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Detroit Vipers

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Detroit Vipers
CityAuburn Hills, Michigan
LeagueInternational Hockey League
Operated1994–2001
Home arenaThe Palace of Auburn Hills
ColorsGreen, white, red, black, eggplant, aqua
AffiliateTampa Bay Lightning
Franchise history
1969–1994Salt Lake Golden Eagles
1994–2001Detroit Vipers
Championships
Division titles4
(1994–95, 1996–97, 1997–98,
1998–99)
Turner Cups1
(1997)

The Detroit Vipers were a professional ice hockey team that competed in the International Hockey League (IHL). Originally founded in 1969 as the Salt Lake Golden Eagles in Salt Lake City, the team was purchased by Palace Sports & Entertainment and relocated to Auburn Hills, Michigan in 1994. The rebranding to the Vipers was influenced by a sponsorship deal with the Chrysler Corporation, aligning the team's name with the company's popular Dodge Viper sports car, though the team’s logo featured a venomous snake rather than the vehicle.

In their first five seasons, the Vipers were highly successful, achieving 100 points each year and making two appearances in the Turner Cup Finals, winning the championship in 1997.

In 1999, Palace Sports acquired the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League (NHL), and the Vipers became their top minor league affiliate. However, the team struggled over the next two seasons before both the Vipers and the IHL ceased operations in 2001.

History

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Beginning

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The Vipers were originally founded as the Salt Lake Golden Eagles in 1969.[1] In 1994, the franchise was purchased by Palace Sports & Entertainment, owners of the Detroit Pistons and the Palace of Auburn Hills, and relocated for the 1994–95 IHL season.[2][3][4] A sponsorship deal with Chrysler led to the naming of the team after their Dodge Viper.[5] A similar deal was in place with another Palace Sports-owned team, the Detroit Neon of the Continental Indoor Soccer League, which switched its sponsorship to GMC in its final year and renamed the team the Detroit Safari after yet another vehicle, the Safari.[6]

The team hired former Buffalo Sabres coach Rick Dudley as head coach and general manager.[2][3] Their first season was during the 1994–95 NHL lockout.[2] During said lockout, the Vipers took on the Ninety-Nines, an all-star team of locked-out National Hockey League players led by Wayne Gretzky. The Vipers won, 4–3.[2][3] The team won the IHL's Central Division but were eliminated by the Kansas City Blades in five games in the first round of the playoffs.[7][8]

The 1995–96 season saw the notable signing of Washington Capitals star Peter Bondra for a brief time while he was locked in a holdout with Washington management.[9] The Vipers finished the season in second place in the Central Division.[10] In the first round of the playoffs, they defeated the Indianapolis Ice in five games, but the Vipers lost their second round playoff series to the Orlando Solar Bears in seven games.[11]

The Turner Cup Finals

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During the off-season, Steve Ludzik succeeded Rick Dudley as head coach.[2][3][12] This off-season also saw the arrival of Russian phenom Sergei Samsonov and IHL All-Star Stan Drulia to the Vipers.[2][13] Samsonov would win Rookie of the Year honors as the Vipers won another division title.[2][14][15] They advanced to their first appearance in the Turner Cup Finals against the Long Beach Ice Dogs. Led by Samsonov and Peter Ciavaglia, the Vipers won the series 4–2.[2] That championship allowed Detroit to become the first city to capture two cups in the same calendar year as the Detroit Red Wings also won the Stanley Cup.[3][16]

Samsonov would go on to be selected by the Boston Bruins with the eighth overall pick in the 1997 NHL entry draft, but the slack was picked up in 1997–98 by Dan Kesa, who scored 40 goals, as the Vipers won their third division title in four seasons.[2][17][18] They also became the first professional hockey team to have 100 points in each of their first four seasons.[19] The Vipers advanced to the Turner Cup Finals against the Chicago Wolves. After going up 3–2, the Vipers would only score one goal in the final two games, losing the series 4–3.[2][3][20] The season also saw a one-shift comeback from Gordie Howe, making him the only person to play hockey in six different decades as a professional.[2][21] Following the season, Rick Dudley left the team to become the general manager of the Ottawa Senators.[2][3]

Demise

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The 1998–99 season saw John Torchetti hired as general manager.[22] The Vipers won another division title and advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals against the Orlando Solar Bears.[23][24] The Vipers became the first and only team in IHL history to lose a best-of-seven playoff series after being up 3–0.[24][25] During the off-season, Palace Sports & Entertainment purchased the Tampa Bay Lightning and made the Vipers their top minor league affiliate.[26][27] As a result, Steve Ludzik was promoted as Lightning head coach in an effort by ownership to rebuild the struggling NHL club.[27] Paulin Bordeleau took over as Vipers head coach.[28]

The Lightning remained barely competitive, prompting a mass transfer of talent from Detroit to Tampa throughout the season. This drained the Vipers of the strength and stability that they had experienced through the first five seasons of their existence. It also led to a swift, sudden and near-total collapse; the Vipers plummeted from having the second-best record a season prior to being dead last in the league.[2][3][23][29]

