| Norfolk Admirals | |
|---|---|
 | |
| City | Norfolk, Virginia |
| League | American Hockey League |
| Conference | Eastern Conference |
| Division | East Division |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Operated | 2000–2015 |
| Home arena | Norfolk Scope |
| Colors | |
| Media | The Virginian-Pilot;WGNT |
| Affiliates | Chicago Blackhawks (2000–2007) Tampa Bay Lightning (2007–2012) Anaheim Ducks (2012–2015) |
| Franchise history | |
| 2000–2015 | Norfolk Admirals |
| 2015–present | San Diego Gulls |
| Championships | |
| Regular season titles | 1 (2011–12) |
| Division titles | 3 (2001–02,2002–03,2011–12) |
| Conference titles | 1 (2011–12) |
| Calder Cups | 1 (2011–12) |
TheNorfolk Admirals were a professionalice hockey team based inNorfolk, Virginia, that competed in theAmerican Hockey League (AHL). The team played its home games atNorfolk Scope. The Admirals were the AHL affiliate of theTampa Bay Lightning andAnaheim Ducks.
For the2015–16 season, the Admirals moved toSan Diego, California, to become the newest version of theSan Diego Gulls as part of the AHL's efforts to create a Pacific Division.[1] TheBakersfield Condors from theECHL moved to Norfolk for the2015–16 season and also use the nameNorfolk Admirals.[2]
The market was previously home to:
The original team ownership, Mark Garcea and Page Johnson (owners of theHampton Roads Admirals franchise in theEast Coast Hockey League), sought and gained admission to the American Hockey League as an expansion franchise for the2000–01 season with an affiliation agreement with theChicago Blackhawks. On May 26, 2004, the franchise was purchased by Ken Young after the original owners had put it up for sale.[3] The team name pays homage to the area's long naval history.
Norfolk was one of two franchises in the AHL named the Admirals, sharing the nickname with theMilwaukee Admirals. The Milwaukee franchise transferred from the defunctInternational Hockey League, and were allowed to keep their previous moniker.
Norfolk's geographically closest rivals were theHershey Bears,Charlotte Checkers, andWilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. The Admirals had twomascots, a dog named Salty and a rabbit namedHat Trick.
On March 19, 2007, the Blackhawks announced that their affiliation with the Admirals would end after the 2006–07 season.[4] On March 29, 2007, theTampa Bay Lightning officially announced the Admirals as their new affiliate.[5] On June 14, 2012 Tampa Bay announced their separation from the 2012Calder Cup champions in favor of theSyracuse Crunch. Later in that month owner Ken Young announced he had closed a five-year agreement with theAnaheim Ducks.
During the 2011–12 season, the Norfolk Admirals, coached byJon Cooper, set a professional hockey record for the longest winning streak, winning their 28th consecutive game on April 15 against theAdirondack Phantoms.[6][7] The streak far surpassed the previous AHL record of 17 straight wins set by thePhiladelphia Phantoms in 2004–05, as well as the pro hockey record of 18 games set by thePeoria Rivermen of the originalInternational Hockey League in 1991.
The streak garnered international media attention for the Admirals and the American Hockey League, including highlights onNHL Network and ESPN'sSportsCenter.
The 28-game streak included 15 home games and 13 road games. The win streak started on February 10 against Adirondack. Before their 3-2 OT win against Binghamton on April 14, the previous 20 games were all won in regulation.[8] As of October 20, 2012, the Admirals had won 32 regular season games in a row dating back to the 2011–12 season.
The winning streak translated into a deep playoff run for the Admirals, where they would win 15 of 18 playoff games, including back to back four game sweeps in the Eastern Conference and Calder Cup Finals. On June 9, 2012, the Admirals captured their first ever Calder Cup with a 6–1 win over theToronto Marlies.[9]
Prior to the2012–13 season, the Admirals and the Syracuse Crunch parent NHL organizations swapped teams. As a result, the Admirals failed to qualify for the Calder Cup playoffs while the Crunch made it to the Calder Cup Finals.
