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The Atlantic Coast Hockey League (ACHL) was a minor league hockey organization that operated between 1981 and 1987. The league was founded by Bill Coffey. The Bob Payne Trophy was awarded to the team who won the league playoff championship. According to a 1985 ''Montreal Gazette'' article, rookies were paid "$150 a week plus $35 for a victory" and veterans were paid "as much as $300 a week." League regulations also said that half the roster (eight out of fifteen players) must be rookie Americans.


Formation

The ACHL's roots can be traced back to the former Eastern Hockey League (EHL) of the late 1970s and early 1980s. With a meeting of several EHL owners, the league decided to fold on July 19, 1981, and reorganize as the Atlantic Coast Hockey League. Teams and cities that were previous members of the Eastern Hockey League were interested in rejoining the league. Because the Mohawk Valley team being the most northern, the league was interested in inviting a sixth team to bridge the gap. Johnstown previously had an EHL team affiliated with the Red Wings and were the intended sixth team but due to the owner being ill, they were removed from the list. Richmond expressed interest, but due to questions about the financial stability of the league, they also dropped out. The Boston Bruins, along with several investors, were approached about putting a team in nearby
Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The ...
. After an investor dropped out, Cape Cod Coliseum and WWF owner
Vince McMahon Vincent Kennedy McMahon ( ; born August 24, 1945) is an American businessman and former professional wrestling promoter. McMahon, along with his later-estranged wife Linda McMahon, Linda, is a co-founder of the modern WWE, the world's largest ...
purchased the rights to the franchise for $15,000.


Inaugural season

The ACHL opened with seven teams: * Salem Raiders * Winston-Salem Thunderbirds * Mohawk Valley Stars * Baltimore Skipjacks * Cape Cod Buccaneers * Fitchburg Trappers * Schenectady Chiefs. From the opening night of the season, McMahon was not happy with how the league was run. Schenectady and Fitchburg were owned by the same person. Fitchburg was placed under a league suspension and would fold after 6 games. Schenectady would fold after 9 games. In January 1982, McMahon tried to borrow $15,000 from the league, citing "slow cash flow". When the league denied his loan, McMahon folded his franchise. With the league now down to 4 teams, the league decided to end the season early and set the playoffs by geographical area to save on expenses. Coincidentally, the matchups did end up having the first and fourth place teams meet, along with the second vs third place teams. The Salem Raiders defeated the Winston-Salem Thunderbirds, and the Mohawk Valley Stars defeated the Baltimore Skipjacks. The Raiders and Stars played in the league final, with the Mohawk Valley Stars defeating the Raiders for the Bob Payne Trophy. On July 24, 1987, Commissioner Ray Miron announced that the league would be suspending operations for the 1987–88 season. The Troy Slapshots had folded earlier in the previous season, and the Mohawk Valley Comets in Utica, NY had been replaced with an
American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...
team A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal. As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interdependent with respect to in ...
. This left the league with only three teams—Erie, Virginia, and Carolina—not enough for it to make sense to operate. Erie would cease operations, but the Lancers and Thunderbirds would transfer to the All-American Hockey League.


ACHL to ECHL

Two teams from the current
ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a minor professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams across the United States and Canada. Competitively, it is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The ...
have roots tracing back to the Atlantic Coast Hockey League Wheeling Nailers: *1981–82: Winston-Salem Thunderbirds (ACHL) *1982–87:
Carolina Thunderbirds The Carolina Thunderbirds were a professional ice hockey team located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States. The Thunderbirds played their home games at the old Winston-Salem Memorial Coliseum before the arena was demolished in 1989. ...
(ACHL) *1987–88: Carolina Thunderbirds ( AAHL) *1988–89: Carolina Thunderbirds (
ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a minor professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams across the United States and Canada. Competitively, it is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The ...
) *1989–92: Winston-Salem Thunderbirds (ECHL) *1992–96: Wheeling Thunderbirds (ECHL) *1996–present:
Wheeling Nailers The Wheeling Nailers are a professional ECHL ice hockey team based in Wheeling, West Virginia. They are the ECHL affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey Lea ...
(ECHL) Utah Grizzlies: *1981–1983: Nashville South Stars (CHL/ACHL) *1983–1990:
Virginia Lancers The Virginia Lancers were a minor league hockey team that played in several leagues from 1983 until 1990. Their home ice was the Vinton Sports Complex, which held 3400 people. Atlantic Coast Hockey League (1983–1987) The Virginia Lancers w ...
(ACHL/AAHL/ECHL) *1990–1992: Roanoke Valley Rebels (ECHL) *1992–1993: Roanoke Valley Rampage (ECHL) *1993–1994: Huntsville Blast (ECHL) *1994–2001:
Tallahassee Tiger Sharks The Tallahassee Tiger Sharks were a minor league professional ice hockey team that played in Tallahassee, Florida, from 1994 to 2001 as members of the East Coast Hockey League. The Tiger Sharks home rink was the Tallahassee-Leon County Civic Cent ...
(ECHL) *2001–2002: Macon Whoopee (ECHL) *2002–2003: Lexington Men O' War (ECHL) *2005–present:
Utah Grizzlies The Utah Grizzlies are a professional ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at Maverik Center in West Valley City, Utah. Franchise history The current Utah Grizzlies franchise started in 1981 as the Nashville South Stars i ...
(ECHL)


