Virginia Lancers

Did You Know?

• The Virginia Lancers were founded when the Nashville South Stars relocated in December 1983, halfway into the 1982–83 ACHL season.
• In the 1987–88 AAHL season, coach John Tortorella led the team to a 37-5-0-1 record and a league championship against the Carolina Thunderbirds.
• After the 1987–88 season, Virginia and Carolina left the AAHL to form the ECHL along with the newly-formed Johnstown Chiefs.

Notable personnel

Pierre Lagace, a draft pick of the Quebec Nordiques and Montreal Canadiens, played 38 games for the Nordiques in the World Hockey Association over two seasons. Paul O'Neil, a former player-coach who coached the Lancers from 1983–85, played for the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins of the NHL and one game for the Birmingham Bulls of the WHA. Mario Roberge, a former Lancers forward, played 112 games with the Montreal Canadiens from 1991–1995 and was a member of their 1993 Stanley Cup-winning team. John Torchetti, a former Lancers forward, has coached in the QMJHL and NHL, serving as an assistant coach with the Tampa Bay Lightning, interim head coach for the Florida Panthers and Los Angeles Kings, and assistant coach of the Atlanta Thrashers. John Tortorella, a former player who coached the team from 1986 to 1988, finished both seasons with the league's best record; he later coached the Rochester Americans and Tampa Bay Lightning to championships, and also coached the New York Rangers, Vancouver Canucks and Columbus Blue Jackets.