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 9,000-capacity SSE Arena Belfast.
They have a dedicated 'Boomerang Corner' which sits a large group of fans who generate noise and start most of the chants. It is named in memory of long time Giants fan Stewart Boone.
Video Belfast Giants
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.
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.
Maps Belfast Giants
Team culture
With an average attendance of around 4,744, the Giants are one of twelve Elite league ice hockey squads in the UK. They are the 2nd best supported team in the UK and 67th in Europe.
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".
2017-18 roster
Last Updated: 10 January 2018
elfastgiants.com |date=2013-11-21
Retired jersey numbers
- 4 Shane Johnson
- 11 Colin Ward
- 16 Rob Stewart
- 18 Graeme Walton
- 27 Paxton Schulte
- 44 Todd Kelman Petition to remove no.44
Former players
- 2 Brock Matheson
- 5 Will Colbert
- 9 Andrew Fournier
- 6 Sam Roberts
- 14 Theoren Fleury - former Stanley Cup-winning NHL player
- 14 Daymen Rycroft
- 14 Mike Forney - 2015-2017
- 15 Scott Champagne
- 17 Gregory Stewart
- 24 Noah Clarke
- 12 Gareth Martin
- 15 Kevin Westgarth - former Stanley Cup-winning NHL player
- 43 Derrick Walser - former NHL defenceman and Belfast player/coach 2015-17
- 50 Matt Nickerson - former NHL draft pick, played for Belfast for two seasons - 2015-17
- 5 Jérôme Gauthier-Leduc - former Buffalo Sabres draft pick, played for Belfast February - June 2017
- 89 Jonathan Boxill - 2015-2017; joined MK Lightning in June 2017
- 91 David Rutherford - played for Belfast between January 2016 and July 2017 before retiring; returned in November 2017
Captains
Head coaches
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
Honours
2000-01
- ISL Second Team All-Star: Kory Karlander
2001-02
- Superleague Champions
- ISL First Team All-Star: Mike Bales, Rob Stewart, Kevin Riehl, Sean Berens, Jason Ruff
2002-03
- Superleague Playoff Champions
- ISL First Team All-Star: Robby Sandrock, Paxton Schulte
- ISL Second Team All-Star: Ryan Bach, Kevin Riehl
2003-04
- EIHL First Team All-Star: Jason Ruff
2004-05
- British Cross-League: 1st Place
- EIHL First Team All-Star: Tony Hand
- EIHL Second Team All-Star: Martin Klempa and George Awada
2005-06
- Elite League Champions
- EIHL First Team All-Star: Theo Fleury and Ed Courtenay
- EIHL Second Team All-Star: Mike Minard, Todd Kelman and George Awada
- Vic Batchelder Memorial Trophy: Nathan Craze
2008-09
- EIHL Challenge Cup Champions
- EIHL Knock Out Cup Champions
- EIHL First Team All-Star: Paul Deniset
2009-2010
- EIHL Play-off Champions
- EIHL First Team All-Star: Stephen Murphy and Colin Shields
- EIHL Second Team All-Star: Michael Jacobsen and Jeff Szwez
2010-2011
- EIHL First Team All-Star: Jon Gleed
- EIHL Second Team All-Star: Stephen Murphy
2011-12
- Elite League Champions
- EIHL First Team All-Star: Stephen Murphy and Jeff Mason
- EIHL Second Team All-Star: Jeremy Rebek and Robert Dowd
2012-13
- Erhardt Conference Winners
- EIHL Second Team All-Star: Robbie Sandrock
2013-14
- Elite League Champions
- Erhardt Conference Winners
- EIHL First Team All-Star: Rob Sandrock, Calvin Elfring and Kevin Saurette
- EIHL Second Team All-Star: Stephen Murphy, Jeff Szwez and Evan Cheverie
References
External links
- Official website
- Kingdom of the Giants (News and forum site run by fans)
Source of article : Wikipedia
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