Martinson to lead Rockford for third straight campaign
June 7, 2006 - International Hockey League 2 (IHL 2)
Rockford IceHogs News Release
Rockford, Ill.- Rockford IceHogs President and General Manager Ryan Washatka announced at a press conference on Wednesday that the United Hockey League club has retained Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations Steve Martinson for the 2006-07 season. Martinson signed a one-year contract with an option for two more seasons with the club, making him the longest tenured coach in team history.
The winningest coach in club history returns for his third season behind the bench for the IceHogs. In his first two seasons as bench boss of the Hogs, Martinson has compiled a record of 94-43-18 and will become the first coach to lead the IceHogs for three seasons when the '06-07 campaign commences in October. Guided by Martinson, the IceHogs have reached the Colonial Cup Semifinals in each of the last two seasons, a feat never accomplished in Rockford before the Martinson era, and the club won its first ever division title last season when the Hogs secured the Western Division crown.
"The ownership group and myself are thrilled that Steve has chosen to remain an IceHog for the 2006-07 season," said Washatka. "It has been one of our priorities since summer of 2005 to keep Steve behind the bench. We have enjoyed the successes of Steve's strong leadership on the ice the past two seasons and look forward to continuing that winning tradition that our fans have come to appreciate and expect from our organization."
The Minnetonka, Minn. native is not only the most successful coach in Hogs history, but one of the most prosperous in professional hockey's minor league level. Last December, Martinson notched career coaching win #500 and is believed to be the quickest head coach at any level of professional hockey to reach the 500 win plateau. Martinson has never had less than 45 wins in any regular season.
Martinson's accomplishments in Rockford include most career games coached (156), wins (94), best winning percentage (.660), most home wins career (52) and season (27), most road wins career (42) and season (21) and every playoff coaching record including games (22) and wins (11).
"I think finishing with 105 points and loaning possibly the most free agents in AA hockey sets a solid foundation for continued success here in Rockford," said Martinson. "The recruiting is easier when you are winning while providing opportunity for players. I'm also optimistic that the league is going in the direction of a hard cap and a more balanced playing field."
During Martinson's tenure in Rockford, the success on the ice has been duplicated off the ice as well. In both of Martinson's two campaigns in the Forest City, the IceHogs have been recognized as the UHL's Member Club of the Year and attendance has increased nearly 13% with the IceHogs establishing a new club mark last season, averaging 3,973 fans per game.
Martinson has also been instrumental in developing and establishing the IceHogs affiliation with the American Hockey League's Milwaukee Admirals and National Hockey League's Nashville Predators, making Rockford one of AA professional hockey's premiere developmental teams. Rockford is the only club in the UHL with an NHL and AHL affiliation. Over the past two campaigns, Martinson has loaned a UHL-high 20 different players to the AHL and of those 20 skaters, five of them (Tim Wedderburn, Eric Labelle, Nathan Lutz, Billy Tibbetts and Bob Nardella) have inked AHL deals during Martinson's tenure.
Prior to coming to Rockford, Martinson led the San Diego Gulls (ECHL) to a record of 434-138-33, a winning percentage of .714 over a nine-year stretch in which the Gulls won five WCHL Championships (Kelly Cup) and four Founder's Cups as the WCHL's best regular season team. During the Gulls first season in the ECHL in 2003-04, Martinson guided San Diego to the ECHL's Brabham Cup for best regular season record and set a league mark for best record by an expansion team (49-13-10, .750).
For more information about Martinson or for any special media requests, contact the IceHogs Director of Broadcasting and Media Relations Mike Peck at (815) 986-6465.
Season Tickets Now Available: The Rockford IceHogs just wrapped up its most successful campaign in club history and we want you along for the ride in 2006-07. Season ticket packages are now available for the Hogs' 8th season in Rockford by calling (815) 986-6465. Ticket packages start as low as $95!
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International Hockey League 2 Stories from June 7, 2006
- Chicago Hounds Announce Greg Puhalski as Head Coach for Inaugural Season - Chicago Hounds
- Flags claim five players in dispersal draft - Port Huron Flags
- Martinson to lead Rockford for third straight campaign - Rockford IceHogs
- Fury see new faces in dispersal, expansion drafts - Muskegon Lumberjacks
- Komets looking for coach - Fort Wayne Komets
- Trashers add four players in dispersal draft - Danbury Trashers
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