On January 6, 2015, it was announced that the Admirals would move to an unknown location on the west coast, likely close to their NHL affiliate, after the franchise was purchased by theAnaheim Ducks.[10] On January 29, 2015, the Ducks confirmed the Admirals' relocation to San Diego to become the newest incarnation of theSan Diego Gulls.[1] The Admirals were replaced in Norfolk with the relocatedBakersfield Condors franchise of theECHL. The newteam retained the Admirals name and logo but were affiliated with theEdmonton Oilers.[11]
NHL alumni of the Norfolk Admirals include:
In the2010 Stanley Cup Finals, sixteen former Admirals competed for the championship.Bryan Bickell,Dave Bolland,Troy Brouwer,Adam Burish,Dustin Byfuglien,Corey Crawford,Jake Dowell,Colin Fraser,Jordan Hendry,Duncan Keith,Danny Richmond,Brent Seabrook,Jack Skille, andKris Versteeg were on theChicago Blackhawks active roster.Michael Leighton andLukas Krajicek played for thePhiladelphia Flyers.[12]
| Regular season | Playoffs | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Games | Won | Lost | Tied | OTL | SOL | Points | PCT | Goals for | Goals against | Standing | Year | Prelims | 1st round | 2nd round | 3rd round | Finals |
| 2000–01 | 80 | 36 | 26 | 13 | 5 | — | 90 | .563 | 241 | 208 | 3rd, South | 2001 | — | W, 3–1,CIN | L, 1–4,HER | — | — |
| 2001–02 | 80 | 38 | 26 | 12 | 4 | — | 92 | .575 | 222 | 205 | 1st, South | 2002 | — | L, 1–3,HER | — | — | — |
| 2002–03 | 80 | 37 | 26 | 12 | 5 | — | 91 | .569 | 201 | 187 | 1st, South | 2003 | — | W, 3–0,SA | L, 2–4,HOU | — | — |
| 2003–04 | 80 | 35 | 36 | 4 | 5 | — | 79 | .494 | 172 | 187 | 5th, East | 2004 | W, 2–0,BNG | L, 2–4,PHI | — | — | — |
| 2004–05 | 80 | 43 | 30 | — | 6 | 1 | 93 | .581 | 200 | 188 | 3rd, East | 2005 | — | L, 2–4,PHI | — | — | — |
| 2005–06 | 80 | 43 | 29 | — | 4 | 4 | 94 | .588 | 259 | 246 | 3rd, East | 2006 | — | L, 0–4,HER | — | — | — |
| 2006–07 | 80 | 50 | 22 | — | 6 | 2 | 108 | .675 | 301 | 257 | 3rd, East | 2007 | — | L, 2–4,WBS | — | — | — |
| 2007–08 | 80 | 29 | 44 | — | 2 | 5 | 65 | .406 | 213 | 267 | 7th, East | 2008 | Out of playoffs | ||||
| 2008–09 | 80 | 33 | 38 | — | 4 | 5 | 75 | .469 | 236 | 269 | 6th, East | 2009 | Out of playoffs | ||||
| 2009–10 | 80 | 39 | 35 | — | 3 | 3 | 84 | .525 | 208 | 214 | 4th, East | 2010 | Out of playoffs | ||||
| 2010–11 | 80 | 39 | 26 | — | 9 | 6 | 93 | .581 | 265 | 230 | 4th, East | 2011 | — | L, 2–4,WBS | — | — | — |
| 2011–12 | 76 | 55 | 18 | — | 1 | 2 | 113 | .743 | 273 | 180 | 1st, East | 2012 | — | W, 3–1,MAN | W, 4–2CON | W, 4–0STJ | W, 4–0,TOR |
| 2012–13 | 76 | 37 | 34 | — | 4 | 1 | 79 | .520 | 188 | 207 | 5th, East | 2013 | Out of playoffs | ||||
| 2013–14 | 76 | 40 | 26 | — | 3 | 7 | 90 | .592 | 201 | 192 | 3rd, East | 2014 | — | W, 3–1,MAN | L, 2-4,STJ | — | — |
| 2014–15 | 76 | 27 | 39 | — | 6 | 4 | 64 | .421 | 168 | 219 | 5th, East | 2015 | Out of playoffs | ||||
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