Syracuse Crunch facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Syracuse Crunch
City	Syracuse, New York
League	American Hockey League
Conference	Eastern
Division	North
Founded	1992
Home arena	Upstate Medical University Arena (Capacity: 5,800)
Colors	Blue, white, silver, black
General manager	Joel Bouchard
Head coach	Joel Bouchard
Captain	Vacant
Media	Syracuse Post-Standard ESPN Radio 97.7 & 100.1 AHL.TV (Internet) CW 6 (Televised home games)
Affiliate(s)	Tampa Bay Lightning (NHL) Orlando Solar Bears (ECHL)
Franchise history
1992–1994	Hamilton Canucks
1994–present	Syracuse Crunch
Championships
Division Championships	4 (2001–02, 2012–13, 2016–17, 2018–19)
Conference Championships	2 (2012–13, 2016–17)
Current season

The Syracuse Crunch is a professional ice hockey team from Syracuse, New York. They play in the American Hockey League (AHL). The team is connected to the National Hockey League's Tampa Bay Lightning. Their home games are played at the Upstate Medical University Arena.

Team History: The Syracuse Crunch Story

The Syracuse Crunch team started in 1992 as the Hamilton Canucks. They were linked to the Vancouver Canucks NHL team. The Hamilton Canucks played in Hamilton, Ontario, for two seasons.

Becoming the Crunch: Early Years (1994–2000)

In 1994, the team moved to upstate New York. Fans voted to rename the team the "Crunch." The Crunch played their first game in Syracuse on September 30, 1994. It was a 7–7 tie against the Albany River Rats. Lonny Bohonos scored the first goal for the Crunch. Their first win in Syracuse was on October 2, 1994, beating the Hershey Bears 4–1.

The Crunch made the playoffs in their second season (1995–96). They reached the 1996 conference finals but lost to the Rochester Americans. The team was very popular, leading the league in sold-out games in 1996–97 and 1997–98. In 1997, they also partnered with the Pittsburgh Penguins NHL team.

The 1998–99 season was tough for the Crunch. They had their worst record ever, winning only 18 games. On November 25, 1998, they lost 14–2 to the Providence Bruins. This was their biggest loss in team history. The Penguins stopped being their partner after this season.

On October 30, 1999, goalie Christian Bronsard scored a goal for the Crunch. He was only the fourth goalie in AHL history to do this. The Crunch made the playoffs in 1999–2000, their last season with Vancouver, but lost in the first round.

Partnership with Columbus (2000–2010)

After the 1999–2000 season, the Crunch became partners with the new Columbus Blue Jackets team. They made the playoffs in their first season with Columbus. In the 2001–02 season, the Crunch won their first division title. Goalie Jean-Francois Labbe helped them achieve this. They also won the Western Conference regular season title. They swept the Philadelphia Phantoms in the playoffs but lost to the Chicago Wolves.

On March 17, 2002, the Crunch played the "St. Patrick's Day Massacre" game against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Both teams had many penalty minutes, especially for fighting. The Crunch won the game 4–0.

In the 2004 playoffs, the Crunch lost a series after being ahead 3–1. This happened against the Rochester Americans. The 2005–06 season was one of the Crunch's best. They scored a team record of 272 goals. They also won 47 games, tying a franchise record. Andy Delmore won the Eddie Shore Award for best defenseman.

In the 2007–08 season, the Crunch had an amazing 15-game winning streak. They also went 23 games without losing in regulation. They beat the Manitoba Moose in the playoffs but then lost to the Toronto Marlies.

The Crunch played in the first outdoor game in AHL history on February 20, 2010. It was called the Mirabito Outdoor Classic. They played against the Binghamton Senators at the New York State Fairgrounds. The game set an AHL attendance record with 21,508 fans. Syracuse won 2–1. The Crunch missed the playoffs in their last two seasons with the Blue Jackets.

Partnership with Anaheim (2010–2012)

The Crunch partnered with the Anaheim Ducks for two seasons. They made the playoffs in the 2011–12 season but lost in the first round. This partnership helped develop future NHL players like Kyle Palmieri, Nick Bonino, and Patrick Maroon.

Partnership with Tampa Bay (2012–Present)

Early Success and First Finals (2012–2015)

The Crunch started a new partnership with the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2012–13 season. Many future NHL stars played for the Crunch that year. These included Tyler Johnson, Alex Killorn, Radko Gudas, and Ondrej Palat. Coach Jon Cooper started with the Crunch but moved to the Lightning mid-season. Rob Zettler became the new head coach.

This partnership brought immediate success. The team won its first division championship in 11 years. Their offense was strong, scoring a league-leading 247 goals. Tyler Johnson won several awards, including the Les Cunningham Award for MVP. He was the first MVP in Crunch history.

The team won seven straight playoff games, sweeping two rounds. They reached the 2013 Calder Cup finals for the first time ever. They played against the Grand Rapids Griffins but lost the series in six games.

The Crunch didn't do as well in the next season, missing the playoffs. However, more future NHL players like Nikita Kucherov and Jonathan Marchessault played for them. On November 22, 2014, the Crunch set a new indoor hockey attendance record in the U.S. with 30,715 fans at the Carrier Dome. They beat the Utica Comets 2–1.

