Friday Flashback: Huntsville Channel Cats

Team:  Huntsville Channel Cats

Location:  Huntsville, Alabama

Sport:  Ice Hockey

Leagues:  Southern Hockey League (SHL), Central Hockey League (CHL), South East Hockey League (SEHL)

Years Active:  1995-2000, 2003-2004

Home Arena: Von Braun Center

Head Coaches: Larry Floyd (1995-1998), Chris Stewart (1998-1999), Pat Bingham (1999-2000), John Gibson (2003-2004)

Best Players: Chris George, Jonathan DuBois, Phil Daigle, Mike Dugurse, John Gibson, Derek Puppa

Huntsville, Alabama was awarded a franchise in the newly established Southern Hockey League (SHL) for the 1995-96 season.  The SHL had evolved from the Sunshine Hockey League which had featured teams from Florida.  Huntsville was one of the two non-Florida team in the new SHL in their first season.  The Channel Cats won their first game on October 26, 1995, in a 4-3 loss to the Lakeland Prowlers.  Although the Channel Cats finished the regular season in fourth place, they knocked off the Prowlers in the semifinals then won the league championship over the Winston-Salem Mammoths.

The SHL folded after the season and the Channel Cats moved to the Central Hockey League (CHL) where they played for four seasons winning the championship in 1999 over the Oklahoma City Blazers.  

The Channel Cats were mostly successful on the ice as they finished first place three times and only had one losing season.

The franchise had some financial issues off the ice when businessman John Cherney bought the team and attempted to give it a new identity by changing the team's name to Tornado instead of Channel Cats.  The change in identity was not a hit with the fans and the team dropped in attendance.  There were also concerns mounting over sharing the arena with the Alabama-Huntsville Chargers hockey team and the new Huntsville Flight basketball team.  Cherney threatened to move the team to Madison which is a suburb of Huntsville.  

In 2003, a new league named the South East Hockey League (SEHL) was formed and Cherney inquired with fans if they wanted to play as the Tornado or Channel Cats.  The Channel Cats won out and returned for the 2003-2004 season would with the league championship in the league's only season.  The league and the team folded.

Huntsville Channel Cats Seasons:

1995-1996 

25 Wins, 31 Losses, 2 Ties (4th Place)

Defeated Lakeland Prowlers 3 games to 2 in league semifinals

Defeated Winston-Salem Mammoths 4 games to 1 in league finals

1996-1997

39 Wins, 24 Losses, 3 Ties (1st Place in Eastern Division)

Defeated Columbus Cottonmouths 3 games to 0 in league quarterfinals

Lost to Memphis Riverkings 4 games to 2 in league semifinals

1997-1998

40 Wins, 22 Losses, 8 Ties (3rd place in Eastern Division)

Lost to Nashville Ice Flyers 3 games to 0 in league quarterfinals

1998-1999

47 Wins, 19 Losses, 0 Ties (1st place in Eastern Division)

Defeated Macon Whoopee 3 games to 0 in league quarterfinals

Defeated Columbus Cottonmouths 4 games to 2 in league semifinals

Defeated Oklahoma City Blazers 4 games to 2 in league finals

1999-2000

37 Wins, 27 Losses, 0 Ties (3rd place in Eastern Division)

Lost to Columbus Cottonmouths 3 games to 2 in league quarterfinals

2003-2004

43 Wins, 13 Losses, 0 Ties (1st place)

Defeated Knoxville Ice Bears 3 games to 0 in league finals

Fun Facts

• The trophy for the 1996 SHL championships was an old-style metal milk can called "The Can".
• Channel Cats won a championship in each league it was a member of.
• Huntsville was referred to as "the hockey capital of the south"
• Condredge Holloway served as general manager for the Channel Cats in their first few seasons.  Holloway had played college football at the University of Tennessee and later to a Hall-of-Fame career in the Canadian Football League.