Miami Manatees
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Miami Manatees | |
 |
|
| Founded | 2003 |
| Home ice | Miami Arena |
| Based in | Miami, Florida |
| Colors | Forest Green, Gold, Black, Grey |
| League | 2003 - 2004: WHA2 |
| Head coach | Zac Boyer |
| General manager | Shawn Thorimbert |
| Owner | David Waronker |
The Miami Manatees were a minor league ice hockey team in the World Hockey Association 2. The Manatees played their home games at Miami Arena until David Waronker exercised an out clause in the teams lease with the Miami Arena that allowed Waronker to pull the team out of the arena if the teams attendance average was under 1,500 after 20 of 32 homes games.[1] And this would show, because recorded attendance was below the mark for most home games. One home game against the Lakeland Loggerheads would draw an estimated attendance of only 250 fans. After this, Waronker wanted to move the team to Maitland, FL to play in the RDV Sportsplex. After the players shot down the idea, the team then decided to play only away games. Again, many player did not like the idea and left to play for other teams, mostly in the South East Hockey League while some tried to catch on with ECHL teams. With the few remaining players, the team disbanded after playing only 48 games.
The radio voice of the Manatees was Mark Fischel, who broadcasted games on IRN.fm internet radio. The Manatees also received limited newspaper coverage in the Miami Herald, and nearby Ft. Lauderdale's Sun-Sentinel.
Contents |
[edit] Playoffs
The Manatees finished the season in 5th place with 53 points in 48 games, an impressive 20 points over the 6th place Lakeland Loggerheads who player 58 games. However, after the Manatees decided to play only road games, the league changed its playoff format to allow the four best win percentages into the playoffs. This allowed for the 4th place Orlando Seals with 59 points in 57 games to miss the playoffs
1 - Jacksonville Barracudas (81 pts in 59 games = 68.6%)
2 - Alabama Slammers (72 pts in 58 games = 62.1%)
3 - Macon Trax (66 pts in 56 games = 58.9%)
4 - Miami Manatees (53 pts in 48 games = 55.2%)
After having their roster severely depleted, the Manatees managed to win one game before losing the best-of-three playoff series with Jacksonville 2 games to 1 thus ending their season.
[edit] 2004-2005 season
Following the 03-04 season, the WHA2 teams jumped ship to the new Southern Professional Hockey League. The Manatees were given permission to suspend operations for the season and attempt to relocate to a new venue, whether in the Miami area or somewhere else. After that, the franchise just disappeared into oblivion and there has not been minor league hockey in Miami since.
