Newcastle North Stars

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Newcastle North Stars
League AIHL
Founded 1981
Based in Warners Bay, New South Wales
Home ice Hunter Ice Skating Stadium
Colors Blue, red and white
Championships 2003, 2005, 2006
Minor Premiers 2004
Head coach Don Champagne
General manager Garry Dore
Team manager Tony Johnstaon
Promtions manager Peter Lambert

The Newcastle North Stars are a semi-professional ice hockey team in the Australian Ice Hockey League. The team plays its home games at the Hunter Ice Skating Stadium (nicknamed 'HISS') in Warners Bay, a suburb of Lake Macquarie which is located about 15 kilometres south west of Newcastle, New South Wales.

The North Stars are three times winners of the AIHL and with it, the historic Goodall Cup. They are currently the defending AIHL champions, winning the title in 2003 as well as 2005 and 2006.

The team is affiliated with the Newcastle Northstars Ice Hockey Club, Ice Hockey New South Wales and Ice Hockey Australia.

Contents

[edit] History

Ice hockey started in the city of Newcastle in the 1970s, at the Wharf Road rink under Newcastle West's 'The Store' complex. Originally the Newcastle Red Wings, the Red Wings were part of national leagues of the time. Due to instability there were several variations of these leagues. The Red Wings became the North Stars in 1981 and were leading the national 'Super League' at the time when the Newcastle ice rink went into liquidation.

Some players then retired, while others went on to play for teams in Sydney or join inline hockey teams that started in the 1990s in Newcastle. A Newcastle North Stars in-line hockey team was formed including former members of the defunct Wharf Road team.

In 2000 the Hunter Ice Skating Stadium (a.k.a. HISS) opened at 230 Macquarie Road, Warners Bay. The Lake Macquarie suburb, only 15km from the city, proved an ideal location for the new rink. The rink opened with former North Stars player/coach Garry Doré as General Manager.

A local committee was established and the Newcastle Northstars Ice Hockey Club was registered in 2001. A team was assembled, mostly consisting of Canadian expatriates, and contested the New South Wales Senior B championship. The Senior B North Stars went on to win the championship state Senior B Championship for 2001.

Later in 2001 the Hunter Ice Skating Stadium hosted the Goodall Cup tournament, Australia's senior men's national tournament that has been contested since 1909. Utilising the experience from running the tournament and gaining assistance from existing AIHL teams, rink General Manager Garry Doré began building a team ready for the Australian Ice Hockey League.

Canadian expatriate Don Champagne was recruited to be coach, and local hockey enthusiast Peter Lambert was recruited as Team Manager.

The North Stars entered the AIHL in the 2002 expansion, when the league swelled from three teams to six. 2002 was a year of harsh lessons for the North Stars who upset the eventual champions the Sydney Bears twice, but suffered several harsh defeats. Top scorer for the North Stars in 2002 was imported Canadian Brett Hillier (Estevan Bruins).

In 2003 the North Stars recruited the services of highly-qualified Coaching Director Robert Barnes, a former European All-Star and coach of several national and professional teams throughout Europe. Rob Barnes in turned help recruit several young stars. Canadian import Ray Sheffield, sponsored by HISS as a rink manager, was promoted to team captain, a title that he retains to this day. Although the North Stars had a somewhat streaky season, they finished in 2nd place and defeated the Sydney Bears 4-1 in the semi-final. Minor Premiers the Adelaide Avalanche were eliminated by the Western Sydney Ice Dogs. In the final, the North Stars defeated the Ice Dogs 3 goals to 1 and won their first ever Goodall Cup. It was also the first time the AIHL had awarded the Goodall Cup through a tournament-style playoff series. Top-scorer and Most Valuable Player for the North Stars in 2003 was Daryl Bat (York Lions).