The Vipers' woes were nothing, however, compared to the worsening health of the IHL as the league was experiencing high travel costs, salary issues, and an inability to establish a sustainable relationship with the NHL.[2][30][31] By the 2000–01 season, the Vipers were only one of eleven IHL teams still remaining.[30] That season saw Brad Shaw take over as head coach.[2][3] However, the Vipers finished dead last in the league in standings and attendance.[2][32] The impending demise of the IHL, combined with the plummeting attendance, led Palace Sports to find a new affiliate for the Lightning.[33] On June 4, 2001, both the IHL and the Vipers ceased operations.[2][34]

Players

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Notable players

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Affiliates

References

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  1. ^ Stubbs, Dave (April 19, 2024). "Utah 'ready for hockey,' local historian says". NHL.com. Archived from the original on April 21, 2024. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Manasso, John (March 8, 2015). "Sunday Long Read: Forgotten Vipers rocked Detroit". NHL.com. Archived from the original on August 29, 2019. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Custance, Craig (September 24, 2017). "Ode to an era: The oral history of the Detroit Vipers". The Athletic. Archived from the original on June 14, 2024. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  4. ^ Reynolds, Kevin (April 22, 2024). "Fights, fiascos and mayhem: How the Golden Eagles first made Salt Lake love hockey". The Salt Lake Tribune. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  5. ^ Foley, Aaron (January 2, 2014). "A Short History Of Chrysler's Short-Lived Sponsored Sports Teams". Jalopnik. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  6. ^ "Safari Soccer Launches New Relationship With GMC Safari; Unveiling Logo, Team Colors CISL Season to Begin June 13 at The Palace". The Auto Channel. May 28, 1997. Archived from the original on June 14, 2024. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  7. ^ Stone, Mike; Regnar, Art (2008). The Great Book of Detroit Sports Lists. Running Press. p. 46. ISBN 978-0786741717. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  8. ^ "1994-95 IHL Playoff Results". HockeyDB. Archived from the original on June 14, 2024. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  9. ^ Hochberg, Len (September 27, 1995). "2 Players Bolt Caps for IHL". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on June 14, 2024. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  10. ^ "1995-96 International Hockey League Standings". HockeyDB. Archived from the original on June 15, 2024. Retrieved June 15, 2024.
  11. ^ "1995-96 IHL Playoff Results". HockeyDB. Archived from the original on June 15, 2024. Retrieved June 15, 2024.
  12. ^ Russo, Michael (June 8, 2003). "Pals Weathered Lightning Storm". Sun Sentinel. Archived from the original on June 15, 2024. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  13. ^
  14. ^ "1996-97 International Hockey League Standings". HockeyDB. Archived from the original on February 13, 2024. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  15. ^ "Ice Dogs Lose Series Opener, 5-3". Los Angeles Times. May 31, 1997. Archived from the original on June 18, 2024. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  16. ^ Lapointe, Joe (June 8, 1997). "A City's Spirit Roars Back With the Red Wings". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 18, 2024. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  17. ^ "Detroit Vipers 1997-98". HockeyDB. Archived from the original on June 18, 2024. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  18. ^ "1997-98 International Hockey League Standings". HockeyDB. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  19. ^ "Vipers' Dudley Loses 1 Ticket to the NHL". Orlando Sentinel. May 23, 1998. Archived from the original on June 25, 2024. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
  20. ^ "1997-98 IHL Playoff Results". HockeyDB. Archived from the original on June 18, 2024. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  21. ^ St. James, Helene (June 10, 2016). "A look back at Gordie Howe's last game". Detroit Free Press. Archived from the original on June 1, 2023. Retrieved October 2, 2024.
  22. ^ Khan, Ansar (June 9, 2016). "Red Wings hire John Torchetti as assistant coach". MLive. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved June 24, 2024.
  23. ^ a b "1998-99 International Hockey League Standings". HockeyDB. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
  24. ^ a b "1998-99 IHL Playoff Results". HockeyDB. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
  25. ^ "AHL Morning Skate: May 9, 2007". TheAHL.com. May 9, 2007. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
  26. ^ Cronan, Carl (July 19, 1999). "Lightning gets third owner in 3 years". Sports Business Journal. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  27. ^ a b Jones, Tom (July 15, 1999). "Dudley gets his man: Ludzik". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  28. ^ Cristodero, Damian (August 3, 1999). "Ex-assistant of Lightning takes over IHL's Vipers". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  29. ^ "1999-00 International Hockey League Standings". HockeyDB. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved July 12, 2024.
  30. ^ a b Ballou, Bill (August 7, 2000). "NHL - The Minors: IHL, AHL won't merge ... yet". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on March 9, 2021. Retrieved July 12, 2024.
  31. ^ Raider, Adam (February 18, 2002). "IHL's demise followed its failure to become hockey's top minor league". Sports Business Journal. Archived from the original on June 20, 2024. Retrieved July 12, 2024.
  32. ^ "2000-01 International Hockey League Standings". HockeyDB. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved July 12, 2024.
  33. ^ Cristodero, Damian (April 23, 2001). "Lightning looks to dump Vipers". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  34. ^ "International Hockey League to cease operations". United Press International. June 4, 2001. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved July 12, 2024.
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