Syracuse Crunch
| Syracuse Crunch | |
|---|---|
 2016–17 AHL season
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| City | Syracuse, New York |
| League | American Hockey League |
| Conference | Eastern |
| Division | North |
| Founded | 1992 |
| Home arena | Oncenter War Memorial Arena |
| Colors | Blue, White, Silver, Black |
| Owner(s) | Howard Dolgon |
| General manager | Julien BriseBois |
| Head coach | Benoit Groulx |
| Media |
Syracuse Post-Standard WTLA |
| Affiliates |
Tampa Bay Lightning (NHL) Kalamazoo Wings (ECHL) |
| Franchise history | |
| 1992–1994 | Hamilton Canucks |
| 1994–present | Syracuse Crunch |
| Championships | |
| Division Championships | 2 (2001–02, 2012–13) |
| Conference Championships | 1 (2012–13) |
The Syracuse Crunch are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL). They play in Syracuse, New York, at the War Memorial at Oncenter. They are the primary development affiliate of the National Hockey League's Tampa Bay Lightning.
The franchise originated in 1992 as the Hamilton Canucks, which were an affiliate of the NHL's Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks played in Hamilton, Ontario, for two seasons, before relocating to upstate New York in 1994. They were then renamed the 'Crunch' in a public vote of five names. Soon the team was among the most popular of the AHL, leading the league in sellouts in 1996–97 and 1997–98. After the relocation from Hamilton was complete, the Crunch remained the AHL farm team of the Canucks until 2000 – with also a season hosting Pittsburgh Penguins players in 1997–98 – when it switched its NHL affiliation to the newly formed Columbus Blue Jackets, an affiliation it retained for a decade, before the Jackets switched their affiliation to the Springfield Falcons in 2010. The Crunch then spent two seasons affiliated with the Anaheim Ducks before signing a multi-year affiliation deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning effective for the 2012–13 season. In the first year of the new partnership, the team reached the 2013 Calder Cup Finals, losing to the Grand Rapids Griffins.
The Crunch played the first outdoor game in AHL history on February 20, 2010, against the Binghamton Senators. The Mirabito Outdoor Classic took place at the Grandstand at the New York State Fairgrounds in Syracuse. The game set an AHL attendance record of 21,508. Syracuse won the game 2–1.
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