Belfast Giants

Belfast Giants
City Belfast, Northern Ireland
League Elite Ice Hockey League
Founded 2000
Home arena SSE Arena Belfast
Colours

White, red & teal

              
Owner(s) The Odyssey Trust
Head coach Canada Derrick Walser
Captain Canada Adam Keefe
Website www.belfastgiants.com
Franchise history
2000–present Belfast Giants
Championships
Regular season titles 2001–02, 2005–06, 2011–12, 2013-14
Playoff championships 2003, 2010
Knockout Cups 2008–09
Challenge Cups 2008–09

The Belfast Giants are an ice hockey team from Belfast, Northern Ireland that compete in the Elite Ice Hockey League. Home games are played at the 7,200-capacity SSE Arena Belfast (formerly the Odyssey Arena).

Currently the Belfast Giants are sponsored by Stena Line and are known as 'The Stena Line Belfast Giants'. The previous major sponsors were Aer Lingus, LBM, Coors Fine Light Beer and Harp Lager who sponsored the Belfast Giants in sequence since their inception.

History

The Giants had originated in 2000 and played their first match against ayr on the 1st December. Initially members of the now defunct Superleague, the Giants won the championship in 2001–02 and were play-off champions in 2002–03. With the Superleague's demise, there were concerns that the Giants would not survive because of major financial problems which had developed. Running up debts of £600,000 and facing the threat of liquidation creditors voted to accept 20p in the pound allowing the club to continue. One company was believed to be owed nearly £65,000.[1]

However, with the creation of the new Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) for the 2003–04 season, the Giants survived. The Giants finished 4th in the league's first season, but failed to reach the post-season play-offs..

The Giants finished runners up in the 2004–05 season behind the Coventry Blaze but were winners of the Cross-over League Cup, which was played with teams from the BNL.

In 2005, The Giants unveiled NHL All-Star and Olympic Gold Medal winner, Theo Fleury who made his debut against the Edinburgh Capitals. The Giants won 11–2, with Fleury scoring a hat-trick. With 4 additional assists and a fight, he was named man of the match.

Besides Fleury, several other players who previously played in the NHL have played for the Giants; Paul Kruse, Jason Ruff, Paxton Schulte, and Jason Bowen, Bowen and Kruse having played almost 600 games between them. Kevin Westgarth is the latest incumbent from the NHL to don the Giants jersey, arriving from the Calgary Flames after several seasons in North America's top league.

Team culture

With an average attendance of around 4,744, the Giants are one of ten Elite league ice hockey squads in the UK. They are the 2nd best supported team in the UK and 67th in Europe.[2]

Sectarianism had long been seen as a significant problem in some sports in Northern Ireland. When the club was established, the Belfast Giants were keen that the club not attach itself to a particular faith or community, instead wanting to represent Belfast as a whole. A number of policies were subsequently introduced to try to ensure this. Particular clothing (such as association football replica shirts), which might have displayed a person's political or religious affiliation, were banned and flags were not permitted to be brought into the arena. The national anthem of the United Kingdom, traditionally played before games at other arenas in the Elite League, is not played before Giants games. These policies have been successful and the Giants have quickly built a large and enthusiastic fanbase who did not have to fear the sectarianism that marred other sports in Northern Ireland.

Facts

Sponsors: Stena Line (Main Sponsor 2011–present)
Founded: 2000 into the British Ice Hockey Superleague
Primary Arena: SSE Arena Belfast, (capacity 8,000)
Training Arena: Dundonald International Ice Bowl
Uniform Colours: White, Red, Teal, Black
Logo Design: shows Finn McCool with a hockey stick.
Mascot: Finn McCool and Subman (Sponsorship Deal with Subway)
Motto: "In the land of the Giants, everyone is equal".

