Sydney Ice Dogs
| Sydney Ice Dogs | |
|---|---|
 2017 AIHL season
|
|
 |
|
| City | Sydney, New South Wales |
| League | Australian Ice Hockey League |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Operated | 2002-present |
| Home arena | Macquarie Ice Rink, Macquarie Park |
| Colours |
Navy, Burgandy, Silver and White |
| General manager | Jason Juba |
| Head coach |
 Chris Blagg |
| Captain |
Scott Stephenson
|
| Website | http://www.icedogs.com.au/ |
| Franchise history | |
| 2002–2008 | Western Sydney Ice Dogs |
| 2009–present | Sydney Ice Dogs |
| Championships | |
| Regular season titles | 1 (2013) |
| Conference Championships | 0 |
| Goodall Cups | 2 (2004, 2013) |
Navy, Burgandy, Silver and White
The Sydney Ice Dogs are a semi-professional ice hockey team in the Australian Ice Hockey League (AIHL). The team was founded in 2002 as the Western Sydney Ice Dogs but changed its name to Sydney Ice Dogs in 2008. The club plays its home games at the Macquarie Shopping Centre in Macquarie Park New South Wales, a suburb of northern Sydney.
The Ice Dogs (along with the Melbourne Ice and Newcastle North Stars) were part of a three-team expansion to the AIHL in 2002, joining the original teams Adelaide Avalanche (who disbanded in 2008), Canberra Knights and Sydney Bears.
Ice hockey in Western Sydney goes back to 1981, when the Blacktown Flyers were a foundation member of the New South Wales Superleague. While lasting for thirteen seasons, this league struggled to gain stability and folded, to be reborn in 1994 as the ECSL, however it too would be disbanded in 2000 with Western Sydney having no representative in the newly formed AIHL.
The region returned to the national ice hockey map in 2002 when the Ice Dogs joined the AIHL. John Wilson, owner of the Blacktown Ice arena funded the team and Anthony Wilson (his son) captained, managed and recruited for the team. The teams' first season was a success despite missing the semi-finals, finishing third out of six teams. It was not enough to make the finals, however, as a four-team playoff series would not be introduced until the 2003 season.
Backing up their strong performance in 2002 the Ice Dogs again finished third in 2003. They did, however, go one step better as they reached the Goodall Cup final by defeating the second-placed Adelaide Avalanche. The Ice Dogs went down in the championship match, losing 4–1 to Newcastle. The ice Dogs would have their revenge in 2004, as both teams again squared off for the Goodall Cup and the Ice Dogs won 3-1 on the back of instrumental performances by 18-year-old goaltender Gabriel Robledo and star import players John Heinen and Martin Jesk. A healthy rivalry between the Ice Dogs and the North Stars arose from these two back to back championship games.
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