Mississippi Sea Wolves

{{Distinguish|Mississippi Sea Wolves (FPHL)}}{{Short description|Defunct minor professional ice hockey team}}

{{Infobox Pro hockey team

| bg_color = background:#FFFFFF; border-top:#C80815 5px solid; border-bottom:#00004d 5px solid

| team = Mississippi Sea Wolves

| logo=

| logosize = 190px

| city = Biloxi, Mississippi

| league = ECHL

| founded = 1996

| operated = 1996–2009

| arena = Mississippi Coast Coliseum

| colors = Red, blue, and white
{{color box|#C80815}} {{color box|#00004d}} {{color box|white}}

||reg_season_titles = 2002–03

|division_titles = 2002–03

|conf_titles =

|kelly_cups = 1998–99

|division = Continental

|website = [https://www.mississippiseawolves.com/ mississippiseawolves.com]

}}

The Mississippi Sea Wolves were a professional hockey team based in Biloxi, Mississippi, and play in the Mississippi Coast Coliseum. The Sea Wolves were members of the ECHL.

The Sea Wolves were founded in 1996 and had considerable success over their 10 seasons in the ECHL. They reached the playoffs in five of their first seven years and a league championship in 1999, when they defeated the Richmond Renegades in a best-of-seven series to claim the Kelly Cup.

Damages from Hurricane Katrina to the Mississippi Coast Coliseum forced the team to suspend operations for the 2005–06 and 2006–07 seasons under the ECHL's hardship provisions. Hurricane Katrina resulted in extensive damage to the team’s home arena, including flood damage to team offices, locker rooms, ice-making equipment, and two Zambonis. During the 2006–07 ECHL All-Star Game, the league officially confirmed the Sea Wolves would return in 2007–08.{{cite web|date=January 22, 2007|title=The ECHL officially announces the Sea Wolves return|url=http://www.echl.com/cgi-bin/mpublic.cgi?action=show_news&cat=1&id=9800|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080228055624/http://www.echl.com/cgi-bin/mpublic.cgi?action=show_news&cat=1&id=9800|archive-date=February 28, 2008|access-date=February 28, 2008|website=ECHL}}

On March 30, 2009, the Sea Wolves announced that the organization would be suspending operations again for the 2009–10 season, but a little more than a month later the team's management announced that professional hockey would continue to be played on the Mississippi Gulf Coast in the form of the Mississippi Surge in the Southern Professional Hockey League. The Surge played at the Coast Coliseum from the 2009–10 season through 2013–14.{{cite web|date=May 7, 2009|title=SOUTHERN PROFESSIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE COMES TO THE COAST|url=http://www.thesphl.com/fanzone/news/index.html?article_id=1165|access-date=May 11, 2009|website=Southern Professional Hockey League|publisher=}} {{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}

In 2021, the Federal Prospects Hockey League hosted three neutral site games in Biloxi. Biloxi Pro Hockey sold 20,163 tickets in the month of December and an announcement was made on December 30 that a new Sea Wolves team would return in 2022.{{cite web |url=https://www.supertalk.fm/professional-hockey-team-returning-full-time-to-biloxi/ |title=Professional hockey team returning full-time to Biloxi |website=supertalk.fm |date=January 3, 2022}} The new team began play in the 2022–23 FPHL season.

History

class="wikitable"

|bgcolor="#FFCCCC"|League champions

|bgcolor="#D0E7FF"|Division champions

|bgcolor="#96CDCD"|Playoff berth

class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:center"

! colspan="14" |ECHL

rowspan="2"|Season

!rowspan="2"|Division

!colspan="7"|Regular season

!colspan="3"|Statistics

!rowspan="2"|Postseason results

!rowspan="2"|Coach

{{abbr|W|Wins}}{{abbr|L|Losses}}{{abbr|T|Ties}}{{abbr|OTL|Overtime losses}}{{abbr|SOL|Shootout losses}}{{abbr|Pts|Points}}{{Abbr|Pct.|Points percentage}}{{abbr|GF|Goals for}}{{abbr|GA|Goals against}}{{abbr|PIM|Penalties in minutes}}
bgcolor="#96CDCD"| 1996–97South34261078.5572412452082align=left| Lost First Round, 0–3 vs. BirminghamBruce Boudreau
bgcolor="#96CDCD"| 1997–98Southwest3427977.5502252241909align=left| did not qualifyBruce Boudreau
bgcolor="#96CDCD"| 1998–99Southwest4122789.6362512151357align=left bgcolor="#FFCCCC"|Won Conf. Quarterfinals, 3–0 vs. South Carolina
Won Conf. Semifinals, 3–0 vs. Florida
Won Conf. Finals, 4–1 vs. Pee Dee
Won Kelly Cup, 4–3 vs. Richmond
Bruce Boudreau
bgcolor="#96CDCD"| 1999–00Southwest3527878.5572412211773align=left|Won Wildcard, 2–1 vs. Pensacola
Lost Conf. Quarterfinals, 1–3 vs. Louisiana
Marc Potvin
2000–01Southwest3433573.5072212181310align=left|did not qualifyAl Pedersen
bgcolor="#96CDCD"| 2001–02Southwest4126587.6042512321706align=left| Won Div. Semifinals, 3–0 vs. Pensacola
Won Div. Finals, 3–0 vs. Jackson
Lost Conf. Finals, 1–3 vs. Greenville
Bob Woods
bgcolor="#96CDCD"| 2002–03bgcolor="#D0E7FF"| Southwest4424492.6392502112159align=left| Won Div. Semifinals, 3–0 vs. Pensacola
Lost Div. Finals, 0–3 vs. Louisiana
Bob Woods
bgcolor="#96CDCD"| 2003–04Central4520797.6742562001632align=left| Lost Div. Semifinals, 2–3 vs. GwinnettBob Woods
bgcolor="#96CDCD"| 2004–05South39244587.6042232151372align=left| Lost Conf. Quarterfinals, 1–3 vs. GwinnettBob Woods
2005–06rowspan="2" colspan="13" valign="middle" | Inactive due to arena damages from Hurricane Katrina
2006–07
bgcolor="#96CDCD"| 2007–08South29401261.4242042621462align=left| Lost First Round, 1–3 vs. TexasSteffon Walby
2008–09South28357164.4512032561242align=left| did not qualifySteffon Walby

References

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