Former American ice hockey team
The Worcester IceCats were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They played in Worcester, Massachusetts, at the Worcester Centrum. In 2005 the team was renamed the Peoria Rivermen and moved to Peoria, Illinois.
History
The IceCats got their start when original New York Islanders owner Roy Boe purchased the Springfield Indians AHL franchise and moved it to Worcester in the summer of 1994. The team began play in the Fall of 1994 with a collection of free-agent players but as yet with no National Hockey League team affiliation. Late in the 1994–95 season, Boe and head coach/General Manager Jim Roberts negotiated a deal with the St. Louis Blues. From that point on the IceCats would be the Blues' premier minor league team. The Peoria Rivermen of the East Coast Hockey League, in turn, became the IceCats' minor league affiliate in 1998, having been with St. Louis before the 1994 Worcester deal. During the 2000–01 season, Boe sold the IceCats to the St. Louis Blues. The team celebrated its tenth season in the AHL in fall 2003.
On November 9, 2004, the St. Louis Blues announced the sale of the IceCats to the owners of their ECHL affiliate, the Peoria Rivermen. The new owners moved the franchise to Peoria, Illinois, for the 2005–06 season.[1]
- This franchise was previously known as: Springfield Indians (1926–1994)
- The franchise became known as: Peoria Rivermen (2005–2013)
- This franchise was replaced by: Worcester Sharks (2006–2015)
Affiliates
Season-by-season results
Regular season
| Season |
Games |
Won |
Lost |
Tied |
OTL |
SOL |
Points |
Goals
for |
Goals
against |
Standing
|
| 1994–95 |
80 |
24 |
45 |
11 |
0 |
— |
59 |
234 |
300 |
6th, North
|
| 1995–96 |
80 |
36 |
28 |
12 |
4 |
— |
88 |
242 |
244 |
2nd, North
|
| 1996–97 |
80 |
43 |
23 |
9 |
5 |
— |
100 |
256 |
234 |
1st, New England
|
| 1997–98 |
80 |
34 |
31 |
9 |
6 |
— |
83 |
267 |
268 |
4th, New England
|
| 1998–99 |
80 |
34 |
36 |
8 |
2 |
— |
78 |
237 |
260 |
4th, New England
|
| 1999–00 |
80 |
34 |
31 |
11 |
4 |
— |
83 |
249 |
250 |
3rd, New England
|
| 2000–01 |
80 |
48 |
20 |
9 |
3 |
— |
108 |
264 |
205 |
1st, New England
|
| 2001–02 |
80 |
39 |
33 |
7 |
1 |
— |
86 |
245 |
218 |
3rd, North
|
| 2002–03 |
80 |
35 |
27 |
15 |
3 |
— |
88 |
235 |
220 |
3rd, North
|
| 2003–04 |
80 |
37 |
27 |
13 |
3 |
— |
90 |
207 |
186 |
3rd, Atlantic
|
| 2004–05 |
80 |
39 |
34 |
3 |
4 |
— |
85 |
212 |
223 |
5th, Atlantic
|
Playoffs
| Season |
1st round |
2nd round |
3rd round |
Finals
|
| 1994–95 |
Did not qualify
|
| 1995–96 |
L, 1–3, Portland |
— |
— |
—
|
| 1996–97 |
L, 2–3, Providence |
— |
— |
—
|
| 1997–98 |
W, 3–1, Springfield |
L, 3–4, Hartford |
— |
—
|
| 1998–99 |
L, 1–3, Providence |
— |
— |
—
|
| 1999–00 |
W, 3–1, Portland |
L, 1–4, Hartford |
— |
—
|
| 2000–01 |
W, 3–1, Lowell |
L, 3–4, Providence |
— |
—
|
| 2001–02† |
L, 1–2, Manitoba† |
— |
— |
—
|
| 2002–03 |
L, 0–3, Binghamton |
— |
— |
—
|
| 2003–04 |
W, 4–2, Manchester |
L, 0–4, Hartford |
— |
—
|
| 2004–05 |
Did not qualify
|
† Lost in preliminary round.
Team records
Single season
Career
- Career goals: 79 Marc Brown
- Career assists: 154 Terry Virtue
- Career points: 210 Terry Virtue
- Career penalty minutes: 1083 Terry Virtue
- Career goaltending wins: 65 Curtis Sanford
- Career shutouts: 10 Curtis Sanford
- Career games: 455 Terry Virtue
Franchise scoring leaders
These are the top ten point-scorers in IceCat's franchise history.
Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points;
