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Green Bay Gamblers

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Green Bay Gamblers
CityAshwaubenon, Wisconsin
LeagueUSHL
ConferenceEastern
Founded1994
Home arenaResch Center
ColorsBlack, yellow, white
     
Owner(s)PMI Entertainment Group
General managerPatrick McCadden
Head coachPatrick McCadden
Franchise history
1994–presentGreen Bay Gamblers
Championships
Regular season titles5 Anderson Cups (1995–96, 1996–97, 2008–09, 2009–10, and 2011–12)
Playoff championships4 Clark Cups (1996, 2000, 2010, and 2012)

The Green Bay Gamblers are a Tier I junior ice hockey team in the Eastern Conference of the United States Hockey League (USHL). They play in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin, at the Resch Center.

History

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Professional hockey in Green Bay

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The first professional hockey team to be based in Green Bay was the Green Bay Bobcats who started playing in 1958 when the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena was built. There is some confusion over what league the team played in during its early years or if the team played in multiple leagues. Some sources cite that the Bobcats played in the U.S. Central Hockey League, a predecessor to the current United States Hockey League (USHL). Other sources claim that the Bobcats did not start playing in the USCHL until 1961. The Green Bay Bobcats franchise folded after the 1980-1981 season and 23 years of play. However, since the 2008-2009 season, the Green Bay Gamblers have used a yellow bobcat prominently in the team's logo as well as having a bobcat by the name of "Ace" as the team's mascot.

Green Bay Gamblers

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Since their inception into the United States Hockey League in 1994, the Green Bay Gamblers have been one of the premiere junior "A" hockey franchises in all of North America. To their credit the Gamblers have won two Junior A, Tier 2 National Championships (Gold Cups in 1996 and 1997), five Anderson Cups (1996, 1997, 2009, 2010, and 2012), four Clark Cups (1996, 2000, 2010, and 2012), four USHL Eastern Division titles, and one USHL Northern Division title. Since the USHL became Tier 1 in 2002, the Clark Cup also represents that level's national championship.

Home rinks

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From when the Gamblers entered the league at the start of the 1994-1995 season through the 2001-2002 season, the team's primary venue was at the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena. For the start of the 2002-2003 season, the Gamblers moved into the Resch Center, an 8,800 seat arena which was built on the opposite side of Shopko Hall. The team played at the Memorial Arena a few times each season due to scheduling conflicts with the Resch Center until the arena was scheduled for demolition in 2019.[citation needed]

During the years at the Arena, other venues were sometimes used due to scheduling conflicts. These include the De Pere Ice & Recreation Center, the Brown County Youth Hockey Arena, the Cornerstone Community Center, Fond du Lac's Blue Line Ice Center, Beaver Dam Ice Arena, Greenheck Ice Center in Schofield.[citation needed]

Since 1994 the average attendance of a Gamblers Game is 3,353 people,[1] which is among the top in the USHL. In 2010, the Green Bay Gamblers set a USHL record for the highest attended playoff game when 8,487 fans showed up to see game five of the USHL Playoff championship, a game the Gamblers won resulting in franchise's third Clark Cup. The record has since been broken multiple times.[2]

Season-by-season record

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Reference[3]

