The Bakersfield Condors are a minor league ice hockey team based in Bakersfield, California. The team plays in the Pacific Division of the ECHL’s Western Conference. The Condors join the Houston Aeros as an affiliate of theMinnesota Wild in the National Hockey League. The Condors play home games at Rabobank Arena in Bakersfield, until recently known as Centennial Garden.
Originally known as the Bakersfield Fog, the team was founded in 1995 as a charter member of the West Coast Hockey League. The team assumed its current name in 1998 when it moved into the new Centennial Garden. The Condors, and other West Coast Hockey League affiliates, joined the ECHL in 2003.
For the 2008–09 season, the Condors announced an affiliation with the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League on May 21, 2008. They became the Ducks secondary affiliate, after the Iowa Chops of the American Hockey League.[1]In the following 2009–10 season, the Condors became the Ducks primary affiliate after the Chops were suspended from operations. As a result the Condors started the season with a handful of the Ducks prospects and finished the season first in the Pacific to capture their first division title. On July 12, 2010, the Ducks opted to move closer to their east coast AHL affiliate and cut ties with the Condors after two seasons.[2]
On August 25, 2010, the Condors secured their second ever NHL franchise affiliate by partnering with the Minnesota Wild for the 2010–11 season.[3]
Season-by-season record
| Season | League | Division | GP | W | L | T | OTL | SOL | Pts | PCT | GF | GA | PIM | Coach(es) | Result |
| 1995–96 | WCHL | WCHL | 58 | 24 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 53 | 0.457 | 271 | 323 | 1439 | Keith Gretzky | Out of playoffs |
| 1996–97 | WCHL | WCHL | 64 | 33 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 71 | 0.555 | 345 | 325 | 2061 | Keith Gretzky | Lost in round 1 |
| 1997–98 | WCHL | WCHLS | 64 | 22 | 37 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 49 | 0.383 | 226 | 330 | 1949 | Keith Gretzky | Lost in round 1 |
| 1998–99 | WCHL | WCHLS | 70 | 21 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 51 | 0.364 | 213 | 308 | 2010 | Kevin MacDonald | Lost in round 1 |
| 1999–00 | WCHL | WCHLS | 72 | 34 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 77 | 0.535 | 244 | 272 | 2343 | Kevin MacDonald | Lost in round 1 |
| 2000–01 | WCHL | WCHLS | 72 | 26 | 36 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 62 | 0.431 | 220 | 273 | 2147 | Kevin MacDonald | Lost in round 1 |
| 2001–02 | WCHL | WCHLS | 72 | 32 | 35 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 69 | 0.479 | 213 | 237 | 1377 | Paul Kelly | Lost in round 1 |
| 2002–03 | WCHL | WCHL | 72 | 41 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 91 | 0.632 | 253 | 186 | 1625 | Paul Kelly | Lost in round 1 |
| 2003–04 | ECHL | Pacific | 72 | 25 | 38 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 59 | 0.410 | 201 | 236 | 1750 | Paul Kelly, Marty Raymond |
Out of playoffs |
| 2004–05 | ECHL | West | 72 | 40 | 22 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 90 | 0.625 | 232 | 205 | 1691 | Marty Raymond | Lost in round 1 |
| 2005–06 | ECHL | Pacific | 72 | 40 | 26 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 86 | 0.597 | 221 | 222 | 1814 | Marty Raymond | Lost in round 3 |
| 2006–07 | ECHL | Pacific | 72 | 41 | 19 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 94 | 0.653 | 270 | 236 | 1556 | Marty Raymond | Lost in round 3 |
| 2007–08 | ECHL | Pacific | 72 | 26 | 37 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 61 | 0.424 | 230 | 280 | 1772 | Marty Raymond | Lost in round 2 |
| 2008–09 | ECHL | Pacific | 72 | 33 | 31 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 74 | 0.514 | 246 | 263 | 1250 | Marty Raymond | Lost in round 1 |
| 2009–10 | ECHL | Pacific | 72 | 38 | 29 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 81 | 0.563 | 232 | 243 | 1270 | Marty Raymond | Lost in round 2 |
| Totals | 1,048 | 476 | 456 | 0 | 19 | 97 | 1003 | 0.510 | 3617 | 3939 | 26054 | 4 | 13 Playoff Seasons | ||
Records as of September 1, 2010. [4]
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, SOL = Shootout Losses, PTS = Points, PCT = Winning Percentage, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes
2010-2011 roster
Updated December 10, 2010.[5]
# |
Nat |
Player |
Pos |
S/G |
Age |
