Ayr Scottish Eagles

Ayr Scottish Eagles
City	Ayr, Scotland
League	Ice Hockey Superleague
Founded	1996
Operated	1996-2003
Home arena	Centrum Arena
Colors	Green and Orange
Owner(s)	Bill Barr
Head coach	Paul Heavey
Affiliates	Barr Construction Ltd
Franchise history
1996-02	Ayr Scottish Eagles
2002-03	Scottish Eagles
Championships
Regular season titles	1997-98
Autumn Cups	1997-98
Challenge Cups	1997-98, 2001-02
Playoff championships	1997-98

The Ayr Scottish Eagles were a professional Scottish ice hockey club, from Ayr, Scotland. They were formed in 1996 and played their home games at the Centrum Arena. The team competed in the Ice Hockey Superleague and the club's main (title) sponsor was Barr Construction. The club folded during the 2002-03 season after a move to Braehead Arena.

History

The Ayr Scottish Eagles were founded in 1996 and played in the Ice Hockey Superleague. The team quickly rose to become one of the top teams in the United Kingdom, due in part to achieving the grand slam in their second season (1997–98) winning all four major UK ice hockey trophies, these were the British Championship, Superleague, the Autumn Cup and Express Cup, the first team ever to do so during the existence of the Ice Hockey Superleague. Also in 1998 they achieved great success (for a British team), when they twice defeated Ak Bars Kazan in the European Hockey League.^[1]

2002-03

In August 2002, it was announced by owner Bill Barr that the team were to permanently relocate to the Braehead Arena in Renfrewshire, outside Glasgow.^[2]

Bob Zeller, Belfast Giants' founder was announced as managing director and the team changed their name to Scottish Eagles, dropping Ayr from their name.^[3] Bob Zeller remained a shareholder in the Belfast Giants.^[2] The reason given for the relocation was due to the Braehead Arena having a larger seating capacity and a larger catchment area, expected to increase the fanbase of the club.^[2]

The club (with the new name) folded on 14 November 2002, after just six home games, in what was to become the final season of the Ice Hockey Superleague.^[4][5] They were the second team in the league to fold that season; the first being Manchester Storm.^[6]

Post demise

Friends of Eagles Hockey, organised an exhibition match at the Centrum Arena on 4 February 2003 as a fund raising event to raise funds for players and officials who had been left in financial difficulty due to the bankruptcy of Ice hockey Services Ltd, the Eagles operating company.^[7] The Eagles side was an all-star team that played against a UK select all-star team. The match officials were referee Moray Hanson and linesmen Alan Craig and Rab Cowan.^[8]

Friends of Eagles Hockey, campaigned for the return of ice hockey to the Centrum Arena after the Eagles's demise. Ice rink operators Planet Ice showed an interest in running the Centrum as an ice arena; however the arena was demolished in 2009 and the site is now home to a new supermarket.^[9]

Braehead Clan

The Braehead Clan ice hockey club are now based at the Braehead Arena and play in the Elite Ice Hockey League. In their first season, there was an effort to recruit former Ayr Scottish Eagles fans to the Clan support. Ayr Scottish Eagles fans who held a season ticket at Braehead in the 2002-03 season that was cut short due to the team folding were offered a season ticket in Braehead's first season.^[10]

Although the Scottish Eagles and Braehead Clan were both based at the Braehead Arena, this is where the link between the two Ice Hockey Clubs ends. The Scottish Eagles were operated by Ice Hockey Services Ltd ^[11] which underwent a Voluntary Members Liquidation and was wound up on 23 June 2005.^[12] Braehead Clan is operated by Clan Entertainment Ltd ^[13] that was Incorporated on 3 February 2010.^[14]

Home arenas

The original home of the Eagles was the Centrum Arena. It was officially opened on 25 August 1996 and was run by Barr Leisure Limited, a subsidiary of Barr Holdings Ltd. The Eagles played their first home game there on 1 September 1996.^[15]

After an announcement by Bill Barr, the Eagles moved to the Braehead Arena for the 2002-03 season, where they played just six home games before folding.^[2] The Centrum was still used as a training venue throughout this period.

