captain Scott Drayton blasted a shot from the point that found its way through traffic and into the net. The crowd exploded again as the Twisters scrambled off the bench and mobbed Drayton. The Twisters had pulled off the biggest upset of the playoffs.

In other Western Conference action, Chicago defeated Milwaukee in five very physical games. The Shamrocks lost Vladimir Gaganov in game three when Choppers defenseman Ray Decker took him out with a devastating hit. Gaganov suffered a mild concussion and missed the rest of the series, but was optimistic about returning in the second round. Meanwhile, Minnesota beat LA in six games, while Vancouver upset Edmonton in a four-game sweep.

Coming off the upset over the Northern Lights, the Bighorns entered their second-round series with Minnesota full of confidence. Vancouver jumped to a 3-0 series lead, going into game four with an opportunity to pull off a second-straight sweep. Game four was a tight one, as Jason Crowley’s late-third period goal gave the Lumberjacks a 2-1 win. Minnesota would win game five as well, before Vancouver finally finished off their second-straight upset and advanced to the Western Conference Finals. Chicago, with Gaganov back in the lineup, ended any hopes of a Cinderella run in KC with a four-game sweep of the Twisters.

The Toronto Racers ran into immediate trouble against the defending champion Boston Bulldogs. Boston jumped ahead to a 2-0 series lead with Kevin Washer appearing to be nearly unbeatable in the Boston goal. Now needing to win at least two games in Boston, the Racers’ backs were against the wall heading into game three. Magnus Swedberg scored twice in a 4-3 Toronto win, followed by another dominating win in game four to tie the series. Heading home with all the momentum now going their way, the Racers now had an opportunity to take the series lead. Marc Brunelle scored in overtime to give the Racers the win and a chance to close out the series in Boston. The Racers came back from a 2-0 deficit in game six, earning another 3-2 win and advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals for the second year in a row. The Montreal Royale also faced an uphill battle in their series against New York. It seemed that the Royale were playing the whole series from behind. After coming back from a 2-0 deficit, the Royale’s struggles in the Big Apple continued in game five, as New York once again took the series lead. A big 2-0 victory at home sent the series to game seven, where the their Broadway woes finally came to an end in a 5-3 win.

The Royale continued to play from behind in the Eastern Conference Finals, as Toronto jumped ahead to a 2-0 series lead at home. Back in Montreal for game three, Montreal needed a big win to avoid a 3-0 hole. Game three would be a close one, as the teams were tied 1-1 through two periods before Sergei Vetrov scored to give Montreal the lead. JC Girard scored with just two minutes left to seal the win and put the Royale back in the series. needing another victory in game four, Vincent Ducharme stepped up big, scoring a hat-trick in a 4-2 Montreal win. Two nights later in Toronto, Ducharme became the first player in PHL history to score back-to-back hat-tricks in the playoffs as the Royale won 5-1 to take a 3-2 series lead and an opportunity to win the series at home. The Racers never really got into game six, as Ducharme scored again along with Vetrov , Trevor Ramsey, and Jarkko Vesa as Montreal won 4-1 to take the series and return to the Lewis Cup Finals.

The Royale would face the Chicago Shamrocks in the Finals, who were coming off a five-game win over Vancouver and hoping to end their dominating season with a sixth championship. The 1993 final was a battle between two of the league’s most physical teams, the 1994 final would be the opposite, played between two fast and offensively gifted teams, both with a rich history. It would be the first time in 20 years that two of the PHL’s original clubs would battle for the ultimate prize.

1993-94 Regular Season

1993-94 was a big year for the New York Civics. In October, the team finally opened Broadway House, one of the most spectacular entertainment facilities in the world, including a 2,000 seat theater and a 22,000 seat arena. On opening night, several Civics legends including Freddie Huff, Dave Tobin, and Dave Riley were on hand for the occasion as the Civics faced their metro rivals, the Long Island Concordes. Unfortunately for the Civics, Long Island spoiled opening night thanks to an overtime goal from Doug Macintyre. Despite the disappointing loss, the Civics went on a tear that saw them win 17 straight games. The streak ended on December 4 in a loss to Philadelphia but they still managed an unexpected first-place finish in the Eastern Conference. Aaron Duplacy led the way for the Civics with the first 50-goal season of his career, while Jason Wyley enjoyed a breakout year in net. “It’s been a long time coming, but it’s fun to finally have a year like this together” said Duplacy.

The Civics weren’t the only team enjoying success in the Eastern Conference. The Toronto Racers, spurred by the off-season acquisition of Magnus Swedberg, finished second in the conference, with Swedberg leading the team in scoring. The Racers spent most of the year battling with Boston for second place. The teams finished with identical records but Toronto managed to take the number two spot based on head-to-head matchups as the Racers won three out of the four games against the Bulldogs. In Montreal, Vincent Ducharme won the league scoring title for the second straight year, but the Royale dropped to fourth place due to a slew of injuries. Goaltender Victor Malmsten struggled through the first two months of the season, eventually losing the starting job to sophomore Jonathan Bouret. Unable to regain his form, Malmsten retired from the PHL in January and returned to Sweden to finish his career. Miami once again came close to reaching the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, but lost out to Long Island with just two weeks to go in the season.

