Portland Winterhawks

Portland Winterhawks
CityPortland, Oregon
LeagueWestern Hockey League
ConferenceWestern
DivisionU.S.
Founded1950
Home arenaVeterans Memorial Coliseum
ColorsBiscuit black, buzzer red, squall gray, celly gold, ice white
General managerMike Johnston
Head coachMike Johnston
Websitewww.winterhawks.com
Franchise history
1950–1976Edmonton Oil Kings
19762009Portland Winter Hawks
2009–presentPortland Winterhawks
Championships
Regular season titles4 (1979–80, 1997–98, 2012–13, 2019–20)
Playoff championshipsEd Chynoweth Cup
3 (1982, 1998, 2013)
Conference Championships
4 (2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14)
Memorial Cup
2 (1983, 1998)

The Portland Winterhawks are a junior ice hockey team based in Portland, Oregon, playing in the Western Hockey League (WHL), one of three leagues making up the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). Prior to the 2021–22 season, the Winterhawks split their home games between the Veterans Memorial Coliseum and the Moda Center, which they shared with the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

The Winterhawks are one of the most successful junior teams in terms of producing National Hockey League (NHL) alumni, a list that includes Sven Baertschi, Joe Morrow, Seth Jarvis, Ryan Johansen, Braydon Coburn, Adam Deadmarsh, Rob Klinkhammer, Brandon Dubinsky, Tyler Wotherspoon, Andrew Ference, Paul Gaustad, Jannik Hansen, Seth Jones, Brenden Morrow, Nino Niederreiter, Glen Wesley and Hall of Famers Mark Messier, Marian Hossa, Mike Vernon, and Cam Neely.

The Winterhawks have won the Ed Chynoweth Cup three times and the Memorial Cup twice in five appearances. The team has been in Portland since 1976–77.

History

The Winterhawks logo from 1976 to 2021

The Winterhawks were founded in 1950 as the Edmonton Oil Kings. The franchise moved to Portland on June 11, 1976. The team, owned by Brian C. Shaw, made the move citing a much cheaper stadium deal in Portland along with low attendance due to the presence of a professional team in Edmonton. In their first season in Portland, the club would lose 7–2 to a travelling Russian club in an exhibition match watched by more than 5,000. Following the relocation to Portland, the Winterhawks became the southernmost franchise in the Canadian Hockey League.[citation needed]

Sven Baertschi previously played for the Winterhawks.

On November 28, 2012, the WHL announced sanctions against the Winterhawks for a series of player benefits violations over the four previous seasons. As punishment for the violations WHL Commissioner Ron Robison suspended the team from participation in the first five rounds of the 2013 WHL Bantam Draft and forfeiture of their first round picks from the 2014 to 2017 WHL Bantam Drafts and were fined $200,000. The WHL also suspended General Manager and Head Coach Mike Johnston for the remainder of the 2012–13 season, including the 2013 WHL playoffs.

On May 12, 2013, the Winterhawks defeated the Edmonton Oil Kings 5–1 in Game 6 to become the 2012–13 WHL champions. On April 25, 2014, the Winterhawks defeated the Kelowna Rockets 7–3 to win their fourth-consecutive Western Conference Championship.[citation needed]

The franchise filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy in May 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Portland, Oregon. The Winterhawks were financially stable, but owner Bill Gallacher had to sell the franchise in order to repay other debts.

The WHL Board of Governors has approved Winterhawks Sports Group (WSG) as the new owners of the Portland Winterhawks franchise effective January 1, 2021. WSG is led by Michael Kramer and Kerry Preete, who will also be the managing partners. Along with the Winterhawks franchise, WSG has also acquired the operations of the Winterhawks Skating Center in Beaverton, OR and all Winterhawks Junior Hockey programs.

Prior to the start of the 2021-22 WHL season, the Winterhawks ownership announced the team would be returning to the Veterans Memorial Coliseum full-time.

Uniforms, logos and mascot

The team was known as the Winter Hawks until May 2009, when it issued a press release that "the space...announced its retirement" and that the team was renaming itself the Winterhawks.

Prior to their 2021 rebranding, the Winterhawks wore jerseys with a logo similar to those of the Chicago Blackhawks of the NHL, causing some to erroneously assume that the Winterhawks are a minor league farm team of the Blackhawks. In actuality, the jerseys originally worn by the first Winterhawks team were a used set of Chicago jerseys obtained through connections between the owners of the two teams. In early photos, the old Chicago jerseys are identifiable by the letter "C" with crossed tomahawks on the shoulder crest. The Winterhawks eventually changed the "C" to a "P".[citation needed]

Portland Winterhawks vs. Tri-City Americans, January 24, 2016

The team mascot of the Winterhawks is a white bird with multicolored tail and wing feathers, named Tom-A-Hawk. Tom-A-Hawk was introduced in 1999–2000. He wears jersey number 00. Tom-A-Hawk's main rival is Cool Bird of the Seattle Thunderbirds. Tom-A-Hawk announced in January 2019 that he would retire from injuries. A new mascot was introduced, Tommy.[citation needed]

On July 14, 2021, the Winterhawks announced their new identity and that they would be moving from the similar looking Chicago Blackhawks of the NHL logo, to a "Winterhawk". The Winterhawks organization partnered with local apparel company Portland Gear on the rebrand to help create the new primary logos, secondary logos, as well as the word marks.