Rosters

Rosters
2002/03[16] Goaltenders Number Player Catches Acquired Place of Birth 32 Mark Cavallin L 2002 Mississauga, Ontario 1 Eoin McInerney L 2002 London, Ontario Defencemen Number Player Shoots Acquired Place of Birth 3 Evan Marble R 2002 Eston, Saskatchewan 17 Bob Quinnell L 2002 Coquitlam, British Columbia 20 Dan Ratushny R 2002 Nepean, Ontario 33 Stefan Bergkvist L 2002 Leksand, Sweden 9 Scott Campbell L 2002 Glasgow, Scotland Forwards Number Player Shoots Position Acquired Place of Birth 10 Xavier Majic L C 2002 Fernie, British Columbia 14 Jonathan Weaver L LW 2000 Sunderland, England 29 Sean Selmser - C L LW 2002 Calgary, Alberta 18 Johan Astrom L LW 2002 Boden, Sweden 16 Jeff Williams L LW 2002 Pointe-Claire, Quebec 28 Jason Bowen L LW 2002 Port Alice, British Columbia 12 [Jeff Johnstone R RW 2002 Niagara Falls, Ontario 7 Jason Ruston R RW 2002 Victoria, British Columbia 21 Jonni Vauhkonen L RW 2002 Suonenjoki, Finland 19 Mike Harding R RW 2000 Edmonton, Alberta 16 John Downs 2002
2001/02[17] Goaltenders Number Player Catches Acquired Place of Birth 8 Colin Ryder L 2000 Stirling, Scotland 41 Joaquin Gage L 2001 London, Vancouver Columbia Defencemen Number Player Shoots Acquired Place of Birth 5 Alan Schuler - C R 2001 100 Mile House, British Columbia 21 Ian Herbers L 2001 Jasper, Alberta 3 Ryan Risidore R 2001 Hamilton, Ontario 43 Paddy Ward R 2002 Kirkcaldy, Scotland 28 Anders Hillström L 2000 Sweden 41 Johan Silfwerplatz L 2000 Sweden Forwards Number Player Shoots Position Acquired Place of Birth 17 Ed Courtenay R RW 2000 Verdun, Quebec 14 Jonathan Weaver L LW 2000 Sunderland, England 13 Dody Wood L LW 2001 Chetwynd, British Columbia 30 Dino Bauba R LW 2002 Kaunasc, Lithuania 16 Shawn Byram L LW 1997 Neepawa, Manitoba 27 Rhett Gordon R RW 2000 Regina, Saskatchewan 12 Mike Jickling R C 2001 Edmonton, Alberta 19 Mike Harding R RW 2000 Edmonton, Alberta 11 Cam Bristow R RW 2000 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Erik Norback R C 2001 Stockholm, Sweden Johan Molin R RW 2001 Nacka, Sweden Phil Crowe R RW 2001 Nanton, Alberta
2000/01[18] Goaltenders Number Player Catches Acquired Place of Birth Philippe DeRouville L 2000 Victoriaville, Quebec 8 Colin Ryder L 2000 Stirling, Scotland Defencemen Number Player Shoots Acquired Place of Birth Travor Doyle R 2000 Ottawa, Ontario 29 Derek Eberle - A L 2000 Regina, Saskatchewan 21 Jan Mikel L 2000 Brno, Czech Republic 28 Anders Hillstrom L 2000 Sweden 41 Johan Silfwerplatz L 2000 Sweden Forwards Number Player Shoots Position Acquired Place of Birth Debb Carpenter R RW 2000 Edmonton, Alberta 11 Cam Bristow R RW 1999 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Rhett Gordon R RW 2000 Regina, Saskatchewan Mike Harding R RW 2000 Edmonton, Alberta Ed Courtenay R RW 2000 Verdun, Quebec 7 Tony Hand R C 1999 Edinburgh, Scotland 16 Shawn Byram - C L LW 1997 Neepawa, Manitoba Jonathan Weaver L LW 2000 Sunderland, England Teeder Wynne L F 2000 Calgary, Alberta 30 Dino Bauba R F 1997 Kaunasc, Lithuania 10 Mark Montanari L F 1997 Toronto, Ontario
1999/00[19] Goaltenders Number Player Catches Acquired Place of Birth 31 Geoff Sarjeant R 1999 Orilla, Ontario 33 Stephen Foster L 1999 Durham, England 35 David Trofimenkoff R 1999 Calgary, Alberta Defencemen Number Player Shoots Acquired Place of Birth 44 Kevin Pozzo R 1999 Calgary, Alberta 24 Ryan Kummu L 1996 Kitchener, Ontario 29 Jim Mathieson L 1999 Kindersley, Saskatchewan 6 Vince Boe L 1996 Calgary, Alberta 4 Scott Young L 1996 Oakville, Ontario 44 Mike Bishop L 1999 Sarnia, Ontario 5 Yuri Krivokhija L 1999 Minsk, Belarus 22 Jan Mikel L 1999 Brno, Czech Republic Forwards Number Player Shoots Position Acquired Place of Birth 46 Rob Trumbley R RW 1999 Regina, Saskatchewan 11 Cam Bristow R RW 1999 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan 23 Yves Heroux R RW 1999 Terrebonne, Quebec 14 John Varga R LW 1999 Chicago, Illinois 27 Patric Lochi R C 1999 Silandro, Italy 7 Tony Hand R C 1999 Edinburgh, Scotland 16 Shawn Byram - C L LW 1997 Neepawa, Manitoba 15 Louis Dumont R C 1999 Calgary, Alberta 19 Shayne Stevenson R C 1999 Aurora, Ontario 30 Dino Bauba R F 1997 Kaunasc, Lithuania 9 Jamie Steer R F 1996 Winnipeg, Manitoba 10 Mark Montanari L F 1997 Toronto, Ontario 21 Eric Murano R C 1999 Calgary, Alberta