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime 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
1994–95 48 9 34 1 4 0 23 147 264 — 11th of 11 did not qualify
1995–96 46 32 11 3 0 0 67 219 137 — 1st of 11 Won Clark Cup
1996–97 54 41 11 0 2 0 84 260 187 1882 1st of 6, North Won Quarterfinals, 4–2 vs. Fargo-Moorhead Ice Sharks
Won Semifinals, 4–3 vs. North Iowa Huskies
Lost Championship, 4–0 vs. Lincoln Stars
1997–98 56 31 20 0 0 5 51 157 183 1576 3rd of 6, North Lost Quarterfinals, 4–0 vs. Des Moines Buccaneers
1998–99 56 41 11 0 4 0 86 213 143 1568 1st of 4, East Won Quarterfinals, 3–0 vs. Thunder Bay Flyers
Lost Semifinals, 3–0 vs. Omaha Lancers
1999–00 58 35 18 0 0 5 75 232 174 1318 2nd of 7, East Won Quarterfinals, 3–1 vs. Waterloo Black Hawks
Won Semifinals, 3–2 vs. Des Moines Buccaneers
Won Championship, 4–1 vs. Twin City Vulcans
2000–01 56 32 13 0 11 0 75 177 153 994 1st of 6, East Lost Quarterfinals, 3–1 vs. Tri-City Storm
2001–02 61 35 20 0 6 0 76 184 179 1257 1st of 6, East Won Quarterfinals, 3–0 vs. Des Moines Buccaneers
Lost Semifinals, 3–1 vs. Sioux City Musketeers
2002–03 60 16 36 — 3 5 40 139 215 1341 5th of 5, East did not qualify
2003–04 60 27 28 — 4 1 59 171 176 1144 5th of 6, East did not qualify
2004–05 60 21 37 — 2 0 44 141 220 971 5th of 6, East did not qualify
2005–06 60 30 26 — 1 3 64 182 183 1127 3rd of 6, East Lost Quarterfinals, 3–0 vs. Des Moines Buccaneers
2006–07 60 24 30 — 1 5 54 176 198 1317 4th of 6, East Lost First Round, 4–0 vs. Indiana Ice
2007–08 60 13 41 — 2 4 32 130 224 1346 6th of 6, East did not qualify
2008–09 60 39 17 — 0 4 82 237 165 1363 1st of 6, East Won Quarterfinals, 3–0 vs. Waterloo Black Hawks
Lost Semifinals, 3–1 vs. Indiana Ice
2009–10 60 45 10 — 2 3 95 212 140 1394 1st of 8, East Won Quarterfinals, 3–0 vs. Waterloo Black Hawks
Won Semifinals, 3–1 vs. Indiana Ice
Won Championship, 3–2 vs. Fargo Force
2010–11 60 41 15 — 2 2 86 189 131 790 2nd of 8, Eastern Won Quarterfinals, 3–0 vs. Indiana Ice
Won Semifinals, 3–1 vs. Cedar Rapids RoughRiders
Lost Championship, 3–1 vs. Dubuque Fighting Saints
2011–12 60 47 9 — 2 2 98 250 138 882 1st of 8, Eastern Won Quarterfinals, 3–1 vs. Youngstown Phantoms
Won Semifinals, 3–0 vs. Indiana Ice
Won Championship, 3–2 vs. Waterloo Black Hawks
2012–13 64 37 23 — 3 1 78 234 207 1069 2nd of 8, Eastern Lost Quarterfinals, 3–1 vs. Youngstown Phantoms
2013–14 60 30 24 — 3 3 66 183 176 887 4th of 8, Eastern Lost Quarterfinals, 3–1 vs. Indiana Ice
2014–15 60 18 34 — 3 5 44 156 213 1010 9th of 9, Eastern did not qualify
2015–16 60 37 16 — 4 3 81 191 135 881 2nd of 9, Eastern Lost Quarterfinals, 3–1 vs. Dubuque Fighting Saints
2016–17 60 34 22 — 2 2 72 173 145 — 5th of 9, Eastern did not qualify
2017–18 60 30 24 — 4 2 66 172 170 — 3rd of 9, Eastern Lost Quarterfinals, 2–0 vs. Dubuque Fighting Saints
2018–19 62 19 34 — 6 3 47 173 250 967 8th of 9, Eastern did not qualify
2019–20 48 24 19 — 2 3 53 168 147 840 3rd of 8, Eastern Season cancelled
2020–21 51 30 17 — 2 2 64 190 182 821 3rd of 6, Eastern Lost Conf. Semifinals, 0–2 vs. Muskegon Lumberjacks
2021–22 62 23 34 — 3 2 51 195 266 837 8th of 8, Eastern did not qualify
2022–23 62 32 23 — 3 4 71 204 204 829 4th of 8, Eastern Lost Quarterfinals, 1–2 vs. Dubuque Fighting Saints

