The loss, by a 4-1 score, brought to a screeching halt any hopes that fans of the Hawks had of seeing their heroes skate around the New Haven Coliseum holding the Calder Cup, symbolic of the AHL championship.
Of course, as long as New Haven owner Peter Shipman doesn't decide to suspend operations or move the franchise--not totally out of the question, as the team did lose money this season--there will be hockey at the Coliseum come October. The New Haven franchise of the AHL will be known as the Senators, in honor of its parent club, the NHL-expansion Ottawa Senators. Apparently, New Haven will wear uniforms similar to those of the parent club, with a color scheme of red, white and black...
Red, white and black? Red, white and BLACK? They try to torture me by going one stinking color away from dressing in the colors of the Hawks of the mid-1980s? The Hawks I stood by? The Hawks I knew and loved?
Why couldn't they keep the old nickname but change the colors? I doubt that anyone who remembers the pre-1988 sweaters could deny that those jerseys, with black replacing blue throughout the sweater, would still look terrific?
Okay, end of digression. It was definitely a successful season in New Haven. Despite the disadvantages of being an independent team, without a parent club to supply players, the conglomeration of free agents and supposed castoffs pulled together and finished third in the AHL's Northern Division. It was a roller-coaster ride; despite a terrible start, the team came back to make a run at first place before settling to its final position.
Free agents Stan Drulia and John Anderson are possible League All-Stars; Sportschannel's Rinkside cable TV program named Anderson its League MVP choice, and called New Haven coach Doug Carpenter its choice as Coach of the Year [note--after publication, the AHL agreed].
But next year, unless Ottawa signs Drulia and Anderson and names Carpenter as its New Haven head coach, none of the three will see Coliseum ice as members of the home team.
Nighthawk president and general manager Pat Hickey has moved on to Hamilton, ON, where he will run and co-own an expansion AHL franchise. If Carpenter and Anderson do not return as well, the team will not have retained its three most important management personnel--its manager, its coach and its assistant coach and captain. In fact, most of the players--if not all--will not be back next season.
So no matter what, the organization will be almost totally different. The change of nickname essentially clinches the fact that the New Haven Nighthawks as we knew them are gone, dead and replaced by some guys named Senators.
So I guess I'm now a true Binghamton Rangers fan. Hey, loyalty to your hometown's organization should always take precedence over the team from the place where you happen to live. Rooting was easy when the Hawks were a Ranger farm team, but now, well, it's been Bingo time for two years now, really.
That doesn't mean, though, that I couldn't jump back on the New Haven bandwagon down the stretch this season. I followed the Hawks closely down the stretch, calling the Hawks hotline (468-5463: HOT-LINE) after every game for the results. I studied AHL schedules in the Register to see who Adirondack, Capital District and Springfield were playing and what a Red Wing, Islander or Indian win would mean to New Haven's chances at first place.
And then playoff time rolled around, and they lost two in Glens Falls, and they came home to win Game Three, and then came April 17, 1992, Good Friday. Wanted to go, but couldn't get a ride. And the Yankees were on WAVZ, getting blown out by or blowing out Cleveland (it doesn't matter which). The New Haven-Adirondack game would be broadcast on tape delay. When the potential ride came home too late to get to the game, I took the car into the driveway and played with the digital tuner, hoping to pull in a Glens Falls station. No luck.
Figured it was over at 10:30. Watched Channel 8 news at 11:20. Heard the news: 3-3, double overtime. Went back to the car. Flipped more feverishly. Found a hockey game--unfortunately, Kalamazoo-Fort Wayne (I'm serious). Gave up. And at 12:30, tuning in WELI, heard the news: Adirondack 4, New Haven 3.
And the next night it was over. The New Haven Nighthawks of the American Hockey League played their last game ever.
Gone were the Hawks. Gone was the team of Mark Fitzpatrick, Petr Prajsler, Robbie Ftorek, Rick Dudley, Steve Duchesne, Billy O'Dwyer, Sylvain Couturier, Chris McSorley, Glenn Healy, Ron Scott, Hubie McDonough (Playoff MVP, 1989), Rollie Melanson, Lyle Phair, Mark Lofthouse, Chris Panek, Kenny "Bomber" Baumgartner, Mario Chitaroni...
It just made no sense to kill off a perfectly good team.
Go Hawks! And goodbye.
Get your own Free Home Page