1998/99[20] Goaltenders Number Player Catches Acquired Place of Birth Frank Caprice R 1998 Hamilton, Ontario Sean Basilio L 1998 Stoney Creek, Ontario Vincent Riendeau L 1998 St. Hyacinthe, Quebec Defencemen Number Player Shoots Acquired Place of Birth 3 Angelo Catenaro - C L 1996 Toronto, Ontario 24 Ryan Kummu L 1996 Kitchener, Ontario 5 Alan Schuler R 1996 100 Mile House, British Columbia 6 Vince Boe L 1996 Calgary, Alberta 4 Scott Young L 1996 Oakville, Ontario Trevor Burgess R 1996 Carleton Place, Ontario Forwards Number Player Shoots Position Acquired Place of Birth 17 David St. Pierre R C 1996 Montreal, Quebec 23 Jeff Hoad R C 1997 Brandon, Manitoba 23 Karry Biette R C 1997 Estevan, Saskatchewan 12 Matt Hoffman R C 1996 Saginaw, Michigan 7 John Parco - A L C 1997 Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario 27 Samuel Groleau R C 1996 Longueuil, Quebec 16 Shawn Byram L LW 1997 Neepawa, Manitoba 19 Dennis Purdie R RW 1997 Amherstburg, Ontario 8 Mark Woolf - A R RW 1996 Brandon, Manitoba 30 Dino Bauba R F 1997 Kaunasc, Lithuania 9 Jamie Steer R F 1996 Winnipeg, Manitoba 10 Mark Montanari L F 1997 Toronto, Ontario Corey Lyons L RW 1997 Calgary, Alberta
1997/98[21] Goaltenders Number Player Catches Acquired Place of Birth 32 Rob Dopson L 1997 Smiths Falls, Ontario 34 Colum Cavilla L 1996 Lethbridge, Alberta Defencemen Number Player Shoots Acquired Place of Birth 44 Joey Mittelsteadt L 1997 Scarborough, Ontario 3 Angelo Catenaro - C L 1996 Toronto, Ontario 24 Ryan Kummu L 1996 Kitchener, Ontario 5 Alan Schuler R 1996 100 Mile House, British Columbia 6 Vince Boe L 1996 Calgary, Alberta 4 Scott Young L 1996 Oakville, Ontario Forwards Number Player Shoots Position Acquired Place of Birth 17 David St. Pierre R C 1996 Montreal, Quebec 23 Jeff Hoad R C 1997 Brandon, Manitoba 23 Karry Biette R C 1997 Estevan, Saskatchewan 12 Matt Hoffman R C 1996 Saginaw, Michigan 7 John Parco - A L C 1997 Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario 27 Samuel Groleau R C 1996 Longueuil, Quebec 16 Shawn Byram L LW 1997 Neepawa, Manitoba 25 Darren Colbourne L RW 1997 Cornerbrook, Newfoundland Labrador 19 Dennis Purdie R RW 1997 Amherstburg, Ontario 8 Mark Woolf - A R RW 1996 Brandon, Manitoba 30 Dino Bauba R F 1997 Kaunasc, Lithuania 9 Jamie Steer R F 1996 Winnipeg, Manitoba 10 Mark Montanari L F 1997 Toronto, Ontario
1996/97[22] Goaltenders Number Player Catches Acquired Place of Birth 40 Sven Rampf R 1996 Pfronten, Germany 24 Colum Cavilla L 1996 Lethbridge, Alberta Defencemen Number Player Shoots Acquired Place of Birth 7 Colin McHaffie R 1996 Ayr, Scotland 3 Angelo Catenaro - C L 1996 Toronto, Ontario 24 Ryan Kummu L 1996 Kitchener, Ontario 5 Alan Schuler R 1996 100 Mile House, British Columbia 44 Frantisek Prochazka L 1996 Brno, Czech Republic 4 Scott Young L 1996 Oakville, Ontario 6 Vince Boe L 1996 Calgary, Alberta Forwards Number Player Shoots Position Acquired Place of Birth 17 David St. Pierre R C 1996 Montreal, Quebec 15 Brendan Flynn L C 1996 Boston, Massachusetts 23 Jiri Lala L F 1996 Tabor, Czech Republic 12 Matt Hoffman R C 1996 Saginaw, Michigan 21 Markus Berwanger L F 1996 Rosenheim, Germany 27 Samuel Groleau R C 1996 Longueuil, Quebec Steven Lynch R F 1996 Kirkcaldy, Scotland Mark Cupolo L LW 1996 Niagara Falls, Ontario 19 Scott Morrison R RW 1996 Hamilton, Ontario 8 Mark Woolf R RW 1996 Brandon, Manitoba 9 Jamie Steer R F 1996 Winnipeg, Manitoba

