| Albert Lea Thunder | |
 | |
| City: | Albert Lea, Minnesota |
|---|---|
| League: | NAHL |
| Division: | Central |
| Founded: | 2008 |
| Home Arena: | Albert Lea City Arena |
| Colors: | Navy Blue and Tan |
| Owner(s): | NAHL |
| Franchise history | |
| 2008-2010: | Albert Lea Thunder |
| 2010-present: | Amarillo Bulls |
The Albert Lea Thunder were a Tier II Junior A ice hockey team in the North American Hockey League's Central Division. The team was an expansion franchise for the 2008-2009 season and played their home games at the Albert Lea City Arena in Albert Lea, Minnesota.
History[]
The Franchise joined the North American Hockey League for the 2008-2009 season with Chicago businessman Jim Perkins and Barry Soskin[1] as owners. Soskin is the owner of NJHL independent Junior teams the Findlay Grrrowl and Pittsburgh Cougars, as well as the former owner of the ECHL Toledo Storm and CHL Nashville Nighthawks.
On November 18, 2009, reports came out that the Thunder were engaging in "pay to play," or taking money to guarantee players' spots on the team. A total of 8 players where named.[2] The organization was facing a $400,000 fine from the NAHL[3]
On December 7th, 2009, the NAHL issued following statement:
- The North American Hockey League’s Board of Governors today voted to terminate the Albert Lea membership. The league is now involved in addressing a number of transition issues regarding the future operations of the team. The league will work to stabilize the team as quickly as possible. [4]
Despite the scandal, the Thunder mounted a late-season comeback and made the playoffs for the first time in team history in 2010.
On May 11, 2010, it was reported that the team had found new owners and would relocate to Texas for the 2010-2011 season.[5] The team would become the Amarillo Bulls.
Regular season records[]
| Season | GP | W | L | OTL | PTS | GF | GA | PIM | Finish |
| 2008-09 | 58 | 4 | 49 | 5 | 13 | 112 | 309 | 1,497 | 5th, Central Division |
| 2009-10 | 58 | 19 | 34 | 5 | 43 | 153 | 231 | 1,345 | 4th, Central Division |
Playoff Records[]
| Season | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | PIM | Finish |
| 2009 | Did Not Qualify | |||||||
| 2010 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 18 | 68 | Lost in 1st Round |
External links[]
| North American Hockey League (2021-22) | |
|---|---|
| Central Division | Aberdeen Wings • Austin Bruins • Bismarck Bobcats • Minnesota Wilderness • Minot Minotauros • North Iowa Bulls • St. Cloud Norsemen |
| East Division | Danbury Jr. Hat Tricks • Jamestown Rebels • Johnstown Tomahawks • Maine Nordiques • Maryland Black Bears • New Jersey Junior Titans • Northeast Generals |
| Midwest Division | Anchorage Wolverines (2021-22) • Chippewa Steel • Fairbanks Ice Dogs • Janesville Jets • Kenai River Brown Bears • Minnesota Magicians • Springfield Jr. Blues |
| South Division | Amarillo Wranglers • Corpus Christi Ice Rays • El Paso Rhinos (2021-22) • Lone Star Brahmas • New Mexico Ice Wolves • Odessa Jackalopes • Shreveport Mudbugs • Wichita Falls Wildcats |
| This page uses content from Wikipedia. The original article was at Albert Lea Thunder. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Ice Hockey Wiki, the text of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License 3.0 (Unported) (CC-BY-SA). |