Acquired |
Birthplace | Contract |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 |  |
Jean-Marc Beaudion | F | R | 25 | 2009 | St. Paul, Alberta | Condors |
| 18 | |
Joel Broda | C | L | 21 | 2010 | Yorkton, Saskatchewan | Wild |
| 3 |  |
Erik Burgdoerfer | D | R | 22 | 2010 | East Setauket, New York | Condors |
| 19 | |
Kyle Calder (A) | LW | L | 31 | 2010 | Mannville, Alberta | Condors |
| 24 | |
J. D. Corbin | LW | L | 25 | 2010 | Littleton, Colorado | Condors |
| 7 | |
Jean-Francios David | D | L | 28 | 2010 | Montreal, Quebec | Condors |
| 22 | |
Stephane Goulet | RW | L | 24 | 2009 | Levis, Quebec | Condors |
| 84 |  |
Peter Hirsch | G | R | 31 | 2010 | Copenhagen, Denmark | Condors |
| 9 | |
Andrew Ianiero (C) | F | L | 29 | 2005 | Hamilton, Ontario | Condors |
| 20 | |
Rylan Kaip | F | R | 26 | 2010 | Radville, Saskatchewan | Aeros |
| 23 | |
Erick Lizon | RW | R | 25 | 2009 | Kitchener, Ontario | Condors |
| 29 | |
Brendan Milnamow | D | L | 24 | 2010 | Wilton, Connecticut | Condors |
| 32 | |
Pascal Morency | RW | R | 28 | 2010 | Montreal, Quebec | Condors |
| 15 | |
Adam Naglich (A) | C | R | 26 | 2009 | Las Vegas, Nevada | Condors |
| 25 | |
Bobby Robins | F | R | 29 | 2010 | Peshtigo, Wisconsin | Condors |
| 5 | |
Joe Rullier | D | R | 30 | 2010 | Montreal, Quebec | Condors |
| 36 | |
Joey Ryan | D | R | 23 | 2010 | Stoneham, Massachusetts | Condors |
| 2 | |
Evan Stoflet | D | L | 26 | 2009 | Madison, Wisconsin | Condors |
| 39 | |
Josh Tordjman | G | L | 25 | 2010 | Montreal, Quebec | Condors |
| 11 |  |
Vyacheslav Trukhno | F | L | 23 | 2010 | Khimki, Russia | Condors |
| 12 | |
Peter Zingoni | C | L | 29 | 2010 | Bridgeport, Connecticut | Aeros |
2010- 2011 Current Staff
| Staff | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title | STAFF MEMBER | |||||
| Head Coach | Marty Raymond | |||||
| Head Athletic Trainer | Jason Lindsey | |||||
| Equipment Manager | John Doolan | |||||
Team captains
- 2007–08 - Sean Venedam
- 2008–09 - Jay Langager
- 2009–10 - Shawn Weller
NHLers
- 9 – C Connor James (2004–05) played in two games for the Los Angeles Kings during the 2005-06 season.
- 44 – G Yutaka Fukufuji (2004–05) was called up on emergency basis to the Los Angeles Kings on December 15, 2006. On January 13, 2007 the Los Angeles Kings replaced goaltender Barry Brust with Fukufuji in the third period of a game against the St. Louis Blues, thus becoming the first Japanese-born player to play in an NHL game.
- 49 – C Alexandre Bolduc (2005–2007) Played 22 games with the Vancouver Canucks in the National Hockey League.
- 31 – G Justin Pogge (2009–2010) Played with the Anaheim Ducks on an emergency basis while J.S. Giguere was injured. Is currently the Anaheim Ducks #3 Goalie and was the first ever condor to be recalled straight to the NHL. Before the Ducks, Pogge played with the Toronto Maple Leafs for seven game with a 1-4-1 record.[6]
Notable players
Journalist Ken Baker – Played one game as goaltender for the Condors in the 2001-02 season, finishing with a win, a 5.00 GAA and a 0.857 save percentage.[7]Baker’s dreams of playing professional hockey were cut short due to a tumor that inhibited his ability to build enough muscle for the sport. His book “They Don’t Play Hockey In Heaven” tells the story of his experience with the Condors.
Retired numbers
- 16 - Paul Willett
- 17- Paul Rosebush
- 26 - Glen Mears
- 28 - Jamie Cooke
- 74 - Steve Dowhy
Team highs
The Condors advanced past the 1st Round of the playoffs for the first time in their history in the 2005–06 season. They defeated the Long Beach Ice Dogs in seven games. The Condors lost in the seventh game of the next round against the Fresno Falcons, making it the longest playoff run in Condors history. The condors did it again the following year, defeating Fresno, but then lost in round 2 to the Alaska Aces in four games.
Infamous moments
In the 2004–05 ECHL playoffs, Condor Ashlee Langdone checked Alaska Ace Scott Gomez (who was playing that season in the ECHL due to the NHL strike) hard, sending him hip first into the sharp opening of the bench door at the exact moment the trainer opened it for a line change. The resulting injury, a broken pelvis, knocked Gomez out of the rest of the playoffs, and resulted in Langdone being given a boarding penalty and a one-game suspension. The incident drew a rather negative reaction due to Gomez’ status as an NHL all star.