The Buffalo Bisons were a professional
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...
team representing
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...
, although they played home games in nearby
Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada, at the 5,000-seat
Peace Bridge Arena.
History
The Bisons were founded in the
Canadian Professional Hockey League for the 1928–29 season. The Bisons transferred to the
International Hockey League for the next season. Buffalo were IHL league champions in 1931–32 and 1932–33, winning the
F. G. "Teddy" Oke Trophy.
On March 17, 1936, with just nine days left in the season, the Bisons lost their home arena due to damage caused by thirteen inches of wet snow deposited by an early Spring storm. The arena (only eight years old at the time) was designed with a ''"Lamella Trussless"'' roof to improve indoor sightlines, and reduce support frames obstructing the view. The structure proved to be too weak and collapsed under the weight of the snow. The Bisons played the remainder of the 1935–36 season on the road. The arena was torned down and later replaced by Fort Erie Memorial Arena (c. 1947 and demolished 1977).
[https://exhibits.library.brocku.ca/s/the-queen-elizabeth-way/item/10456#?c=&m=&s=&cv=&xywh=-79%2C-1347%2C2848%2C4704 (aerial photo of Memorial Arena to the rightvof QEW as it approaches bridge)]
The Bisons joined the
International-American Hockey League for the
1936–37 season. The team started the season playing in an arena (likely Victoria Park Arena) in
Niagara Falls, Ontario
Niagara Falls is a city in Ontario, Canada, adjacent to, and named after, Niagara Falls. As of the Canada 2021 Census, 2021 census, the city had a population of 94,415. The city is located on the Niagara Peninsula along the western bank of the ...
. It soon became clear that they wouldn't be able to make a profit and pay players' salaries from ticket sales in the smaller facility. The club permanently ceased operations on December 6, 1936, after playing just eleven games with a record of 3–8–0.
The original Bisons were replaced in 1940 when the
Syracuse Stars relocated to Buffalo, becoming the
new Bisons team, after the construction of
Buffalo Memorial Auditorium
Buffalo Memorial Auditorium, colloquially known as The Aud, was a multipurpose indoor arena in downtown Buffalo, New York. Opened on October 14, 1940, it was home to the Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball, Canisius Golden Griffins (Nationa ...
on the American side of the border. The new Bisons played from 1940 to 1970, when the current
Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Con ...
were founded.
Season-by-season results
* Buffalo Bisons 1928–1929 (
Canadian Professional Hockey League)
* Buffalo Bisons 1929–1936 (
International Hockey League)
* Buffalo Bisons 1936 (
International-American Hockey League)
Regular season
† Points not awarded for tied games during 1934–35 International Hockey League season.
Playoffs
References
External links
History of the Buffalo (Ft. Erie) Bisons
* ttp://hockeyleaguehistory.com/International_American_Hockey_League_1936.htm International-American Hockey League, 1936
Sports in Buffalo, New York
Defunct ice hockey teams in New York (state)
1928 establishments in New York (state)
1936 disestablishments in New York (state)
Ice hockey clubs established in 1928
Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 1936
International Hockey League (1929–1936) teams
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