Hamilton Bulldogs (AHL)

History

The Hamilton Bulldogs Hockey Club came into being in 1996 when the Cape Breton Oilers moved to town. The team chose the "Bulldogs" nickname because it was thought to fit Hamilton best; the second-place option was "Hamilton Havoc." On the ice, the club made it to the Calder Cup Finals three times. They got there in their very first season, 1997, and again in 2003, but lost both times. The 2003 Game 7 was on June 12, 2003, against the Houston Aeros at Copps Coliseum. A crowd of 17,428 showed up, which set the AHL’s all-time playoff attendance record (Philadelphia later broke it in 2005). Houston won that game 3-0 and took the series 4-3. The Bulldogs finally captured the Calder Cup in 2007, beating the Hershey Bears. That series was a rematch of the 1997 final, which Hershey had won 4 games to 1. In 2007, Hamilton flipped the script, winning 4 games to 1.

Off the ice, the franchise hit trouble in 2000. A "Stay Dogs Stay" campaign, led by Don Robertson, Ron Burnstein, Nick Javor, and club President Cary Kaplan, worked to keep the team in Hamilton. It succeeded financially, boosting the fan base and securing a better lease with the city. Despite setting a franchise attendance high in 2001, the Edmonton Oilers announced plans to move their AHL team to Toronto. The same "Stay Dogs Stay" committee stepped in again for a second straight year. They lined up local investors who made a multimillion-dollar deal to buy the Quebec Citadelles franchise from the Montreal Canadiens and merge it with Hamilton, keeping the Bulldogs in town. This rescue was a unique partnership among the Montreal Canadiens, the Edmonton Oilers, the American Hockey League, and a local Hamilton ownership group. It allowed for a shared affiliation between Montreal and Edmonton during the 2002-03 season as ownership shifted. After that season, the Oilers officially moved their franchise to Toronto, where it became the Toronto Roadrunners. As part of the merger agreement, the Bulldogs kept most of their team and staff that had been linked to the Canadiens, ensuring continuity for the next season. Fans voted to stick with the Bulldogs name, which beat out Hamilton Canadiens and Hamilton Habs.