| Abbotsford Heat | |
|---|---|
 | |
| City | Abbotsford,British Columbia |
| League | American Hockey League |
| Conference | Western Conference |
| Division | West Division |
| Founded | 1977 |
| Operated | 2009–2014 |
| Home arena | Abbotsford Entertainment & Sports Centre |
| Colours | White, red, black, silver |
| Affiliates | Calgary Flames (NHL) Alaska Aces (ECHL) |
| Franchise history | |
| 1977–1987 | Maine Mariners |
| 1987–1993 | Utica Devils |
| 1993–2003 | Saint John Flames |
| 2005–2007 | Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights |
| 2007–2009 | Quad City Flames |
| 2009–2014 | Abbotsford Heat |
| 2014–2015 | Adirondack Flames |
| 2015–2022 | Stockton Heat |
| 2022–Present | Calgary Wranglers |
TheAbbotsford Heat were a professionalice hockey team that played five seasons in theAmerican Hockey League (AHL) between 2009 and 2014. The team was based inAbbotsford,British Columbia, Canada, and played its home games at the 7,046-seatAbbotsford Entertainment & Sports Centre. The franchise was theAmerican Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of theCalgary Flames and arrived in Abbotsford in 2009 as a relocated franchise formerly known as theQuad City Flames. The team played five seasons in British Columbia before the Flames' lease agreement with the City of Abbotsford was terminated following the2013–14 season.
On May 5, 2014, the AHL's Board of Governors approved the relocation of the franchise toGlens Falls, New York where theAdirondack Flames replaced theAdirondack Phantoms who had moved toAllentown, Pennsylvania.
The Flames moved their affiliate to theFraser Valley after playing two seasons inMoline,Illinois as theQuad City Flames. The team's transfer was approved on April 28, 2009,[1] and as a result, Abbotsford became the westernmost city in the AHL. The team closest to the Heat in distance, theOklahoma City Barons, was 1,583 mi (2,548 km) away, and the Heat was the only AHL team west of the Central Time Zone. To reduce travel costs, road teams sometimes played two consecutive games in Abbotsford, and in some cases, the Heat played consecutive road games at the same arena. The same scheduling was used for theSt. John's IceCaps.
The organization held a "name the team" contest, and on May 14, 2009, Heat was announced as the team's new name.[2]
On June 5, 2009, it was reported thatJim Playfair would debut as head coach of the Abbotsford Heat after spending two seasons with theCalgary Flames.[3]
The team struggled financially and saw low attendance; talks eventually broke down between the city of Abbotsford, the Vancouver Canucks, and the Calgary Flames on a possible affiliation swap.
Upon theVancouver Canucks' purchase of thePeoria Rivermen, the Heat's owners were petitioned from interested groups inUtica, New York. On June 14, 2013, the Vancouver Canucks and Mohawk Valley Garden, the managing partner based in Utica, signed a six-year affiliation agreement, and theUtica Comets became the new AHL affiliate of the Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks moved the team to Abbotsford in 2021, becoming theAbbotsford Canucks.
The city of Abbotsford terminated the contract with the Heat on April 15, 2014.[4] The Heat finished the season and Calder Cup playoffs in Abbotsford, and on May 5, 2014, the AHL's Board of Governors announced at its spring meeting in Chicago that it approved the relocation of the team to Glens Falls for the2014–15 season, with games to be played at theGlens Falls Civic Center as theAdirondack Flames.[5][6]
The Heat's mascot was Hawkey, an anthropomorphicred-tailed hawk, a species native to the Fraser Valley. Hawkey could be seen at home games wearing jersey No. 00.
| Regular season | Playoffs | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Games | Won | Lost | OTL | SOL | Points | PCT | Goals for | Goals against | Standing | Year | 1st round | 2nd round | 3rd round | Finals |
| 2009–10 | 80 | 39 | 29 | 5 | 7 | 90 | .563 | 217 | 231 | 3rd, North | 2010 | W, 4–3,RCH | L, 2–4,HAM | — | — |
| 2010–11 | 80 | 38 | 32 | 4 | 6 | 86 | .538 | 186 | 212 | 4th, North | 2011 | Out of playoffs | |||
| 2011–12 | 76 | 42 | 26 | 3 | 5 | 92 | .605 | 200 | 201 | 2nd, West | 2012 | W, 3–0,MIL | L, 1–4,TOR | — | — |
| 2012–13 | 76 | 34 | 32 | 4 | 6 | 78 | .513 | 171 | 198 | 4th, North | 2013 | Out of playoffs | |||
| 2013–14 | 76 | 43 | 25 | 5 | 3 | 94 | .618 | 237 | 215 | 2nd, West | 2014 | L, 1–3,GR | — | — | — |
| Totals | 388 | 196 | 144 | 21 | 27 | 440 | .567 | 1011 | 1057 | 3 playoff appearances | |||||