Jacksonville Barracudas
| Jacksonville Barracudas | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| City | Jacksonville, Florida |
| League |
Atlantic Coast Hockey League (2002–2003) World Hockey Association 2 (2003–2004) Southern Professional Hockey League (2004–2008) |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Home arena |
Jacksonville Coliseum (2002–2003) Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena (2003–2007) Jacksonville Ice (2007–2008) |
| Colors | navy blue, red |
| Owner(s) | Stephen Croskrey |
| General manager | Gilles Richard |
| Head coach | Rick Allain |
| Media | The Florida Times-Union |
| Franchise history | |
| 2002–2008 | Jacksonville Barracudas |
| Championships | |
| Regular season titles | 1 (2003-04 WHA2) |
The Jacksonville Barracudas were a professional minor league ice hockey team based in Jacksonville, Florida. They were established in 2002, and played in the Atlantic Coast Hockey League (2002–2003), the World Hockey Association 2 (2003–2004), and the Southern Professional Hockey League (2004–2008), before folding in 2008.
They won the WHA2 championship title in 2003 – becoming the only Jacksonville pro hockey team to win a league championship – and went to the playoffs three times in the SPHL, advancing to the league finals in 2007 and 2008. They ceased operations after the 2007–2008 season after being unable to secure a suitable venue for the upcoming season.
The Barracudas began play in the second Atlantic Coast Hockey League (ACHL) in the 2002–2003 season. Their original owner was David Waronker, who owned three other teams in the league. Jacksonville's first professional hockey team since the Jacksonville Lizard Kings folded in 2000, they played their first home games at the Jacksonville Coliseum. However, the ACHL's instability caused Waronker to lose confidence in the league. After the season, he announced he was withdrawing his four teams and creating a new league, the World Hockey Association 2 (WHA2), which he envisioned as a developmental league for a proposed revival of the World Hockey Association.
Though the revived WHA never took the ice, the WHA2 did play its 2003-04 season. Jacksonville became the fledgling league's most successful team, taking the regular season title and being the only team to draw an average of over 3,000 fans per game. They began the season in the old Jacksonville Coliseum, and moved to the new Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena when it was completed. However, the WHA2, which was largely controlled by Waronker, struggled. The Barracudas beat Miami two games to one and then swept Macon two games to none bringing Jacksonville its only professional hockey championship. Shortly thereafter the WHA2 collapsed, and many of its teams joined the new Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL).
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