Martinson To Be Honored Saturday Night
Published on April 2, 2004 under arenafootball2 (af2)
San Diego Riptide News Release
SAN DIEGO â The San Diego Gulls will honor head coach and general manager Steve Martinson in a pre-game ceremony Saturday night.
Martinson, who will be leaving the Gulls after this season, will be coaching in his final regular season game Saturday when the Gulls take on the Alaska Aces. The pre-game ceremony will pay tribute to Martinson's nine-year stint behind the San Diego bench. Part of the ceremony will feature the raising of a special banner to the Sports Arena's rafters.
He has been the franchise's only head coach, which includes eight seasons in the West Coast Hockey League and one in the ECHL. Martinson has been the club's general manager for seven seasons, taking over at the beginning of the 1997-98 season.
During his eight-year coaching tenure in the WCHL, Martinson's Gulls captured five Taylor Cup Championships, four Founder's Cups (awarded to the team with the best regular season record) and seven division titles. He was honored as the 1995-96 WCHL coach of the year in his coaching debut and then again following the 1997-98 season.
In his first season in the ECHL, Martinson has captured another division title, making it the eighth time in his nine years that San Diego has finished in first place. The Gulls, fighting for the best overall record in league, have also broken the ECHL record for most wins by an expansion team.
The native of Minnetonka, Minn. entered the coaching ranks after a successful 14-year playing career, which included stints with the NHL's Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens and Minnesota North Stars. Martinson also played three seasons with the International Hockey League's Gulls from 1990 to 1993. During that span, he set career highs in goals (18) and points (40). Martinson set an American Hockey League record with 49 major penalties, while playing for the Hershey Bears in 1985-86.
Before turning pro, "Marty" played for St. Cloud University, where he was a two-time NCAA All-Star selection.
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