When the Detroit Mustangs got off to a horrendous start, the team decided it was time to make some changes. The Mustangs fired GM John Mason and head coach Ted Morley and hired former head scout Bob Gill as their new GM, and former defenseman Cliff Lyle as head coach. Gill immediately made two significant trades, sending defenseman Gustav Janssen to New York in exchange for prospect Eric Thorn, and trading longtime goaltender Brian Donovan to Milwaukee for another prospect, Brent Zahorsky. “We’re not interested in simply making the playoffs” said Gill, “we want to bring a championship back to Detroit. It’s going to take patience but we will get there.”

In the Western Conference, the Chicago Shamrocks ran away with first overall in the league. Vladimir Gaganov finished second in league scoring, while teammate Vladimir Kozakov finished fourth. The Russian superstars weren’t the only ones driving the Shamrocks’ success, however. Defenseman Theo Sprouse, in his second year in Chicago, enjoyed the best year of his career with 71 points, while John Gage was solid in goal. In Calgary, the Wranglers finally enjoyed breakout year as Shannon Micheals and Sergei Krayev teamed up with former St. Louis superstar Grant Millen to lead the Calgary offence. Millen had come out of a two-year retirement to join the Wranglers and looked like he hadn’t missed a step playing with the two young stars. The Wranglers finished first in the Pacific Division and second in the Western Conference.

The Denver Bulls made a big move just prior to the trade deadline. The Bulls were in the hunt for a playoff spot throughout the second half of the year and needed a true number one goalie to make a run. Meanwhile in Boston, Ron Buckner had lost his job to budding star Kevin Washer and was looking for a change. The Bulldogs sent Buckner to Denver on March 1 in exchange for a first round draft pick. Buckner immediately gave the Bulls a shot of confidence down the stretch, however it was too little too late, as Milwaukee pulled ahead of Denver in the final two weeks of the year, taking the final spot from the Bulls. When the season was over, Buckner extended his contract with the Bulls to 1997. “I really had a great time here” said Buckner. “It was disappointing to miss the playoffs but I think we can get there next year, we have a great young group here and I think I can see ending my career here.”

For the Kansas City Twisters, 1994 was a monumental year. After four years of growing pains, the Twisters finally found themselves in the Lewis Cup Playoffs after a 34-win season. KC’s success was largely attributed to a coming-of-age year for young stars such as Brett Delaney, Travis Watson, and defenseman Scott Drayton, who led the PHL in plus/minus in his first year as team captain. In their first-ever playoff series, the Twisters would face the powerful Calgary Wranglers, a team that finished 26 points ahead of them in the standings. Despite being labeled as enormous underdogs, the team embraced the role, entering the post-season full of confidence. “We’re not just happy to be here” said Drayton. “We feel we can beat any team here. We have a great group and I think we’ll be tough to play against.”

1993 Off-Season

1993 Entry Draft

Unlike the previous few drafts, the 1993 entry draft was lighter on European talent. Goaltender Luke Morrison became the second goalie in PHL history to go number one in the draft when he was taken by the Winnipeg Pioneers. Seattle continued their rebuild with the selection of Drake Klausen, a 50-goal scorer in junior. Big defenseman Brad Banks was the first American selected when Pittsburgh selected him at number four. Banks, a late 1974 birthday, was considered the most mature player in the draft, already having a year of NCAA hockey under his belt. The first European player selected was Oleg Markov, picked sixth by the Denver Bulls. Three players with PHL bloodlines were selected in 1993. Calgary selected Ben Parsons, son of former Redshirts captain Gil Parsons, 14^th overall, Chicago picked Chris Brewer, son of former Vancouver Bighorn Rick Brewer, at 26^th, while Philadelphia picked Martin Benoit, son of former Quebec star Guy Benoit, 24^th.

1.      WPG -  Luke Morrison, G, CAN

2.      SEA – Drake Klausen, F, CAN

3.      NS – Greg Cote, D, CAN

4.      PIT – Brad Banks, D, USA

5.      OTT – Gus Avery, F, USA

6.      DEN – Oleg Markov, F, RUS

7.      CAL – Ali Leino, D, FIN

8.      MIA – Eric Moon, F, CAN

9.      KC – Sergei Popov, D, RUS

10.   NYC – Eric Thorn, F, CAN

11.   STL - Martin Novak, F, CZE

12.   WSH – Brendan O’Connor, D, CAN

13.   LI – Bruce Evans, F, UK

14.   CGY – Ben Parsons, D, USA

15.   LA – Geoff Johns, F, CAN

16.   MIL – Patrice Goulet, F, CAN

17.   MIN - Victor Dahlman, D, SWE

18.   QUE – Brent White, F, CAN

19.   VAN – Ryan Kent, D, USA

20.   TOR – Sami Soro, D, FIN

21.   DET – Jari Toivanen, G, FIN

22.   BOS – Mike Wilke, F, CAN

23.   EDM – Kim Russell, F, CAN

24.   PHI – Martin Benoit, D, CAN

25.   MTL – Jean-Pierre Roy, D, CAN

26.   CHI – Chris Brewer, F, CAN

Notable Retirements:

Pete Holloway – SEA, MIL, 1974-1993

The first players ever drafted by the Seattle Grey Wolves, Holloway was eventually named the team’s captain. Together with Jake Fairbanks, Holloway helped formed one of the most dynamic duos in hockey as the Wolves reached the Lewis Cup Finals in 1985. Unfortunately, Seattle lost to Pittsburgh and Holloway, who played his final two years in Milwaukee, retires as one of the best players to never win the Lewis Cup.

