Ligue Magnus
Current season, competition or edition: 2016–17 Ligue Magnus season | |
 | |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1906 |
| No. of teams | 12 |
| Country | France |
| Most recent champion(s) | Rapaces de Gap |
| Most titles | Chamonix (30) |
| Official website | liguemagnus.com |
Ligue Magnus is the current name for the top men's division of the French ice hockey pyramid, established in 1906. The league was renamed in 2004 to take the name of its championship trophy, the Magnus Cup. The trophy was in turn named for Frenchman and IIHF founder Louis Magnus. From the 2016–17 season, the league has officially been known as Saxoprint Ligue Magnus, due to a sponsorship deal with Saxoprint, the online printing subsidiary of German conglomerate Cewe.
Format
12 teams play a 44-game regular season. The schedule is fully balanced and there are no geographic conferences.
The top 8 teams qualify for the Magnus Cup playoffs, with all series contested in a best-of-seven format. The remaining 4 teams play a 6-game round-robin, at the end of which the last-place team is relegated.
The Magnus Cup champions qualify for the following season's Champions Hockey League.
Import rule
Game night rosters must include at least 11 players who have spent 3 or more years in the French hockey system before the age of 21.
French citizenship itself is not a requirement to qualify for non-import status, as long as the player meets the above criteria. Conversely, a citizen of France who was fully trained in a foreign country will count as an import regardless of his French citizenship.
Level of play
The Ligue Magnus is considered a mid-tier European league. The International Ice Hockey Federation ranks it below the Central European Erste Bank Eishockey Liga or the Norwegian league, but ahead of the Dutch and British leagues.
Media
Television
Select games from the regular season and championship series are broadcast on L'Equipe.
Internet streaming
All league games can be watched online in their entirety, live or delayed, for a monthly subscription fee of approximately €8. The service is managed by Finnish company Fanseat.
Video game
Hockey Dangles '16: Saxoprint Magnus Edition, an arcade-style mobile video game based on the league, has been released for Android and iOS devices.[1] Its launch coincided with the opening of the 2016-17 season.
Outdoor games
On December 22, 2013, Grenoble and Briançon played an outdoor regular season game at Stade des Alpes, the home of former Ligue 1 soccer club GF38. A sellout attendance of 19,767 set a league record.
Another outdoor game took place on December 30, 2016, when Lyon hosted Grenoble at Parc OL, the home field of seven-time Ligue 1 champions Olympique Lyonnais. The event drew a heavily papered 25,182 fans, which was nonetheless touted as a new record.[2]
2016/17 Teams
| Team | City | Arena | Founded |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gothiques | Amiens | Coliséum | 1967 |
| Ducs | Angers | Patinoire du Haras | 1982 |
| Boxers | Bordeaux | Patinoire de Mériadeck | 1999 |
| Pionniers | Chamonix | Centre Sportif Richard Bozon | 2016 |
| Ducs | Dijon | Patinoire Trimolet | 1969 |
| GamYo | Épinal | Patinoire de Poissompré | 1997 |
| Rapaces | Gap | Alp'Arena | 1937 |
| Brûleurs de Loups | Grenoble | Patinoire Pole Sud | 1963 |
| Lions | Lyon | Patinoire Charlemagne | 1953 |
| Aigles | Nice | Patinoire Jean Bouin | 1969 |
| Dragons | Rouen | Patinoire de l'Île Lacroix | 1982 |
| Etoile Noire | Strasbourg | Patinoire Iceberg | 2000 |
Former teams
- Albatros de Brest
- Chamois de Chamonix
- Corsaires de Dunkerque
- Diables Rouges de Briançon
- Drakkars de Caen
- Jets de Viry-Essonne
- Orques d'Anglet
- Ours de Villard-de-Lans
- Pingouins de Morzine-Avoriaz
- Sangliers Arvernes
- Scorpions de Mulhouse
- Avalanche du Mont-Blanc
Defunct teams
Previous winners
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Titles by team
| Pl | Team | Titles |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | HC Chamonix | 30 |
| 2 | HC Rouen | 14 |
| 3 | Club de Patineurs de Paris | 7 |
| 4 | HC Saint-Gervais | 6 |
| 5 | CSG Grenoble | 4 |
| Français Volants Paris | 4 | |
| 7 | AC Boulogne-Billancourt Paris | 3 |
| Stade Français Paris | 3 | |
| HC Gap | 3 | |
| 10 | HC Brest | 2 |
| HC Mont-Blanc | 2 | |
| Racing Club de Paris | 2 | |
| Sports d'Hiver Paris | 2 | |
| HC Reims | 2 | |
| HC Amiens Somme | 2 | |
| 16 | HC Megève | 1 |
| SP Lyon | 1 | |
| SC Lyon | 1 | |
| ASG Tours | 1 | |
| Ice Skating Club Paris | 1 | |
| Paris Université Club | 1 | |
| Rapides de Paris | 1 | |
| ASG Mulhouse | 1 | |
| Briançon | 1 |
Awards
- Charles Ramsay Trophy (top scorer)
- Albert Hassler Trophy (most valuable player of French citizenship)
- Marcel Claret Trophy (most sportsmanlike team)
- Raymond Dewas Trophy (most sportsmanlike player)
- Jean-Pierre Graff Trophy (most valuable rookie)
- Jean Ferrand Trophy (most valuable goaltender)
- French Coach of the Year Award (top coach)
Notable players
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ligue Magnus. |
- Philippe Bozon (St. Louis Blues, Genève-Servette HC)
- Alain Daigle (Chicago Blackhawks)
- Evgeny Davydov (HC CSKA Moscow, Winnipeg Jets)
- Steve Gainey (Dallas Stars, Phoenix Coyotes)
- Cristobal Huet (Los Angeles Kings, Montreal Canadiens, Washington Capitals, Chicago Blackhawks)
- Steve Montador (Calgary Flames, Florida Panthers, Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres)
- Steven Reinprecht (Calgary Flames, Colorado Avalanche, Florida Panthers, Los Angeles Kings, Phoenix Coyotes)
- Mark Rycroft (St. Louis Blues, Colorado Avalanche)
- Richard Sévigny (Montreal Canadiens, Quebec Nordiques)
- Claude Verret (Buffalo Sabres, Lausanne HC, Rochester Americans)
In addition, Bob Gainey (Montreal Canadiens) and Brian Propp (Philadelphia Flyers) have played in the second tier of French hockey.
References
- ↑ Hockey Dangles'16 Saxoprint Magnus Edition - Trailer FR (Trailer) (in French). Toulon: GamYo Studio. July 29, 2016. Retrieved July 30, 2016.
- ↑ Riglet, Sébastien (December 31, 2016). "Winter Game : 25182 personnes au Parc OL, vraiment ?". LeSportDauphinois.com. JHN Média. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