Teams

* Salem Raiders (1981–1982) * Mohawk Valley Stars (1981–1985) * Baltimore Skipjacks (1981–1982) * Cape Cod Buccaneers (1981–1982) * Winston-Salem/Carolina Thunderbirds (1981–82, 1982–87) * Schenectady Chiefs (1981–1982) * Fitchburg Trappers (1981–1982) * Erie Golden Blades (1982–1987) * Virginia Raiders (1982–1983) * Hampton Roads Gulls (1982–1983) * Nashville South Stars (1982–1983) *
Virginia Lancers The Virginia Lancers were a minor league hockey team that played in several leagues from 1983 until 1990. Their home ice was the Vinton Sports Complex, which held 3400 people. Atlantic Coast Hockey League (1983–1987) The Virginia Lancers w ...
(1983–1987) * Pinebridge Bucks (1983–1985) * Birmingham Bulls (1983–1984), ''folded after 3 games'' *
Mohawk Valley Comets The Mohawk Valley Comets are a former professional ice hockey team based in Utica, New York. They were a member of the North American Hockey League The North American Hockey League (NAHL) is one of the top junior hockey leagues in the Uni ...
(1985–1987) * New York Slapshots (1985–1986) * Troy Slapshots (1986–1987), ''folded after 6 games''


Unnamed team

In December 1985, Recreational Ice of North Carolina (RINC) was granted an ACHL franchise. RINC general manager Bob Ohrablo had planned to put the franchise in
Asheville, North Carolina Asheville ( ) is a city in Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. Located at the confluence of the French Broad River, French Broad and Swannanoa River, Swannanoa rivers, it is the county seat of Buncombe County. It is the most populou ...
. The team was to play in a newly built arena, the 3200-seat Asheville Ice Garden. The arena was to be completed in October 1986 and the team was supposed to start play during the 1986–87 season. A name the team contest was to be held in February 1986, with the winner to be announced in March. It is unknown if a winner was ever announced.


Timeline


Awards


Bob Payne Trophy

The Bob Payne Trophy was awarded to the playoff champion at the end of each season. The trophy is named after Bob Payne, an executive with several teams in the Southern Hockey League and Eastern Hockey League. The trophy was loaned to the winning team for one year and was returned at the start of the following year's playoffs. The
Carolina Thunderbirds The Carolina Thunderbirds were a professional ice hockey team located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States. The Thunderbirds played their home games at the old Winston-Salem Memorial Coliseum before the arena was demolished in 1989. ...
were the only multiple winners of the trophy, having won it three of the six years, including back-to-back wins in 1984–85 and 1985–86. *1981–82: Mohawk Valley Stars *1982–83:
Carolina Thunderbirds The Carolina Thunderbirds were a professional ice hockey team located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States. The Thunderbirds played their home games at the old Winston-Salem Memorial Coliseum before the arena was demolished in 1989. ...
*1983–84: Erie Golden Blades *1984–85: Carolina Thunderbirds *1985–86: Carolina Thunderbirds *1986–87:
Virginia Lancers The Virginia Lancers were a minor league hockey team that played in several leagues from 1983 until 1990. Their home ice was the Vinton Sports Complex, which held 3400 people. Atlantic Coast Hockey League (1983–1987) The Virginia Lancers w ...


