Madison Capitols (2014)

Madison Capitols (2014)
City:	Madison, Wisconsin
League:	United States Hockey League
Conference:	Eastern
Founded:	2014
Home Arena:	Bob Suter's Capitol Ice Arena
Colors:	Blue, Sky Blue, Gray, Red, and White
Owner(s):	Tom Garrity (Managing Partner) Tom Sagissor Ryan Suter
Head Coach:	Garrett Suter
Media:	WOZN (FM/AM)
Franchise history
2014–present:	Madison Capitals

The Madison Capitols are a Tier I Junior A ice hockey team that plays in the Eastern Conference of the United States Hockey League. Founded in 2014, the team plays its home games at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wisconsin. The team is owned by Tom Garrity (Managing Partner), Tom Sagissor and Ryan Suter.

Luke Strand holds the dual role of Head Coach and General Manager for the team's inaugural 2014–15 season.

History

Start of a Franchise (1984–91)

The Madison Capitols began as a team in 1984, also competing in the USHL at the time, and played for 11 consecutive seasons. During this time, the Capitols played in the Hartmeyer Ice Arena, posting a 207-278-16 record, playing a total of 530 games.

The team was coached by Bob Suter from 1984-1986, posting a 35-48-3-10 record. Following what was a mild start to the Franchise, Scott Owens took over coaching duties in 1986 and started a winning franchise, posting a 136-85-9-10 record through 1991. Owens would then move on to coach the Des Moines Buccaneers and Colorado College, thus ending the age of the Madison Capitols.

Wisconsin Capitols (1991–95)

With the departure of Owens, the Madison Capitols also re-branded themselves as The Wisconsin Capitols in 1991. Hiring Steve Huglen as the head coach for the 1991-1992 campaign, a University of Illinois Defensemen, the Capitols looked to continue their winning ways. Unfortunately, after posting an 11-37-0 season, the writing was on the wall.

The 1992-1993 campaign saw the departure of Huglen, and the addition of Mike Dibble as head coach, who would not last long. The team posted a 2-21-2 record and Dibble was replaced by Rob Andriga mid-season, who would coach the Capitols to a 4-19-1 record, finishing at 6-39-2-1 season record.

In the 1993-1994 season, Duffy was still coaching the Wisconsin Capitols, along with the additions of Don Granato, and Brian Duffy, at the time of writing, individual statistics for each coach throughout the season were not available. The Capitols would post a 9-37-1-3 record this season, second to their worst. The end of the Wisconsin Capitols and USHL hockey in Madison was close to an end.

The final season of the Capitols in Madison in 1995-1996, saw the return of Duffy, who would post a 3-8-0 record as head coach. The replacement coach, Len Semplice would finish the season with a 7-29-1 record, totaling a team season record of 10-37-1. The Wisconsin Capitols would no longer be a USHL team after this season.

Madison Capitols (2014–present)

On November 26, 2013, the management of Madtown Hockey, LLC announced that the Madison Capitols would be returning to Madison in the 2014-2015 season. Ryan Suter, defenseman for the Minnesota Wild and Tom Sagissor, a former Wisconsin Badger would join the ownership group. It was also announced that the Madison Capitols would play at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison, WI.

On May 22, 2014, Eau Claire native Luke Strand was formally introduced as the Madison Capitols head coach and general manager. He was joined on the bench by fellow Eau Claire native Keith Paulsen and longtime NHL veteran and Stanley Cup Champion Tony Hrkac.

Following the tragic passing of Bob Suter in September, the Capitols honored the lifelong Madison native and gold medalist with stickers on team helmets, a #20 banner inside the Coliseum, and the ice rink named in his honor (Bob Suter Memorial Rink).

The Capitols began their first season back in the USHL on September 27, 2014, a 4-3 loss at Muskegon. Sauk City, Wis. native Luke McElhenie scored the first goal in the new era of the Capitols. McElhenie previously played for Bob Suter & the Madison Capitols AAA program.

Madison picked up its first victory in its return to the USHL on October 24, defeating the Sioux Falls Stampede 3-1.

Awards

Scott Owens was named the USHL General Manager of the year for the 1986-1987 season and USHL Coach of the year for the 1987-1988 season.

Notable players

Brian Rafalski played for the Madison Capitols during the 1990–1991 season, and would go on to play in the NHL for 11 seasons, winning the Stanley Cup three times with the New Jersey Devils and Detroit Red Wings.

Derek Plante played for the Madison Capitols during the 1989–1990 season. and would go on to play in the NHL for 8 seasons, winning the Stanley Cup with the Dallas Stars in 1999.

Notable draft picks

The Madison Capitols have been host to a few NHL players at some point in their career, listed below are all players that have been drafted into the NHL, and had played at some point with the Capitols.

Following the Capitols' return to the USHL in 2014-15, the team acquired defenseman Tyler Nanne from the Sioux Falls Stampede in November. A 2014 draft pick of the New York Rangers, Nanne became the first member of the new edition of the Capitols to have NHL drafted player status.

Year Drafted	Player Name	Drafted By	Round Drafted
1985	Tim Sweeney	Calgary Flames	6th round, 122nd overall
1987	Mark Osiecki	Calgary Flames	11th round, 240th overall
1987	Roger Rougelot	Winnipeg Jets	11th round, 226th overall
1987	Dan Brettschneider	Washington Capitals	11th round, 240th overall
1989	Derek Plante	Buffalo Sabres	8th round, 161st overall
1989	Joe Frederick	Detroit Red Wings	12th round, 242nd overall
1994	Rocky Welsing	Anaheim Ducks	7th round, 158th overall
2014	Tyler Nanne	New York Rangers	5th round, 142nd overall

Season by Season Record

Note: GP = Games Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OL = Overtime Losses, SL = Shootout Losses, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, Pts = Points

Season	GP	W	L	T	OL	SL	GF	GA	Pts	Finish	Playoffs
2014-15	60	24	25	-	11	-	172	212	59	7th of 9 Eastern	Did not qualify
2015-16	60	25	27		5	3	169	198	58	8th of 9 Eastern	Did not qualify
2016-17	60	23	32	-	1	4	135	192	51	7th of 9 Eastern	Did not qualify
2017-18	60	23	33	-	2	2	183	224	50	8th of 9 Eastern	Did not qualify
2018-19	62	15	38	-	5	4	145	249	39	9th of 9 Eastern	Did not qualify
2019-20	50	12	34	-	3	1	122	219	28	8th of 8 Eastern	Playoffs cancelled
2020-21	On Hiatus due to local restrictions due to COVID-19 pandemic
2021-22	62	30	29	-	3	0	233	233	63	5th Eastern	Lost Clark Cup Final
2022-23	62	17	41	-	2	2	185	290	38	8th Eastern	Did not qualify
2023-24	62	33	23	-	4	2	218	192	72	5th Eastern	Lost Division Quarterfinals

External links

• Official website
• Official Twitter
• Unofficial Sub-reddit