Ben Groulx Era and Second Finals (2016–2023)

The Crunch won another division title in the 2016–17 season. They reached the Calder Cup finals again, facing the Grand Rapids Griffins. The Griffins won the series 4–2. The Crunch also lost a record eight road games during those playoffs.

On May 5, 2018, the Crunch played their longest game ever. It lasted 95 minutes and 10 seconds, a double-overtime loss to the Toronto Marlies.

The 2018–19 season was the Crunch's best during the 76-game schedule. They tied their team record with 102 points and 47 wins. Several players won awards, including Edward Pasquale and Carter Verhaeghe. The Crunch also got their 900th franchise win. They won their third division title with Tampa Bay but lost in the first round of the playoffs.

The 2019–20 season was stopped early due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The next season also started late. The Crunch even had a temporary second NHL partner, the Florida Panthers, for one season.

Syracuse Hockey Hall of Fame

On November 5, 2024, the Crunch announced they were creating the Syracuse Hockey Hall of Fame. The first people to be honored were Crunch owner Howard Dolgon, Ed Kochian, Alan Taylor, Brian Elwell, and former Crunch player Scott Walker. They were officially inducted on November 23, 2024.

Syracuse Hockey History

Many hockey teams have played in Syracuse over the years. Here are some of them:

• Syracuse Stars (1930–1936)
• Syracuse Stars (1936–1940) – This team was the first to win the Calder Cup in 1936–37.
• Syracuse Warriors (1951–1954)
• Syracuse Eagles (1974–75)
• Syracuse Firebirds (1979–80)
• Syracuse Braves (1962–1963)
• Syracuse Blazers (1967–1973)
• Syracuse Blazers (1973–1977)
• Syracuse Condors (1977–78) – This team never played a game.
• Syracuse Hornets (1980–1981) – They only played ten games.
• Syracuse Jr. Crunch/Syracuse Stars (1996–2005)

Team Logos

The Crunch has had different mascots and logos over the years. Owner Howard Dolgon created the superhero mascot Crunchman for the team's first season in 1994. In 2000, when the Crunch partnered with the Columbus Blue Jackets, Crunchman was replaced by Al the Ice Gorilla. Al was the mascot until 2012. When the team partnered with Tampa Bay, Crunchman returned.

• 

  Original Crunch logo
  1994–2000

• 

  Second Crunch logo
  2000–2010

• 

  Third Crunch logo
  2010–2012

• 

  Current Crunch logo
  2012–present

• 

  5th Anniversary logo
  1998-99

• 

  10th Anniversary logo
  2003-04

• 

  25th Anniversary logo
  2018-19

Players and Coaches

Team Captains

Head Coaches

Current Coaching Staff

• Joel Bouchard — Head coach
• J. D. Forrest — Assistant coach
• A. J. MacLean — Assistant coach
• Maxime Vaillancourt — Goaltending coach
• Jacob Wheeler — Video coach

Honored Numbers

The Crunch has honored some numbers, but they are not officially retired.

• Number 14 was honored for fan favorite "Big Bad" John Badduke. It is still used by other players.
• During the 2008–09 season, number 7 was temporarily honored for Paul Newman. He played a hockey coach in the movie Slap Shot, which was partly filmed in Syracuse. This number is also still used by players.
• On March 26, 2016, the Crunch honored number 4 for Dolph Schayes. He was a famous basketball player for the Syracuse Nationals. This number is also still used by players.

Notable Crunch Alumni

Many players who later became famous in the NHL played for the Syracuse Crunch. Here are some of them:

Team Records and Leaders

These records are from the end of the 2023–24 AHL regular season.

Single Season Records

• Goals: Lonny Bohonos, 40 (1995–96)
• Assists: Alex Barré-Boulet, 60 (2022–23)
• Points: Alex Barre-Boulet, 84 (2022–23)
• Penalty minutes: Jody Shelley, 357 (2000–01)
• Wins (Goalie): Corey Hirsch, 30 (1997–98)
• Goals Against Average (GAA): Jean-Francois Labbe, 2.18 (2001–02)
• Save Percentage (SV%): Jean-Francois Labbe, .928 (2001–02)

Single Playoff Records

These records are for players who played at least 10 playoff games.

• Goals: Lonny Bohonos, 14 (1996)
• Assists: Ondřej Palát, 19 (2013)
• Points: Cory Conacher, 28 (2017)
• Penalty minutes: Richard Panik, 59 (2013)
• Wins (Goalie): Cedrick Desjardins (2013) and Mike McKenna (2017), 13
• Goals Against Average (GAA): Jean-Francois Labbe, 1.91 (2002)
• Save Percentage (SV%): Jean-Francois Labbe, .939 (2002)

Career Records

• Career games: Daniel Walcott, 433
• Career goals: Alex Barre-Boulet, 113
• Career assists: Alex Barre-Boulet, 189
• Career points: Alex Barre-Boulet, 302
• Career penalty minutes: Jeremy Reich, 820
• Career goaltending wins: Karl Goehring, 78
• Career shutouts: Jean-Francois Labbe and Karl Goehring, 11

Team Trophies and Awards

Award Winners