Regular season champions

*1981–82: Salem Raiders *1982–83:
Carolina Thunderbirds The Carolina Thunderbirds were a professional ice hockey team located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States. The Thunderbirds played their home games at the old Winston-Salem Memorial Coliseum before the arena was demolished in 1989. ...
*1983–84: Carolina Thunderbirds *1984–85: Carolina Thunderbirds *1985–86: Carolina Thunderbirds *1986–87:
Virginia Lancers The Virginia Lancers were a minor league hockey team that played in several leagues from 1983 until 1990. Their home ice was the Vinton Sports Complex, which held 3400 people. Atlantic Coast Hockey League (1983–1987) The Virginia Lancers w ...


ACHL All-Stars

*1981–82: Jim Stewart, G, Baltimore (1st team) *1982–83: Dave Watson, W, Carolina (1st team); Michel Lanouette, W, Carolina (1st team);
Ron Carter Ronald Levin Carter (born May 4, 1937) is an American jazz double bassist. His appearances on 2,221 recording sessions make him the most-recorded jazz bassist in history. He has won three Grammy Awards, and is also a Cello, cellist who has reco ...
, RW, Nashville/Virginia (2nd team);
Brian Carroll Brian Carroll (born July 20, 1981) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a defensive midfielder, notably appearing for D.C. United Columbus Crew and Philadelphia Union in Major League Soccer. He is the only player in ML ...
, W, Carolina (2nd team); Randy Irving, D, Carolina (2nd team) *1983–84: Pierre Hamel, G, Carolina (1st team); Randy Irving, D, Carolina (1st team);
Darrell May Darrell Kevin May (born June 13, 1972) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher. Career May's professional baseball career began when the Atlanta Braves drafted him in the 46th round of the 1992 Major League Baseball Draft. ...
, G, Erie (2nd team); Paul O'Neil, C, Virginia (2nd team); Frank Perkins, Head Coach, Pinebridge (1st team); Barry Tabobondung, D/LW, Erie (2nd team) *1984–85: Ray LeBlanc, G, Pinebridge (1st team); Bob Hagan, Carolina (1st team); Randy Irving, D, Carolina (1st team); Paul Mancini, LW, Erie (1st team); Barry Tabobondung, D/LW, Erie (1st team) *1985–86: Ray LeBlanc, G, Carolina (1st team); Paul Mancini, LW, Erie (1st team); Jim Cowell, Erie (2nd team); John Hill, Virginia (2nd team); Randy Irving, D, Carolina (2nd team) *1986–87: Pete DeArmas, RW, Virginia (1st team); Jeff Eatough, RW, Mohawk Valley (2nd team)


ACHL MVP

* 1981–82: Dave MacQueen, Salem Raiders * 1982–83: Rory Cava, Carolina Thunderbirds * 1983–84: Paul O'Neil, Virginia Lancers * 1984–85: Barry Tabobondung, Erie Golden Blades * 1985–86: Joe Curran, Carolina Thunderbirds * 1986–87: Pete DeArmas, Virginia Lancers


ACHL Playoff MVP

* 1984–85: Brian Carroll, Carolina Thunderbirds * 1985–86: Bob Doré, Carolina Thunderbirds


ACHL Rookie Of The Year

* 1984–85: Todd Bjorkstrand, Pinebridge Bucks; Kurt Rugenius, Mohawk Valley Stars (tie) * 1985–86: Bobby Williams, New York Slapshots * 1986–87: Scott Knutson, Carolina Thunderbirds; Scott Curwin, Virginia Lancers


Seasons

* 1981–82 ACHL season * 1982–83 ACHL season * 1983–84 ACHL season * 1984–85 ACHL season * 1985–86 ACHL season * 1986–87 ACHL season


References

{{Reflist


See also

*
List of ice hockey leagues This is a list of ice hockey sports league, leagues, both professional ice hockey, professional and amateur sports, amateur, from around the world; parentheses denote year of establishment and, where applicable, year of disestablishment. North A ...
*
Minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...
Defunct ice hockey leagues in the United States Sports leagues established in 1981 Sports leagues disestablished in 1987 1981 establishments in the United States 1987 disestablishments in the United States fr:Atlantic Coast Hockey League (2002)