2016–17 roster

Last Updated: 05 September 2016

Netminders[3]
Number Player Place/Date of Birth Catches Acquired Joined from
31 Stephen Murphy[4] Scotland Dundee, Scotland
11 December 1981		 L 2009 Manchester Phoenix (EIHL)
1 Jackson Whistle[5] Canada Kelowna, Canada
9 June 1995		 L 2016 Kelowna Rockets (WHL)
35 Andrew Dickson[6] Northern Ireland Ballymoney, Northern Ireland
2 November 1987		 L 2011 Invicta Dynamos (ENL)
Defence[3]
Number Player Place/Date of Birth Shoots Acquired Joined from
3 Jeff Mason[7] United States Easthampton, MA, USA
11 August 1981		 R 2012 Lillehammer IK (GET-ligaen)
9 Jim Vandermeer[8] Canada Caroline, Canada
21 February 1980		 L 2016 Kloten Flyers (NLA)
43 Derrick Walser[9] Canada New Glasgow, Canada
12 May 1978		 L 2015 Rapperswil-Jona Lakers (National League B)
50 Matt Nickerson United States Old Lyme, CT, USA
1 May 1986		 R 2015 Fife Flyers (EIHL)
88 Ryan Martinelli[10] Canada London, Ontario, Canada
2 September 1986		 R 2016 Székesfehérvár (EBEL)
8 Michael Quesnele[11] CanadaItaly Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada
18 January 1989		 L 2016 Coventry Blaze (EIHL)
7 Mark Garside[12] Scotland East Kilbride, Scotland
21 March 1989		 L 2010 Edinburgh Capitals (EIHL)
Forwards[3]
Number Player Place/Date of Birth Shoots Position Acquired Joined from
14 Mike Forney[13] United States Thief River Falls, Minnesota, USA
14 May 1988		 R LW 2015 Sheffield Steelers (EIHL)
26 Brandon Benedict[14] Canada Halifax, NS, Canada
10 June 1982		 L C 2015 Nottingham Panthers (EIHL)
12 Steve Saviano[15] United States Reading, MA, USA
31 August 1981		 L LW 2016 HC Bolzano (Serie A)
23 Alex Foster[16] United States Canton, MI, USA
26 September 1984		 L C 2016 Iserlohn Roosters (DEL)
25 Blair Riley[17] Canada Kamloops, BC, Canada
1 November 1985		 L LW 2016 Stockton Heat (AHL)
47 Adam Keefe[18] Canada Brampton, ON, Canada
26 April 1984		 R RW 2011 Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL)
19 Colin Shields[19] Scotland Glasgow, Scotland
27 January 1980		 R C 2008 Newcastle Vipers (EIHL)
68 Chris Higgins[20] United StatesItaly Lynnfield, MA, USA
30 April 1986		 LW/RW R 2015 Nottingham Panthers (EIHL)
91 David Rutherford[21] Canada Ladner, Canada
30 April 1987		 R RW 2016 Edinburgh Capitals (EIHL)
79 James Desmarais[22] Canada Montréal, Quebec, Canada
4 May 1979		 R C 2015 EHC Visp (National League B)
89 Jonathan Boxill[23] England Bracknell, England
25 April 1989		 R F 2015 Adelaide Adrenaline (AIHL)
74 Matt Towe[24] England Sheffield, England
7 January 1988		 R F 2016 Guildford Flames (EPIHL)

Retired jersey numbers

Former players

Captains

Nat Name Tenure
United Kingdom Jeff Hoad 2000-02
Canada Paul Kruse 2002-03
Canada Jason Ruff 2003-04
Canada Shane Johnson 2004-05
United States George Awada 2005-09
Scotland Colin Shields 2009-11
Austria Jeremy Rebek 2011-12
Canada Adam Keefe 2012-

Head coaches

No. Nat Name Tenure
1 Canada David Whistle 2000-03
2 Canada Rob Stewart 2003-04
3 Scotland Tony Hand 2004-05
4 Canada Ed Courtenay 2005-08
5 Canada Steve Thornton 2008-10
6 United States Doug Christiansen 2010-13
7 Canada Paul Adey 2013-14
8 Canada Steve Thornton 2014-15
9 Canada Derrick Walser 2015-

Franchise scoring leaders

These are the Top 10 Points Scoring Leaders for the Belfast Giants:

Note: GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points

Player POS GP G A Pts
Colin Shields C/RW 370 159 297 456
George Awada RW 376 149 187 336
Craig Peacock RW 341 140 159 299
Evan Cheverie LW 239 91 183 274
Jason Ruff LW 193 100 145 245
Todd Kelman D 418 73 141 214
Shane Johnson D 491 54 145 199
Rob Sandrock D 224 49 141 190
Ed Courtenay RW 124 58 129 187
Curtis Bowen LW 219 84 103 187

Honours

For more details on this topic, see Belfast Giants seasons.