Players

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Team captains

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  • Ryan Petersen (2004–05)
  • Ryan Little (2007–08)
  • Patrick McCadden (2009-10)
  • Max Hartner (2011–12)
  • Grant Arnold (2011–12)
  • Ryan Lough (2013–14)
  • Sam Saliba (2015–16)
  • Jared Spooner (2016–17)
  • Jackson Charlesworth (2017–18)
  • Nick Leitner (2018–19)
  • McKade Webster (2019–20)
  • Jesse Tucker (2020–21)[4]
  • Jarod Crespo (2021–22)[5]

Notable alumni

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NHL

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On March 25, 2013, former Gamblers head coach Jon Cooper was named the head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning.[6] He is the first USHL coaching alumnus to lead an NHL team. Former Gamblers head coach Derek Lalonde was hired by the Lightning as an assistant coach on July 12, 2018, joining Cooper's staff.[7]

On June 30, 2022, the Detroit Red Wings hired LaLonde as its head coach.

Notable NHL draft picks

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Green Bay Gamblers have had the following players selected in the NHL draft.

Year Player Drafted team Pick
1999 Jeff Finger Colorado Avalanche 8th round
2002 Matt Greene Edmonton Oilers 2nd round
Matt Jones Phoenix Coyotes 3rd round
Nate Guenin New York Rangers 4th round
Joey Crabb 7th round
Adam Burish Chicago Blackhawks 9th round
2004 Blake Wheeler Phoenix Coyotes 1st round
Victor Oreskovich Colorado Avalanche 2nd round
Wes O'Neill New York Islanders 4th round
2006 Michael Forney Atlanta Thrashers 3rd round
Eric Gryba Ottawa Senators
2007 Justin Braun San Jose Sharks 7th round
2009 Anders Lee New York Islanders 7th round
2011 Andy Welinski Anaheim Ducks 3rd round
2012 Jordan Schmaltz St. Louis Blues 1st round
2013 Gustav Olofsson Minnesota Wild 2nd round
2014 Nick Schmaltz Chicago Blackhawks 1st round
Brendan Lemieux Buffalo Sabres 2nd round
2015 Vili Saarijärvi Detroit Red Wings 3rd round
Christian Wolanin Ottawa Senators 4th round
Adam Húska New York Rangers 7th round
2016 Andrew Peeke Columbus Blue Jackets 2nd round
Rhett Gardner Dallas Stars 4th round
2017 Casey Mittelstadt Buffalo Sabres 1st round
2018 John Leonard San Jose Sharks 6th round
2020 Mason Lohrei Boston Bruins 2nd round

Olympics

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Year Player Country Finish
2006 Māris Ziediņš Latvia 12th
2014 Blake Wheeler United States 4th
2022 Markus Lauridsen Denmark 7th

NCAA champions

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Gamblers alumni have played on multiple NCAA men's hockey national champions teams:

Year Player School Division
2006 Adam Burish Wisconsin Division I
Josh Engel
Kyle Klubertanz
2009 Eric Gryba Boston Division I
2016 Christian Wolanin North Dakota Division I
Nick Schmaltz
2022 Denver Division I David Carle[a]
  1. ^ Gamblers assistant coach, Denver head coach

Statistical leaders

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Head coaches

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References

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  1. ^ "Green Bay Gamblers yearly attendance at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com.
  2. ^ "Green Bay Gamblers Timeline | Gamblers Hockey". www.gamblershockey.com. Archived from the original on September 14, 2012.
  3. ^ "Green Bay Gamblers Statistics and History". HockeyDB. Retrieved March 16, 2019.
  4. ^ "Elite Prospects - Green Bay Gamblers - 2020-2021". Elite Prospects. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  5. ^ "Crespo Named Team Captain". OurSports Central. September 22, 2021.
  6. ^ "Lightning name Jon Cooper coach". NHL.com.
  7. ^ "Lightning name Derek Lalonde as assistant coach". NHL.com.
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