Colin Fleming – BOS, 1974-1993

In one of the most emotional and dramatic career finales in PHL history, Colin Fleming finally hoisted the Lewis Cup for the first time after 19 seasons, all with Boston. Fleming joined the Bulldogs in 1974 and almost immediately became a fan-favorite with an incredible combination of skill and toughness. Fleming retires as one of the most popular Bulldogs of all time.

Brad Hewson – DEN, 1973-1993

Making his debut in 1973, Brad Hewson almost single-handedly led the then newly-relocated Denver Bulls to their first post-season berth in eight years. Playing alongside captain Brian Hunt, Hewson finished his career with 590 goals, second only to Hunt in franchise history.

Craig Davidson – LI, 1976-1993

Davidson was the Concordes first draft pick in franchise history and went on to play his entire 16-year career on Long Island, helping lead them to a Lewis Cup in 1990.

Notable Trades

New York trades F Ryan Cobb to Winnipeg in exchange for F Dennis Aguilar.

Aguilar returns to the Big Apple for what will be his 20^th and final PHL season as the Civics hope to return to playoff contention. The Pioneers get a solid young player in Cobb.

Calgary trades F Owen Betts to Philadelphia in exchange for G Darren Beauport and F Brad Welsh.

The Wranglers acquire a solid backup goaltender in Beauport as well as a decent prospect in Welsh, while the Redshirts add some toughness in enforcer Betts.

Key Free Agents

Magnus Swedberg (PHI) signs 5-year deal with Toronto worth $3.5 Million.

Superstar Swedberg becomes the second-highest paid player in hockey as the Racers become the new

favorites in the east to win the Lewis Cup. No less than 13 teams courted Swedberg before he decided on Toronto.

Terry Hawkins (MIL) signs 4-year deal with Boston worth $2 Million/year.

The defending champions get another star player in Hawkins. Though he is past his prime, Hawkins will provide valuable depth and experience in Boston.

 

Harry Hayes (NS) signs 5-year deal with Milwaukee worth $2 Million.

Amidst speculation of a Claymores relocation, Hayes is the latest to jump ship. The Choppers signed him to replace Terry Hawkins.

Grant Millen signs 1-year deal with Calgary worth $600,000.

In perhaps the most stunning development of the off-season, 40-year-old Millen comes out of retirement to join his hometown team as they chase a title.

News

The summer of 1993 was the calm before the storm. Two expansion teams were set to begin play in the fall of 1994 and in June, 1993, both the newly named Cleveland Cosmos and Dallas Desperados unveiled their wordmark logos and color schemes. Cleveland’s colors will be black, purple, and silver, while Dallas will wear black, gold, and orange in a small nod to Dalllas’ previous franchise, the Dallas Metros. Both teams will unveil their logos and uniforms in the spring of 1994. The teams also hired their first staff members. Former PHL goaltender Bill Kelly was hired as GM of the Cosmos, while the Desperados hired former Dallas Metros winger Ross Becker as their GM. The Desperados hoped Becker’s experience in the Dallas market would be a valuable asset as the franchise tried to win over a city that had already lost a team before.

The Nova Scotia Claymores’ situation went from bad to worse, as their lease at Barrington Arena was set to expire. Without the resources to build a new arena, the team was counting on both the municipal and provincial government to fund the facility. In May, 1993, negotiations with the city fell apart. Unable to find a buyer in the Maritimes, Jim McDonald was forced to sell the team to the league in June. It was essentially a death sentence for PHL hockey in Halifax, as Darryl Byrd had almost no interest in continuing in Nova Scotia. Byrd angered many Canadians when he declared Halifax as a “Minor League Town” and suggested that the league was outgrowing small Canadian markets. Meanwhile, rallies were held all summer in an attempt to save the team. In September, New Orleans-based entrepreneur Sam Bendt purchased the team. Bendt had begun construction on a new arena during the summer of 1992 and hoped it would be completed by the fall of 1994. It appeared that the 1993-94 season would be the last for the Claymores in Halifax. “We saw it coming for a few years now, but it doesn’t make it hurt any less” said 58-year-old Don McKay, a fan since the first season in 1959. “It’s truly devastating, I don’t even know if I’ll follow the PHL much anymore to be honest.”

Finally the host city for the 1996 World Hockey Challenge was selected. The tournament would be played in Moscow, marking the first time ever that it would be played in Russia. After the announcement, Russian superstar Vladimir Gaganov said he would play for Russia in the tournament for the first time since 1976.