Championships

WHL Championship history

Memorial Cup finals history

  • 1983: Win, 8–3 vs Oshawa
  • 1998: Win, 4–3 OT vs Guelph
  • 2013: loss, 4–6 vs Halifax

Season-by-season record

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against

Season GP W L T OTL GF GA Points Finish Playoffs
1976–77 72 36 29 7 - 359 294 79 3rd West Lost semi-final
1977–78 72 41 20 11 - 361 296 93 1st West Eliminated in West Division round robin
1978–79 72 49 10 13 - 432 265 111 1st West Lost final
1979–80 72 53 18 1 - 398 293 107 1st West Eliminated in West Division round robin
1980–81 72 56 15 1 - 443 266 113 2nd West Lost West Division final
1981–82 72 46 24 2 - 380 323 94 1st West Won championship
1982–83 72 50 22 0 - 495 387 100 1st West Lost final; Won Memorial Cup
1983–84 72 33 39 0 - 430 449 66 3rd West Lost West Division final
1984–85 72 27 44 1 - 365 442 55 4th West Lost West Division semi-final
1985–86 72 47 24 1 - 438 348 95 2nd West Lost West Division final; Memorial Cup host
1986–87 72 47 23 2 - 439 355 96 2nd West Lost final
1987–88 72 24 45 3 - 328 449 51 6th West Out of playoffs
1988–89 72 40 28 4 - 408 395 84 1st West Lost final
1989–90 72 24 45 3 - 322 426 51 5th West Out of playoffs
1990–91 72 17 53 2 - 298 450 36 5th West Out of playoffs
1991–92 72 31 37 4 - 314 342 66 5th West Lost West Division quarter-final
1992–93 72 45 24 3 - 343 275 93 1st West Lost final
1993–94 72 49 22 1 - 392 260 99 2nd West Lost West Division final
1994–95 72 23 43 6 - 240 308 52 6th West Lost West Division semi-final
1995–96 72 30 39 3 - 283 301 63 6th West Lost West Division quarter-final
1996–97 72 46 21 5 - 300 196 97 1st West Lost West Division quarter-final
1997–98 72 53 14 5 - 342 203 111 1st West Won championship and Memorial Cup
1998–99 72 23 36 13 - 215 278 59 5th West Lost West Division quarter-final
1999–00 72 16 49 7 0 173 296 39 7th West Out of playoffs
2000–01 72 37 27 5 3 254 237 82 2nd West Lost final
2001–02 72 36 25 5 6 269 243 83 1st U.S. Lost Western Conference quarter-final
2002–03 72 19 40 8 5 192 243 51 3rd U.S. Lost Western Conference quarter-final
2003–04 72 34 29 6 3 199 206 77 2nd U.S. Lost Western Conference quarter-final
2004–05 72 35 27 5 5 204 198 80 2nd U.S. Lost Western Conference quarter-final
2005–06 72 32 32 3 5 204 258 72 3rd U.S. Lost Western Conference semi-final
2006–07 72 17 52 1 2 146 316 37 5th U.S. Out of playoffs
2007–08 72 11 58 2 1 132 318 25 5th U.S. Out of playoffs
2008–09 72 19 48 3 2 176 288 43 5th U.S. Out of playoffs
Season GP W L T OTL GF GA Points Finish Playoffs
2009–10 72 44 25 2 1 266 241 91 4th U.S. Lost Western Conference semi-final
2010–11 72 50 19 0 3 303 227 103 1st U.S. Lost final
2011–12 72 49 19 3 1 328 229 102 2nd U.S. Lost final
2012–13 72 57 12 1 2 334 169 117 1st U.S. Won championship; Lost Memorial Cup final
2013–14 72 54 13 2 3 338 207 113 1st U.S. Lost final
2014–15 72 43 23 2 4 287 237 92 2nd U.S. Lost Western Conference final
2015–16 72 34 31 6 1 228 227 75 3rd U.S. Lost Western Conference quarter-final
2016–17 72 40 28 1 3 278 256 84 4th U.S. Lost Western Conference semi-final
2017–18 72 44 22 1 5 274 214 94 2nd U.S. Lost Western Conference semi-final
2018–19 68 40 22 3 3 258 210 86 3rd U.S. Lost Western Conference quarter-final
2019–20 63 45 11 3 4 270 164 97 1st U.S. No playoffs due to COVID-19 pandemic
2020–21 24 13 8 3 0 96 72 29 2nd U.S. No playoffs were held
2021–22 68 47 16 3 2 298 192 99 2nd U.S. Lost Western Conference semi-final
2022–23 68 40 20 5 3 244 218 88 2nd U.S. Lost Western Conference semi-final

Players

Current roster

Updated October 28, 2023.

# Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace Drafted
26 Czech Republic Marek Alscher D R 19 2021 Kladno, Czech Republic 2022, 93rd Overall, FLA
36 Canada Luke Brunen G L 17 2021 Warman, Saskatchewan Eligible 2024
90 Canada Diego Buttazzoni C L 17 2022 Langley, British Columbia Eligible 2024
73 Canada Luca Cagnoni D L 18 2020 Burnaby, British Columbia 2023, 123rd Overall, SJS
19 Canada Kyle Chyzowski (A) C L 19 2019 Surrey, British Columbia Undrafted
29 Canada Hudson Darby RW R 16 2021 Swift Current, Saskatchewan Eligible 2025
71 Canada Joshua Davies C L 19 2023 Airdrie, Alberta 2022, 186th Overall, FLA
8 Canada Braeden Jockims RW R 18 2023 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Undrafted
93 Canada Nicholas Johnson C R 18 2020 Calgary, Alberta Undrafted
16 Canada Gabe Klassen (C) LW L 20 2018 Prince Albert, Saskatchewan Undrafted
18 Canada Kyle McDonough C L 16 2022 Langdon, Alberta Eligible 2025
23 Canada Ryan Miller RW L 16 2022 Medicine Hat, Alberta Eligible 2025
2 Canada Josh Mori D L 19 2019 Richmond, British Columbia Undrafted
72 Canada Marcus Nguyen RW R 19 2019 Calgary, Alberta Undrafted
92 United States Jack O'Brien (A) C L 20 2018 Denver, Colorado Undrafted
14 Canada Rhett Ravndahl D R 18 2020 Birch Hills, Saskatchewan Undrafted
77 United States Luke Schelter RW R 19 2019 Centennial, Colorado Undrafted
20 Canada Aiden Sotas C R 18 2020 Birtle, Manitoba Undrafted
59 Canada Carter Sotheran D R 18 2020 Sanford, Manitoba 2023, 135th Overall, PHI
31 Czech Republic Jan Špunar G L 19 2022 Olomouc, Czech Republic Undrafted
13 United States James Stefan RW R 20 2018 Laguna Beach, California Undrafted
91 Canada Alex Thompson D R 17 2021 Winnipeg, Manitoba Eligible 2024
43 Canada Ryder Thompson (A) D L 19 2019 Russell, Manitoba Undrafted
39 Canada Tyson Yaremko RW L 18 203 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Undrafted
28 Canada Josh Zakreski LW R 17 2020 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Eligible 2024

Hall of Famers

Three former Portland Winter Hawks alumni are inductees to the Hockey Hall of Fame(Mark Messier, Cam Neely, Marian Hossa). This is a list of former players inducted into the Portland Winter Hawks franchise Hall of Fame.

Portland Winter Hawks franchise Hall of Fame inductees
Hall of Fame players
Ken Hodge
Todd Robinson
Dennis Holland
Cam Neely
Brent Peterson
Glen Wesley
Andrew Ference
Grant Sasser
Marian Hossa
Randy Heath
Brenden Morrow
Ken Yaremchuk

Bold = member of the Hockey Hall of Fame

Retired Numbers

Portland Winter Hawks retired numbers
No. Player Position Career No. retirement
21 Cam Neely RW 1982–1984 March 18, 2023

NHL alumni

List of Portland Winterhawks alumni who have graduated to play in the National Hockey League.

First round draft picks

Players chosen in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft:

Team records

Team records for a single season
Statistic Total Season
Most points 117 2012–13
Most wins 57 2012–13
Fewest 1st round draft picks 0 2015–16
Fewest goals for 146 2006–07
Most goals against 450 1990–91
Individual player records for a single season
Statistic Player Total Season
Most goals Randy Heath; Dennis Holland 82 1982–83; 1988–89
Most assists Jim Benning 111 1980–81
Most points Dennis Holland 167 1988–89
Most points, rookie Cam Neely 120 1982–83
Most points, defenceman Jim Benning 139 1980–81
Best GAA (Goalie) Blake Grenier 2.06 2004–05
Goalies = minimum 1500 minutes played
Individual player records for a career
Statistic Player Total Season
Most games played Troy Rutkowski 351 2012–13
Most goals Dennis Holland 179
Most assists Todd Robinson 325
Most points Todd Robinson 470
Most points, defenceman
Best GAA (Goalie) Mac Carruth 2.85
Goalies = minimum 1500 minutes played

During the 2012–13 season, Winterhawks captain Troy Rutkowski established the new team record for most regular games played as a Winterhawk. His career total of 351 games surpassed the previous mark of 328 games set by Kevin Haupt in the 1998–99 season.


This page was last updated at 2023-11-14 13:42 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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