 | |
| Sport | Lacrosse |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2015 |
| Dissolved | 2020 |
| League | National Lacrosse League |
| Division | East |
| Based in | Uncasville, Connecticut |
| Arena | Mohegan Sun Arena |
| Colors | Black, Orange, White |
| Head coach | Glenn Clark |
| General manager | Rich Lisk |
| Division titles | 1 (2020) |
| Playoff berths | 4 (2016,2017,2018,2019) |
| Website | www |
TheNew England Black Wolves were a professionalbox lacrosse team based inUncasville, Connecticut. They were members of the East Division of theNational Lacrosse League and began play in the winter of 2014–2015 at theMohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville.[1] The team was partially owned by theMohegan Tribe of Indians of Connecticut, partially owned by Ted Goldthorpe, and partially owned by Brad Brewster.
The Black Wolves relocated fromPhiladelphia,Pennsylvania, where they were known as thePhiladelphia Wings from 1987 to 2014 and won 6 championships.[2]
On February 22, 2021, the team was reported to have been sold and was relocated to Albany, New York, to play out of theMVP Arena as theAlbany FireWolves.[3]
The Black Wolves won their first game at home on January 2, 2015 against theBuffalo Bandits in front of just under 6,000 fans.Kyle Buchanan scored the first ever goal for the Black Wolves in New England's 12-8 win.[4] The team would finish with a record of 4-14 in its inaugural season. With a new coach behind the bench, the Black Wolves would bounce back and have a much improved 2016 season, which led them to a 10-8 record and playoff run that ended to the Bandits in the East Division final.
The Black Wolves' third year was not as successful as their second, as they fell to a 8-10 record and lost in the East Division semi-final. The Black Wolves continued to struggle in the regular season and playoffs, as in 2018 and 2019 they finished with a 9-9 record and a first round exit in the playoffs in each of those seasons.
2020 appeared to be a different season for the Black Wolves with the emergence of Doug Jamieson as a legitimate starting goalie and forward Callum Crawford. Having an MVP caliber season, the Black Wolves seemed poised for a deep playoff run and potentially a championship. However, with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the NLL cancelled the rest of the season.
After struggling with attendance at the end of the season, it was announced that the New England Black Wolves franchise would move to Albany and rebrand as theAlbany FireWolves. The franchise finished with one main notable achievement as a team and it was being declared the East Division Champions in 2020 after the stoppage of the season.
| Active (21-man) roster | Inactive roster | Coaches | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Roster updated 2019-09-18 | ||||||
| Season | Division | W–L | Finish | Home | Road | GF | GA | Coach | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Eastern | 4–14 | 5th | 2–7 | 2–7 | 186 | 249 | Blane Harrison | Did not qualify |
| 2016 | Eastern | 10–8 | 2nd | 6–3 | 4–5 | 229 | 212 | Glenn Clark | Lost East Division Final |
| 2017 | Eastern | 8–10 | 3rd | 5–4 | 3–6 | 220 | 244 | Glenn Clark | Lost East Division Semi-final |
| 2018 | Eastern | 9–9 | 3rd | 4–5 | 5–4 | 194 | 242 | Glenn Clark | Lost East Division Semi-final |
| 2019 | Eastern | 9–9 | 4th | 7–2 | 2–7 | 213 | 223 | Glenn Clark | Lost East Division Semi-final |
| 2020 | Eastern | 8–3 | 1st | 4–3 | 4–0 | 135 | 101 | Glenn Clark | No playoffs held |
| Total | 6 Seasons | 48-53 | 28-24 | 20–29 | 1,177 | 1,271 | |||
| Playoff totals | 4 Appearances | 1-5 | 1–1 | 0–4 | 66 | 94 | 0 championship |
| Season | Game | Visiting | Home |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | East Division Semi-finals | Georgia 13 | New England 14 OT |
| East Division Finals Game 1 | Buffalo 15 | New England 10 | |
| East Division Finals Game 2 | New England 15 | Buffalo 20 | |
| 2017 | East Division Semi-finals | New England 10 | Toronto 18 |
| 2018 | East Division Semi-finals | New England 11 | Rochester 15 |
| 2019 | East Division Semi-finals | New England 6 | Buffalo 13 |
First-round selections
Note: This list does not include head coaches from the Philadelphia Wings.
| # | Name | Term | Regular Season | Playoffs | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GC | W | L | W% | GC | W | L | W% | |||
| 1 | Blaine Harrison | 2015 | 18 | 4 | 14 | .222 | — | — | — | — |
| 2 | Glenn Clark | 2016-2020 | 83 | 44 | 39 | .530 | 5 | 1 | 4 | .200 |
