Fresno Falcons

The Fresno Falcons is a defunct minor league hockey team. They were once members of the ECHL (formerly East Coast Hockey League). They were located in Fresno, California. After playing for five seasons at Save Mart Center (cap.14,000) on the campus of California State University, Fresno, the Falcons returned downtown to Selland Arena for the 2008-09 season. The first game was against the Bakersfield Condors on October 24, 2008. Matt Thomas and Ryan Mougenel entered their fourth season as the team's respective head coach and assistant coach. 
The Fresno Falcons were founded in 1946 as a charter member of the Pacific Coast Hockey League.The Falcons also played in the Cal-Neva Hockey League, Pacific Southwest Hockey League and the West Coast Hockey League before joining the ECHL. During the 1968 & 1969 season the team was officially known as the Fresno Aces, in 1970 the name was changed back to the Fresno Falcons. 
The Falcons became a charter member of the West Coast Hockey League in 1995. The team was a member throughout the league's eight-year existence. During the 1997-98 season they were known as Fresno's Fighting Falcons. Fresno won the league's Taylor Cup championship for the 2001-02 season, defeating the Idaho Steelheads in the finals.
Along with other active WCHL teams, the Falcons joined the ECHL after the West Coast Hockey League was absorbed by the larger league in 2003.
On December 22, 2008, Fresno Hockey Club, LLC announced that the Fresno Falcons team would cease operations immediately citing operating cost due to dwindling attendance, lack of corporate sponsorships and the faltering economy.
President Dave Dakers of the Victoria Salmon Kings ECHL team expressed some negative commentary on the Falcons team management abilities, but praised the team itself as being "competitive". The owners did not do all they could to salvage the situation and gave up too easily as there were still other options available to minimize the economic damage. He was rather disappointed and not too pleased, in the Victoria Times Colonist newspaper article. 
Other commentators, which included prominent Fresno business people and sports enthusiasts, stated that the recent owners of the Fresno Falcons were uncommitted for the long term and didn't really care about hockey. A restructuring and new arrangement could have the Fresno Falcons hockey team back in operation by 2010-2011. 
Season 	League	Division	GP 	W 	L 	T 	OTL	SOL	PTS 	PCT 	GF 	GA 	PIM 	Coach(es) 	Result
1995-96	WCHL 	WCHL 	58 	30 	21 	0 	7 	0 	67 	0.578	270 	232 	1454 	John Olver 	Lost in Finals
1996-97	WCHL 	WCHL 	64 	38 	20 	0 	6 	0 	82 	0.641	313 	254 	1851 	Guy Gadowsky 	Lost in Round 1
1997-98	WCHL 	WCHLS 	64 	33 	29 	0 	2 	0 	68 	0.531	273 	262 	2018 	Guy Gadowsky 	Lost in Round 1
1998-99	WCHL 	WCHLS 	70 	35 	31 	0 	4 	0 	74 	0.529	257 	296 	2172 	Guy Gadowsky 	Lost in Round 2
1999-00	WCHL 	WCHLS 	72 	27 	38 	0 	7 	0 	61 	0.424	262 	307 	2181 	Blaine Moore 	Did Not Qualify
2000-01	WCHL 	WCHLS 	72 	44 	22 	6 	0 	0 	94 	0.653	259 	221 	1746 	Blaine Moore 	Lost in Round 1
2001-02	WCHL 	WCHLS 	72 	33 	31 	0 	8 	0 	74 	0.514	242 	267 	2108 	Blaine Moore 	WCHL Taylor Cup Champions
2002-03	WCHL 	WCHL 	72 	35 	28 	0 	9 	0 	79 	0.549	243 	235 	2170 	Blaine Moore 	Lost in Finals
2003-04	ECHL 	Pacific 	72 	23 	43 	6 	0 	0 	52 	0.361	187 	275 	1815 	Blaine Moore,Greg Spenrath	Did Not Qualify
2004-05	ECHL 	West 	72 	39 	25 	8 	0 	0 	86 	0.597	204 	217 	1800 	Greg Spenrath 	Did Not Qualify
2005-06	ECHL 	Pacific 	72 	43 	15 	14	0 	0 	100 	0.694	230 	205 	1572 	Matt Thomas 	Lost in National Conference Finals
2006-07	ECHL 	Pacific 	72 	34 	29 	9 	0 	0 	77 	0.535	195 	197 	1555 	Matt Thomas 	Lost in Round 1
2007-08	ECHL 	Pacific 	72 	42 	22 	4 	4 	0 	92 	0.639	242 	216 	1565 	Matt Thomas 	Lost in Round 1
Totals 	2 	4 	904	456	354	47	47 	0 	1006	0.504	3177	3184	24007	5 	9/12 Playoff Seasons (not counting Unknown result, 1 Championship
 
==Championships==
2001/2002 Taylor Cup Champions (WCHL)
2005/2006 Pacific Division Champions (ECHL)
Category:American ice hockey teams
Category:Defunct ECHL teams
Category:Disestablished in 2008
Category:ECHL teams
Category:ECHL Teams
Category:West Coast Hockey League teams
Category:Pacific Coast Hockey League (1952-1953) teams