| Anaheim Bullfrogs | |
|---|---|
 | |
| City | Anaheim, California |
| Founded | 1993 |
| Folded | 1999 |
| Home arena | Anaheim Arena (1993) Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim (1994–1999) |
| Colours | Orange,Green (1993) |
| Owner | Stuart Silver |
TheAnaheim Bullfrogs were a professionalinline hockey team based inAnaheim, California. The Bullfrogs played inRoller Hockey International (1993–1997) andMajor League Roller Hockey (1998) before returning to Roller Hockey international (1999). The Bullfrogs played their home games in theArrowhead Pond of Anaheim.
The team won two championships in 1993 and 1997, the only team to win more than one. The team also won the Major League Roller Hockey championship in 1998. The team also went to the Murphy Cup finals two other times but lost to theOrlando Jackals in 1996 and theSt. Louis Vipers in 1999. The team lasted the full length of the RHI and had the highest attendance figures at theArrowhead Pond.
The Anaheim Bullfrogs made a brief comeback when they joined IHA, a pro roller hockey league held during the NHL Lockout at the Anaheim's Convention Center. They were one of the six teams participating in the league. However, due to poor management, the league folded halfway through the season, and the Bullfrogs were once again gone. They were undefeated until the collapse of the league.
Some players of note include: Rob Laurie (goaltender), Victor Gervais, Joe Cook, Hugo Belanger, Mark Wolf, B.J. MacPherson, Todd Wetzel, Darren Perkins, Rick Judson, Ed Anderson, Tom Menicci, Jim Ficenec, Kevin Kerr, Daniel Shank, Derek Booth, Rick Judson, Darren Banks, Nathan Petralia, Savo Mitrovic andDarren Langdon.
In Roller Hockey International's inaugural 1993 season, the Bullfrogs finished with a record of 13-0-1, the best in the league. Building on the growing popularity of inline skating, the team's averaged attendance of nearly 8,800 fans per game, with three of team's seven home games drawing audiences of 10,000 or more at the Anaheim Arena.[1] The team won all four of its playoff games, including a two-game sweep of theOakland Skates to win the first ever Murphy Cup, marking the champion of Roller Hockey International.[2]
The team beat theNew Jersey Rockin' Rollers by a score of 9-5 in the second game of the RHI 1997 Murphy Cup finals held at theContinental Airlines Arena inEast Rutherford, New Jersey, to win the series in a two-game sweep.[3]
The Bullfrogs left RHI and played the 1998 season inMajor League Roller Hockey (MLRH), finishing with a record of 20-0-1. With MLRH dropping from 14 teams to two in 1999, the Bullfrogs and theBuffalo Wings returned to play in a revitalized RHI, which planned to resume league play after the year off with 10 teams that season.[4]
The Bullfrogs finished the 1999 RHI season with a record of 22-4-2, but lost the league championship to theSt. Louis Vipers by a score of 8-6. The Bullfrogs had won the Roller Hockey International Murphy Cup championships in 1993 and 1997, and won theMajor League Roller Hockey Jason Cup title in 1998 against theOrlando Surge.[5]
After a debt-ridden Roller Hockey International announced that it would not hold a 2000 season, management of the Bullfrogs announced that the team would be in hiatus that season, declining to join other professional roller hockey leagues based on their low level of competitive play.[6]
| Season | GP | W | L | SOL | Pts | GF | GA | PIM | Finish | Playoffs |
| 1993(RHI) | 14 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 27 | 130 | 83 | 405 | 1st, Buss | Won Quarterfinal (Coasters) Won Semifinal (Blades) Won Murphy Cup Final (Skates) |
| 1994(RHI) | 22 | 13 | 8 | 1 | 27 | 185 | 155 | 634 | 3rd, Pacific | Won Pacific Semifinal (Rhinos) Won Pacific Final (Blades) Lost Western Final (Rage) |
| 1995(RHI) | 24 | 19 | 4 | 1 | 39 | 219 | 157 | 558 | 1st, Pacific | Won Western Quarterfinal (Blades) Won Western Semifinal (Barracudas) Lost Western Final (Rhinos) |
| 1996(RHI) | 28 | 22 | 4 | 2 | 46 | 215 | 159 | 495 | 1st, Pacific | Won Pacific Final (Blades) Won Western Final (Voodoo) Lost Murphy Cup Final (Jackals) |
| 1997(RHI) | 24 | 15 | 9 | 0 | 30 | 173 | 156 | 435 | 2nd, Western | Won Western Semifinal (Blades) Won Western Final (Rhinos) Won Murphy Cup Final (Rockin Rollers) |
| 1998(MLRH) | 20 | 19 | 0 | 1 | 39 | 263 | 84 | 353 | 1st, Coastal | Earned Coastal Semifinal bye Won Coastal Final (Power) Won Final Four (Tigers) Won Jason Cup Final (Surge) |
| 1999(RHI) | 26 | 21 | 3 | 2 | 44 | 197 | 127 | 403 | 1st, Western | Earned Western Semifinal bye Won Western Final (Rhinos) Lost Murphy Cup Final (Vipers) |
| RHI Totals | 138 | 109 | 28 | 7 | 225 | 1119 | 837 | 2930 |
From 1994 to '96, Bullfrogs games were regularly available on radio. The 1994 season broadcasts were onKMAX-FM and the next two seasons' games were onKPLS. Lew Stowers, a business associate of longtimeLos Angeles Dodgers managerTommy Lasorda, was the play-by-play announcer.