2000–01

2001–02

2002–03

2003–04

2004–05

2005–06

2008–09

2009-2010

2010-2011

2011–12

2012–13

2013–14

References

  1. ↑ Giants on the rocks, BBC Sport, 22 June 2003. Retrieved 30 June 2012
  2. ↑ http://www.iihf.com/home-of-hockey/news/attendance-2014-2015/. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  3. 1 2 3 "2013/14 Roster". Belfast Giants. Retrieved 14 November 2013.
  4. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Stephen Murphy". Belfastgiants.com. 2013-11-21. Retrieved 2014-04-28.
  5. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Jackson Whistle". Belfastgiants.com. 2016-08-24. Retrieved 2016-08-24.
  6. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Andrew Dickson". Belfastgiants.com. 2013-11-21. Retrieved 2014-04-28.
  7. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Jeff Mason". Belfastgiants.com. 2013-11-21. Retrieved 2014-04-28.
  8. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Jim Vandemeer". Belfastgiants.com. 2016-08-24. Retrieved 2016-06-24.
  9. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Derrick Walser". Belfastgiants.com. 2013-11-21. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  10. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Ryan Martinelli". Belfastgiants.com. 2016-08-24. Retrieved 2016-08-24.
  11. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Michael Quesnele". Belfastgiants.com. 2016-09-05. Retrieved 2016-09-05.
  12. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Mark Garside". Belfastgiants.com. 2013-11-21. Retrieved 2014-04-28.
  13. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Mike Forney". Belfastgiants.com. 2013-11-21. Retrieved 2015-02-05.
  14. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Brandon Benedict". Belfastgiants.com. 2013-11-21. Retrieved 2015-02-05.
  15. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Steve Saviano". Belfastgiants.com. 2016-08-24. Retrieved 2016-08-24.
  16. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Alex Foster". Belfastgiants.com. 2016-08-24. Retrieved 2016-08-24.
  17. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Blair Riley". Belfastgiants.com. 2016-08-24. Retrieved 2016-08-24.
  18. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Adam Keefe". Belfastgiants.com. 2013-11-21. Retrieved 2014-04-28.
  19. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Colin Shields". Belfastgiants.com. 2016-08-24. Retrieved 2016-08-24.
  20. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Chris Higgins". Belfastgiants.com. 2013-11-21. Retrieved 2015-02-05.
  21. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » David Rutherford". Belfastgiants.com. 2016-08-24. Retrieved 2016-08-24.
  22. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » James Desmarais". Belfastgiants.com. 2013-11-21. Retrieved 2014-04-28.
  23. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Jonathan Boxill". Belfastgiants.com. 2013-11-21. Retrieved 2014-04-28.
  24. ↑ "Stena Line Belfast Giants » Matt Towe". Belfastgiants.com. 2016-09-01. Retrieved 2016-09-01.

External links

Preceded by
Sheffield Steelers		 Superleague Champions
2001–02 		Succeeded by
Sheffield Steelers
Preceded by
Sheffield Steelers		 Playoff Champions
2002–03 		Succeeded by
Sheffield Steelers
Preceded by
Coventry Blaze		 Elite League Champions
2005–06 		Succeeded by
Coventry Blaze
Preceded by
Sheffield Steelers		 Playoff Champions
2009–10 		Succeeded by
Nottingham Panthers
Preceded by
Nottingham Panthers		 Elite League Champions
2013–14 		Succeeded by
Sheffield Steelers
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