Coaching Staff
Number		Player	Position	Dates	Place of Birth
--		Paul Heavey	Head Coach	2001-2003	Glasgow, Scotland
--		Scott Rex	Assistant Coach	2001-2002	Brantford, Ontario
--		Jim Lynch	Head Coach	1996-2001	Toronto, Ontario
--		Paul Heavey	Assistant Coach	2000-2001	Glasgow, Scotland
--		Milan Figala	Assistant Coach	1996-2000	Brno, South Moravian Region

Club record

Season-by-season record

Ayr Scottish Eagles season-by-season record.[23] Season League GP W L T OTL PTS GF GA League Position 1996–97 Ice Hockey Superleague 42 21 15 6 0 48 171 157 03 ! 1997–98 Ice Hockey Superleague 45 34 6 2 3 73 200 113 01 ! 1998–99 Ice Hockey Superleague 42 18 18 3 3 42 136 140 5 1999–00 Ice Hockey Superleague 42 17 16 5 4 43 144 147 5 2000–01 Ice Hockey Superleague 48 25 22 0 1 72 161 158 5 2001–02 Ice Hockey Superleague 48 20 19 9 0 49 136 130 02 ! 2002–03 Ice Hockey Superleague 8 2 6 0 0 4† 20 34 -- Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime Losses; PTS = Points; GF = Goals For; GA = Goals Against; † = Club folded six games into the season

Player records

Franchise scoring leaders

These are the top-ten point-scorers, scoring leaders and assists in franchise history.

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games Played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game

Points Player Pos GP G A Pts P/G Shawn Byram F 200 63 123 186 0.93 Dino Bauba F 189 54 84 138 0.73 Scott Young D 210 49 82 131 0.62 Samuel Groleau F 120 56 66 122 1.02 Mark Montanari F 123 35 79 114 0.93 Jamie Steer F 156 61 49 110 0.70 Mark Woolf F 124 51 57 108 0.87 Tony Hand F 86 27 71 98 1.13 Ed Courtenay F 91 41 48 89 0.98 David St. Pierre F 118 18 67 85 0.72

Goals Player Pos G Shawn Byram F 63 Jamie Steer F 61 Samuel Groleau F 56 Dino Bauba F 54 Mark Woolf F 51 Scott Young D 49 Ed Courtenay F 41 Mark Montanari F 35 Matt Hoffman F 35 Jonathan Weaver D 32

Assists Player Pos A Shawn Byram F 123 Dino Bauba F 84 Scott Young D 82 Mark Montanari F 79 Alan Schuler D 72 Tony Hand F 71 David St. Pierre F 67 Samuel Groleau F 66 Mark Woolf F 57 Vince Boe D 50

Team captains

• Angelo Catenaro, 1996–99
• Shawn Byram, 1999-01
• Alan Schuler, 2001–02
• Sean Selmser, 2002–03

NHL alumni

Many of Ayr's players were NHL draft picks and played in the NHL before signing for the Ayr Eagles.

International capped players

Several players were also selected to play for their national team in the Ice Hockey World Championships.