The North Stars finished the 2004 regular season in first place and as such were awarded the VIP Cup as minor premiers. Suffering only one loss in the regular season, Newcastle finished well ahead of the pack. The North Stars defeated the Avalanche in double-overtime in the AIHL playoff finals held in Erina, but were defeated by the Western Sydney Ice Dogs in the final by a score of 3 goals to 1. Top Scorer in 2004 was imported Canadian Sean Starke (now with the Quad City Mallards), and Most Valuable Player was his elder bother Robert Starke, who had remained in Australia while studying on a university scholarship.

In 2005 the North Stars raised the level of imports yet again with several professional players, including Jordan Landry (ECHL team Fresno Falcons), Don Nichols (Dutch elite league Heerenveen Flyers) and Nolan Graham (CHL team Lubbock Cotton Kings). The North Stars finished their regular season in second place, and went on to defeat the Western Sydney Ice Dogs in the semi final, and then the Adelaide Avalanche 3 goals to 1 in the AIHL Final played at their home rink in Warners Bay. The North Stars were awarded their second Goodall Cup since entering the league in 2002. Top scorer for the North Stars in 2005 was Francis Walker (Aurora Tigers & Lakehead University Wolves), and Most Valuable Player was awarded to defenceman Don Nichols (Heereneveen Flyers).

2006 was a year of change for the North Stars, with Coaching Director Rob Barnes leaving for Canada in June, and two key players from 2005, Jordan Landry and Francis Walker, departing early in the season. Due to a star line-up of imported talent, the North Stars were able to replace the two vacant positions during the season without falling out of finals contention. Professional North Stars imported players included Trevor Sherban, Marcel Kars, Gary Zinck and Ryan Crane. The North Stars finished the regular season in fourth place, and defeated the minor premiers the Melbourne Ice in the semi final held in Adelaide, South Australia, by 6 goals to 1. The following day the North Stars won their third Goodall Cup in four years when they comprehensively defeated the Adelaide Avalanche 4 goals to nil in the AIHL Final. Top scoring player for 2006 was Marcel Kars (HK Bolzano Junior Foxes, Italy) and Most Valuable Player was awarded to Jesse Pyatt (Guelph University Grphyons). Since the season end in September 2006 Jesse Pyatt (Reading Royals, ECHL) and goalie Matt Ezzy (HK Vojvodina, Serbia) have begun professional careers.

[edit] Sponsorship

The Newcastle North Stars are sponsored by the community newspaper the Newcastle Star. Other sponsors include Encompass Credit Union, Commercial Hotel in Boolaroo, and Eagle Boys Pizza - Warners Bay.

[edit] Accolades

The North Stars have been recognised as Newcastle's Outstanding Senior Sports team for their 2003 and 2004 seasons by the Newcastle City Council. North Stars goalie Matt Ezzy was voted "Sportsperson of the Year" by the Lake Macquarie City Council for his 2005 season in February 2006.

[edit] Rivalries

The North Stars' primary rivals are the Western Sydney Ice Dogs. The first ever AIHL game for the North Stars was a loss to the Ice Dogs, who joined the league in 2002 along with the North Stars. The North Stars defeated the Ice Dogs in the 2003 final to win the Goodall Cup, lost the Cup to the Ice Dogs in the 2004 final, and then defeated the Ice Dogs in the semi-final in 2005 before going on to take the Goodall Cup back into possession with a 3-1 win over the Adelaide Avalanche, and have retained the Goodall Cup in 2006 with a 4-0 win over the Adelaide Avalanche.

[edit] Trivia

  • The North Stars set an AIHL record for most goals scored in a game by one team - and also for the greatest winning margin in a game - when they defeated the Canberra Knights by a score of 21-2 at the HISS on August 6, 2006. Centre Marcel Kars recorded 8 goals and 4 assists in the game.

[edit] External links

Australian Ice Hockey League (AIHL)
2006 teams: Adelaide Avalanche | Brisbane Blue Tongues | Canberra Knights | Central Coast Rhinos | Melbourne Ice | Newcastle North Stars | Sydney Bears | Western Sydney Ice Dogs
Trophies and Awards: Goodall Cup | V.I.P. Cup
Related Articles: Australian National Ice Hockey Team | Ice Hockey Australia | International Ice Hockey Federation
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