Sports stats

Increasing the Island

September 11, 2004 - ECHL (ECHL)
Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies News Release


It's really quite amazing how quickly the summer comes and goes with this particular summer being no different. Labor Day not only marks the end of summer, it also marks the unofficial beginning of hockey season for those who work in the industry, and things just skyrocket from there. While it becomes a little tougher to squeeze out an issue of BULLIES BYTES, I'd be remised if I didn't write a column recapping what a historic week it was in Atlantic City hockey history. By the way, we're also just 26 DAYS TILL THE START OF TRAINING CAMP. Truly amazing!

BULLIES AND ISLANDERS MAKE IT OFFICIAL

The Bullies made it official on Wednesday, inking an affiliation agreement with the New York Islanders to become the club's ECHL affiliate for the 2004-05 season. I've done some research on this, but to my knowledge (and locals please correct me if I'm wrong), the Bullies are the first team in Atlantic City history to have an official affiliation agreement with a major league club. In my opinion, that's a big deal not only for Atlantic City hockey, but also for Atlantic City itself. I believe it reflects the continued progression of the city as a whole, and makes it now a legitimate player in the minor league sporting world. As far as the Bullies go, they will no doubt benefit not only in seeing prospects come down to Boardwalk Hall, but the team will also further increase its marketability to free agents who want to get a look from an American League team. Head Coach Matt Thomas has yet to finish assembling his roster, but once it's complete, you could potentially see the best team that Atlantic City has ever had to offer its fans. The Bullies have aligned themselves with two winning organizations: the Islanders, who are the last team in professional sports to win four consecutive championships and more recently have been to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the past three seasons and continue to be one of the up-and-coming young clubs in the NHL, and the Sound Tigers, who finished with a 41-23-12-4 record last year and earned their third consecutive Calder Cup Playoff berth. Obviously everyone's first question is what players are New York and Bridgeport going to be sending us? That's tough to determine right now based on the on-going labor situation in the NHL. A general rule of thumb though is that it is quite often rookies who the parent clubs want to ensure get sufficient playing time and may not see it at the AHL level. However, a veteran does sneak down every once in a while like Brad Church did in Reading last year. I think you could see the Bullies get a defenseman and perhaps a goaltender from Br idgeport to start the season with. One thing is for sure. Many of us are certainly going to be paying a lot more attention to what goes on in Bridgeport and New York this season...Somewhat lost in the affiliation announcement but just as equally as important was the re-signing of veteran forward Luke Curtin. Curtin has become a staple in Atlantic City hockey and probably the second biggest fan-favorite behind the now retired Stefan Rivard. I certainly don't need to go into detail about how important Curtin is to the Bullies success on the ice. His numbers last year can do all the talking for me! Curtin's re-signing makes the loss of Jon Cullen to Europe a little bit easier to take because now you only have to replace 29 goals instead of 62. I believe that Josh Prudden and Jeff Bateman can more than account for Cullen's loss, and I still believe that Coach Thomas will add another few scorers before the team hits the ice for training camp. For those keeping track, the Bullies officially have 16 players under contract...Mark Sunday, September 26 on your calendars and save the date. That's when the Bullies will hold their second annual "Pick-Your-Seat Promotion" from noon-5PM at Boardwalk Hall. This is a great family event because it's kind of like an open house before the season even begins! Besides having an opportunity to selects your seats and purchase season tickets right on the spot, there will be plenty of other exciting things going on such as a roller hockey clinic with instruction from Coach Thomas and the players, pony rides, face painting, autographs, door prizes, and a second Town Meeting with the coach, Vice President and General Manager Dan Belisle and other members of the staff. Equipment manager Josh MacDonald will also be holding a used equipment sale throughout the day. Parking is free in the downstairs garage at Boardwalk Hall, and don't worry about missing Sunday football because we'll have it on live on the video jumbotron. It's a great day of fun that you don't want to miss out on!

AROUND THE ECHL...

The Bullies weren't the only team locking down a new affiliation agreement in time for the 2004-05 season. Texas has reached a deal with Florida while Pensacola has come to terms with Toronto. That makes 22 ECHL teams including the Bullies that have affiliation agreements with 23 NHL teams, which leads us to the return of our infamous trivia question. As always, the winner of the trivia contest (selected at random) will receive a pair of tickets to an upcoming Boardwalk Bullies home game this season. This week's question: With 22 ECHL teams affiliated with 23 NHL teams, what ECHL club has two NHL affiliates? Submit those answers to dan.weiss@boardwalkbullies.com and I'll reveal a winner in the next issue...The Victoria (BC) News reported this week that barring a last-minute breakdown in negotiations, the ECHL's newest team, the Salmon Kings, will open their season and potentially play up to 24 home games at the Bear Mountain Arena, the home of the Victoria Salsa of the Western Hockey League. The move is necessitated because it's believed that the Salmon Kings home, the Save-On-Foods Centre, will not be completed for potentially up to two months after the scheduled December 5 home opener. Dave Dakers, the executive director of R.G. Properties which owns the Salmon Kings told the Victoria News, "As we speak, I don't have confirmation that we'll be there (Bear Mountain Arena), but I can say unequivocally that we're going to play in Victoria this year." That's very encouraging news for a club that has already sold nearly 2,500 season tickets since its inception last year.

WOOLY'S 2004 SUMMER TOUR CONTINUES ALONG

The Bullies lovable mascot, "Wooly Bully", is out at the Good Olde Days Festival in Somers Point (Kennedy Park-Shore Rd) this afternoon from 11AM-5PM if you want to stop by for a picture. Wooly will also be marching along the Boardwalk with the beauties of America on Friday at the annual Miss America Parade which begins at 6PM rain or shine!

CLOSING NUMBER...

NHL owners have rejected the Player's Association latest luxury tax-based and revenue sharing proposal, almost ensuring that a lockout will begin once the current Collective Bargaining Agreement expires on Wednesday. Owners are expected to be in New York on Wednesday to trigger the lockout...After dismantling Russia the other night I truly believed that the United States would emerge as the winner of the World Cup. That was of course until Saku Koivu scored with a little over 3 minutes left last night to give Finland a 2-1 win ending my dream and the Americans. While it sounds foolish from the onset, I'm putting my money on an all-European championship. The Czech Republic toyed with Sweden in the semifinals, and at the very least will give Team Canada all they can handle tonight in Toronto. My prediction: The Czechs win 4-3 in overtime and then go on to beat Finland in the finals...On a more serious note, on this third anniversary of the September 11 attacks, please take a moment this afternoon to reflect on the events of that day and send a prayer to those families that lost loved ones in the tragedy. While our collective love of sports is what makes this country truly great, sometimes we should put our lives in perspective where the outcome of who wins or loses a game really doesn't matter all that much. It is only a game of course!

Keep sending those emails and questions along (dan.weiss@boardwalkbullies.com). 40 DAYS TILL OPENING NIGHT!!!!



ECHL Stories from September 11, 2004


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Other Recent Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central