Honours and awards

Jerseys

• 

  The inaugural uniform (1996-97 season)

• 

  The uniform of the "grand slam" winning team (1997-98 season)

• 

  The uniform of the Express Cup runners-up (2000-01 season)

• 

  The uniform of the Express Cup winning team and Superleague Runners-up (2001-02 season)

• 

  The last uniform to be worn by an Eagles side, in the exhibition match held at the Centrum in 2003 (there was no away jersey of this design)

Notes

Ice hockey in the United Kingdom
Elite League	Belfast Giants Braehead Clan Cardiff Devils Coventry Blaze Dundee Stars Edinburgh Capitals Fife Flyers Manchester Storm Nottingham Panthers Sheffield Steelers
English Premier League	Basingstoke Bison Bracknell Bees Guildford Flames Hull Pirates Manchester Phoenix Milton Keynes Lightning Peterborough Phantoms Sheffield Steeldogs Swindon Wildcats Telford Tigers
National League	Altrincham Aces Basingstoke Buffalo Billingham Stars Blackburn Hawks Bracknell Hornets Bradford Bulldogs Bristol Pitbulls Cardiff Devils 1 Cardiff Devils 2 Chelmsford Chieftains Chelmsford Warriors Coventry Blaze Deeside Dragons Fylde Flyers Grimsby Red Wings Haringey Greyhounds Invicta Dynamos Invicta Mustangs Kingston Jets Lancashire Raptors Lee Valley Lions London Raiders Milton Keynes Thunder Nottingham Lions Oxford City Stars Peterborough Islanders Romford Fury Sheffield Spartans Slough Harrier Hawks Solent Devils Solihull Barons Solway Sharks Streatham Redskins Streatham Bruins Swindon Wildcats Sutton Sting Whitley Warriors Wightlink Buccaneers
Scottish National League	Aberdeen Lynx Dundee Comets Dundee Tigers Edinburgh Capitals (SNL) Kilmarnock Storm Kirkcaldy Kestrels North Ayr Wild Paisley Pirates Solway Sharks
British University Teams	Anglia Ruskin Rangers Birmingham Eagles Bradford Sabres Bristol Lions Cambridge Blues Cardiff Redhawks Durham Knights Edinburgh Eagles Huddersfield Ice Hawks Hull Ice Hogs Imperial College Devils Kent Knights Universities Of London Dragons Manchester Metros Newcastle Wildcats Northumbria Flames Nottingham Mavericks Oxford University Ice Hockey Club Sheffield Bears Southampton Spitfires St Andrews Typhoons Surrey Sharks UCL Yetis UEA Avalanche Warwick Panthers
Womens Premier League	Bracknell Queen Bees Guildford Lightning Kingston Diamonds A Milton Keynes Falcons Sheffield Shadows A Slough Phantoms Solihull Vixens Streatham Storm A Swindon TopCats A
Womens Ice Hockey League Division One	Basingstoke Bison Ladies Billingham Wildcats Blackburn Thunder Bracknell Fire Bees Cardiff Comets Chelmsford Cobras Coventry Phoenix Ivicta Dynamics Kingston Diamonds B Nottingham Vipers Oxford Stars Peterborough Penguins Sheffield Shadows B Solent and Gosport Amazons Streatham Storm B Telford Wrekin Raiders Whitley Squaws
Governing bodies	English Ice Hockey Association Ice Hockey UK Northern Ireland Ice Hockey Association Scottish Ice Hockey
Competitions	League Championship Playoff Championship Challenge Cup Knockout Cup Northern League Varsity Match
Player awards	Alan Weeks Trophy Best British Forward British Netminder of the Year Coach of the Year Trophy Ice Hockey Annual Trophy Player of the Year Trophy Vic Batchelder Memorial Award
Defunct leagues and competitions	British Ice Hockey Association Ahearne Cup Autumn Cup British Hockey League British National League (1954–1960) British National League (1996–2005) English League English League North English National League Ice Hockey Superleague Inter-City League Northern League Scottish National League Scottish Premier Hockey League Southern League
Defunct teams	Ayr Bruins Ayr Scottish Eagles Brighton Tigers Castlereagh Knights Dundee Rockets Durham Wasps Earls Court Rangers Harringay Greyhounds Harringay Racers Hull Stingrays Hull Thunder Humberside Seahawks London Canadians London Lions London Knights London Racers Medway Bears Milton Keynes Kings Murrayfield Racers Newcastle Jesters Newcastle Vipers Niagara Ice Hockey Club Oxford Blades Peterborough Pirates Princes Ice Hockey Club Richmond Flyers Sheffield Lancers Sheffield Scimitars Southampton Vikings Sunderland Chiefs Swindon TopCats B TDC Northern Stars Telford Tigers ENL Telford Titans Wembley Lions Wembley Monarchs Wightlink Raiders Wightlink Tigers
Miscellaneous	Great Britain men's national ice hockey team Great Britain women's national ice hockey team British Ice Hockey Hall of Fame Ice Hockey Journalists UK IHSAUK
Related IIHF IIHF Continental Cup IIHF European Champions Cup