Cedar Rapids RoughRiders | |
---|---|
City | Cedar Rapids, Iowa |
League | USHL |
Division | East |
Founded | 1983 |
Home arena | Cedar Rapids Ice Arena |
Colors |
Green, White, Black |
Owner(s) | Jeff Jauch |
General manager | Mark Carlson |
Head coach | Mark Carlson |
Franchise history | |
1983–1999 | North Iowa Huskies |
1999–present | Cedar Rapids RoughRiders |
Green, White, Black
The Cedar Rapids RoughRiders are a Tier 1 junior ice hockey team playing in the East Division of the United States Hockey League (USHL). Before moving to Cedar Rapids in 1999, the team was based in Mason City, where they were known as the North Iowa Huskies. The RoughRiders' new name was chosen in a contest, where a local teacher at Roosevelt Middle School in Cedar Rapids submitted Roughriders, as it was the school's mascot.
The RoughRiders' home ice is the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena.
The 2002-2003 Cedar Rapids Roughriders finished in second place in the East Division with a 27-26-7 record for a total of 61 points. In the quarterfinals of the USHL playoffs, the Roughriders beat Topeka 3 games to 1. In the semifinals, Cedar Rapids was swept 3-0 by Lincoln.
The 2003-2004 Cedar Rapids Roughriders finished in second place in the East Division with a 34-23-2 record for a total of 71 points. In the quarterfinals of the USHL playoffs, the Roughriders lost to Danville 3 games to 1.
The 2004-05 season was an important one in the team's history. The Roughriders finished first in the East Division with a record of 42 wins, 13 losses, and 5 overtime losses, for 89 points in the standings. They tied the West Division champions Omaha Lancers for the regular season overall title, the Anderson Cup.
After three-game sweeps against the Indiana Ice and Chicago Steel, the Roughriders faced the Sioux City Musketeers winning game 1 of the Clark Cup finals 5-0, but lost game 2, 2-1. After splitting games in Sioux City, the Roughriders finally defeated Sioux City at home on May 9, 4-1, to win their first USHL championship, the Clark Cup, and therefore, their first Tier 1 national championship in American junior hockey. Goaltender Alex Stalock took most valuable player honors for the series. Future NHL players who played on this championship team included: Teddy Purcell (Edmonton Oilers), Justin Abdelkader (Detroit Red Wings), Alec Martinez (Los Angeles Kings), and Alex Stalock (San Jose Sharks).