Calgary Roughnecks facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Calgary Roughnecks

Sport	Box lacrosse
Founded	2002
League	National Lacrosse League
Location	Calgary, Alberta
Arena	Scotiabank Saddledome
Colours	Black, White, Grey
Owner	Calgary Sports and Entertainment
Head coach	Josh Sanderson
General manager	Mike Board
League titles	3 (2004, 2009, 2019)
Division titles	5 (2005, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013)
Local media	FAN 960
Current season

The Calgary Roughnecks are a professional box lacrosse team from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They play in the National Lacrosse League (NLL). Their home games are held at the Scotiabank Saddledome. The team's name comes from "roughnecks," who are workers on oil rigs in Alberta's oil and gas industry. Fans often call the team the Riggers.

The Roughnecks started in 2001 and played their first season in 2002. They made it to the playoffs every year from 2003 to 2016. They have won their division championship three times (2005, 2009, 2011). The team has also won the NLL Cup (the league championship) three times. All three of their championships were won at their home arena. They beat the Buffalo Bandits in 2004, the New York Titans in 2009, and the Bandits again in 2019.

Team History

How the Team Started

The National Lacrosse League announced on March 28, 2001, that a new team would be coming to Calgary. A group of four owners, led by Brad Banister, started the team. The idea came from a lacrosse tournament in Calgary a year earlier. Within eight weeks, Calgary became the tenth team in the NLL. The team cost $500,000 to join the league.

The team's name, "Roughnecks," was chosen to honor workers on oil rigs. Kevin Melnyk was first hired as coach and general manager. But before the season began, Brad Banister took over as general manager. He hired Chris Hall to be the coach. They wanted to build a team with more experienced players. They traded their first draft pick, Blaine Manning, for Calgary player Kaleb Toth. Toth was expected to be a star player for the team.

The Roughnecks played their first game on November 24, 2001, against the Montreal Express. They lost that game 32–17. This game set a league record for the most goals in one game (49). The Roughnecks lost again to Montreal five days later. Their first win came on December 2, when they beat the Ottawa Rebel 17–11 on the road. They won three of their next four games, including their first home win on December 14. However, the team lost its last nine games, finishing their first season with a record of 4 wins and 12 losses.

Winning Their First Championship

Calgary Roughnecks players in 2005.

In the 2002-2003 season, the Roughnecks improved their record to 9 wins and 7 losses. They had a strong home record of 6 wins and 2 losses. Tracey Kelusky led the team with 63 points, and Kaleb Toth was close behind with 61 points. The team made it to the playoffs, just as Brad Banister had promised. They played their first playoff game in Buffalo but lost 16-9 to the Buffalo Bandits.

The Roughnecks continued to get better in the 2003-2004 season, finishing with 10 wins and 6 losses. Lewis Ratcliff led the team with 71 points, and Tracey Kelusky had 69 points. This time, Banister predicted a home playoff game. The Roughnecks won their first playoff game on the road, beating the San Jose Stealth 15-14. They then beat the Colorado Mammoth 13-11, also on the road.

On May 7, 2004, the Roughnecks hosted the championship game. They played against the Buffalo Bandits, the team that had knocked them out of the playoffs the year before. Calgary won the Champion's Cup by beating the Bandits 14-11. A large crowd of 19,289 fans cheered them on at the Pengrowth Saddledome.

For the 2004-2005 season, Dave Bremner, a former Roughnecks player and assistant coach, became the new general manager. The Roughnecks hosted the NLL All-Star Game on February 26, 2005. This was the first NLL game shown on national TV in the United States. Roughnecks captain Kelusky won the Most Valuable Player award as the East team beat the West 11-10 in overtime. In the 2005 season, the Roughnecks finished first in their conference for the first time. This gave them a break in the first round of the playoffs. However, they lost the conference title game to the Arizona Sting 19-15 on April 30.

Winning Their Second Championship

Devan Wray lifts the Champion's Cup after the Roughnecks won in 2009.

Before the 2005-2006 season, the Roughnecks hired Kurt Silcott as their new general manager. He was the fourth GM in the team's history.

In the 2007 NLL season, the Roughnecks started strong but then lost three games in a row. Silcott then fired Chris Hall, who had been the only head coach the team ever had. Silcott coached one game himself. Then, on March 9, 2007, he hired former Roughnecks player Jeff Dowling as the new head coach. For the 2008 NLL season, Troy Cordingley became the head coach, and Terry Sanderson joined as an assistant coach.

In 2008, Calgary finished third in the West. They beat Colorado in the semi-final but lost to the Portland LumberJax in the division final. After this season, general manager Kurt Silcott was fired. Team President Brad Banister said it was because the team and Silcott wanted to go in different directions. Banister became the temporary general manager.

The 2009 season was the best in the team's history. They started with five wins in a row, a new team record. They finished the season with 12 wins and 4 losses. This made Calgary the top team in the entire NLL for the first time. In the playoffs, they beat the Colorado Mammoth and the San Jose Stealth. Then, they won the Champion's Cup by beating the New York Titans 12-10. This was their first NLL championship since 2004.

New Owners for the Team

Before the 2011 season, Banister announced that the team was for sale. He talked with the National Hockey League's (NHL) Calgary Flames, but they were not interested at first. During the season, Banister said the team was having money problems and might have to stop playing. He asked the business community in Calgary to help save the team.

This news led to a lot of talk about the team's future and if the Flames would buy it. Despite the uncertainty, the team played well, finishing with the best record in the NLL (11 wins and 5 losses). As they prepared to play the Colorado Mammoth in the playoffs, Banister asked fans for support. He even threatened to give up their right to host the next playoff game if fans didn't show up. The Roughnecks beat the Mammoth and played the next playoff game at home. However, they lost to the Washington Stealth 10–8 in an upset.

The team's future was decided after the season. On June 14, 2011, Banister announced that the Flames had bought the team. The Flames became the third NHL team to own an NLL team. As part of the deal, Banister helped with the changeover. Mike Board, a former writer for the Calgary Herald and Flames employee, became the new general manager.

Winning Their Third Championship

The 2019 season was a mix of ups and downs for the Roughnecks, and they finished with 10 wins and 8 losses. However, they ended the season with a winning streak. In the first round of the playoffs, they upset the San Diego Seals with a 12-11 win in San Diego. They then faced the Colorado Mammoth, who had also upset the defending champions. The Roughnecks beat the Mammoth 8-4 in the West Final in Calgary. This was one of the lowest-scoring playoff games in NLL history.

This win set up a best-of-three championship series against the Buffalo Bandits. The Roughnecks won both games. They won Game 1 in Buffalo 10-7 on May 18. Then, they won Game 2 in Calgary 14-13 in an exciting overtime game on May 25. Rhys Duch scored the winning goal in overtime.

Team Mascot

Howie, the honey badger, is the official mascot for the Calgary Roughnecks. The team introduced Howie at an event on January 26, 2012. They later announced his name after holding a contest. The team's first mascot was Derrick, who was an oilpatch rigger. Derrick has since returned and sometimes appears as a second mascot at games.

Current Roster

2023 Calgary Roughnecks season

All-Time Record

Playoff Results

Awards and Honours

Head Coaching History

Hall of Famers

• Steve Dietrich (Class of 2012)
• Chris Hall (Class of 2014)
• Tracy Kelusky (Class of 2016)
• Josh Sanderson (Class of 2016)

See also

• Calgary Roughnecks seasons