Portland Pirates
| Portland Pirates | |
|---|---|
 2015–16 AHL season
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| City | Portland, Maine |
| League | American Hockey League |
| Founded | 1975 (In the NAHL) |
| Operated | 1993–2016 |
| Home arena | Cross Insurance Arena |
| Colors | Black, Red, Silver, White |
| Franchise history | |
| 1975–1982 | Erie Blades |
| 1982–1993 | Baltimore Skipjacks |
| 1993–2016 | Portland Pirates |
| 2016–present | Springfield Thunderbirds |
| Championships | |
| Division Championships | 2 (2005–06, 2010–11) |
| Conference Championships | 1 (1995–96) |
| Calder Cups | 1 (1993–94) |
The Portland Pirates were a minor professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. Their home arena was the Cross Insurance Arena in downtown Portland, Maine. The franchise was previously known as the Baltimore Skipjacks from 1982 to 1993.
The Pirates were affiliated with the Washington Capitals (1993–2005), the Anaheim Ducks (2005–2008), the Buffalo Sabres (2008–2011) and the Arizona Coyotes (2011–2015). They have played host to the AHL All-Star Classic twice (in 2003 and 2010).
On May 4, 2016, the Pirates announced it had signed a letter of intent with an outside buyer to sell and relocate the franchise for the 2016–17 season. It was reported that the team would be relocated to Springfield, Massachusetts following the pending sale and relocation of the Springfield Falcons franchise to Tucson, Arizona. The transaction was approved by the AHL on May 23, 2016. The AHL Pirates' franchise is now known as the Springfield Thunderbirds.
Tom Ebright, owner of the Baltimore Skipjacks, had a daughter who was an intern at the East Coast Hockey League's Nashville Knights. Liking the way the Knights did business, Ebright contacted Knights owner, W. Godfrey Wood, asking to relocate the Skipjacks to a better market. Wood relocated the team to his home region of Portland, Maine, leading to the creation of the Portland Pirates in 1993 with an affiliation to the Washington Capitals. The Pirates replaced the void made by the Maine Mariners who had departed to become the Providence Bruins a year earlier. On August 4, 1993, forward Eric Fenton was signed to a professional contract to become the very first member of the Portland Pirates team.
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