The Green Bay Gamblers are a junior ice hockey team in the Eastern Conference of the United States Hockey League (USHL). They play in Green Bay, Wisconsin, at the Resch Center.
History
Professional hockey in Green Bay The first professional hockey team to be based in Green Bay was the Green Bay Bobcats who started playing in 1958 when the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena was built. There is some confusion over what league the team played in during its early years or if the team played in multiple leagues. Some sources cite that the Bobcats played in the U.S. Central Hockey League, a predecessor to the current United States Hockey League (USHL). Other sources claim that the Bobcats did not start playing in the USCHL until 1961. The Green Bay Bobcats franchise folded after the 1980-1981 season and 23 years of play. However, since the 2008-2009 season, the Green Bay Gamblers have used a yellow bobcat prominently in the team's logo as well as having a bobcat by the name of "Ace" as the team's mascot.
Green Bay Gamblers
Since their inception into the United States Hockey League in 1994, the Green Bay Gamblers have been one of the premiere junior "A" hockey franchises in all of North America. To their credit the Gamblers have won two Junior A, Tier 2 National Championships (Gold Cups in 1996 and 1997), five Anderson Cups (1996, 1997, 2009, 2010, and 2012), four Clark Cups (1996, 2000, 2010, and 2012), four USHL Eastern Division titles, and one USHL Northern Division title. Since the USHL became Tier 1 in 2002, the Clark Cup also represents that level's national championship.
Home rinks From when the Gamblers entered the league at the start of the 1994-1995 season through the 2001-2002 season, the team's primary venue was at the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena. For the start of the 2002-2003 season, the Gamblers moved into the Resch Center, an 8,800 seat arena which was built on the opposite side of Shopko Hall. The team played at the Memorial Arena a few times each season due to scheduling conflicts with the Resch Center until the arena was scheduled for demolition in 2019.
During the years at the Arena, other venues were sometimes used due to scheduling conflicts. These include the De Pere Ice & Recreation Center, the Brown County Youth Hockey Arena, the Cornerstone Community Center, Fond du Lac's Blue Line Ice Center, Beaver Dam Ice Arena, Greenheck Ice Center in Schofield.
Since 1994 the average attendance of a Gamblers Game is 3,353 people, which is among the top in the USHL. In 2010, the Green Bay Gamblers set a USHL record for the highest attended playoff game when 8,487 fans showed up to see game five of the USHL Playoff championship, a game the Gamblers won resulting in franchise's third Clark Cup. The record has since been broken multiple times.
Season-by-season record Reference
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes Season GP W L T OTL SOL PTS GF GA PIM Finish Playoffs1994–95 48 9 34 1 4 0 23 147 264 — 11th of 11 Did not qualify1995–96 46 32 11 3 0 0 67 219 137 — 1st of 11 Won Clark Cup1996–97 54 41 11 0 2 0 84 260 187 1882 1st of 6, North Won quarterfinals, 4–2 vs. Fargo-Moorhead Ice SharksWon semifinals, 4–3 vs. North Iowa HuskiesLost championship, 0-4 vs. Lincoln Stars1997–98 56 31 20 0 0 5 51 157 183 1576 3rd of 6, North Lost quarterfinals, 0-4 vs. Des Moines Buccaneers1998–99 56 41 11 0 4 0 86 213 143 1568 1st of 4, East Won quarterfinals, 3–0 vs. Thunder Bay FlyersLost semifinals, 0-3 vs. Omaha Lancers1999–00 58 35 18 0 0 5 75 232 174 1318 2nd of 7, East Won quarterfinals, 3–1 vs. Waterloo Black HawksWon semifinals, 3–2 vs. Des Moines BuccaneersWon championship, 4–1 vs. Twin City Vulcans2000–01 56 32 13 0 11 0 75 177 153 994 1st of 6, East Lost quarterfinals, 1-3 vs. Tri-City Storm2001–02 61 35 20 0 6 0 76 184 179 1257 1st of 6, East Won quarterfinals, 3–0 vs. Des Moines BuccaneersLost semifinals, 1-3 vs. Sioux City Musketeers2002–03 60 16 36 — 3 5 40 139 215 1341 5th of 5, East Did not qualify2003–04 60 27 28 — 4 1 59 171 176 1144 5th of 6, East Did not qualify2004–05 60 21 37 — 2 0 44 141 220 971 5th of 6, East Did not qualify2005–06 60 30 26 — 1 3 64 182 183 1127 3rd of 6, East Lost quarterfinals, 0-3 vs. Des Moines Buccaneers2006–07 60 24 30 — 1 5 54 176 198 1317 4th of 6, East Lost first round, 0-4 vs. Indiana Ice2007–08 60 13 41 — 2 4 32 130 224 1346 6th of 6, East Did not qualify2008–09 60 39 17 — 0 4 82 237 165 1363 1st of 6, East Won quarterfinals, 3–0 vs. Waterloo Black HawksLost semifinals, 1-3 vs. Indiana Ice2009–10 60 45 10 — 2 3 95 212 140 1394 1st of 8, East Won quarterfinals, 3–0 vs. Waterloo Black HawksWon semifinals, 3–1 vs. Indiana IceWon championship, 3–2 vs. Fargo Force2010–11 60 41 15 — 2 2 86 189 131 790 2nd of 8, Eastern Won quarterfinals, 3–0 vs. Indiana IceWon semifinals, 3–1 vs. Cedar Rapids RoughRidersLost championship, 1-3 vs. Dubuque Fighting Saints2011–12 60 47 9 — 2 2 98 250 138 882 1st of 8, Eastern Won quarterfinals, 3–1 vs. Youngstown PhantomsWon semifinals, 3–0 vs. Indiana IceWon championship, 3–2 vs. Waterloo Black Hawks2012–13 64 37 23 — 3 1 78 234 207 1069 2nd of 8, Eastern Lost quarterfinals, 1-3 vs. Youngstown Phantoms2013–14 60 30 24 — 3 3 66 183 176 887 4th of 8, Eastern Lost quarterfinals, 1-3 vs. Indiana Ice2014–15 60 18 34 — 3 5 44 156 213 1010 9th of 9, Eastern Did not qualify2015–16 60 37 16 — 4 3 81 191 135 881 2nd of 9, Eastern Lost quarterfinals, 1-3 vs. Dubuque Fighting Saints2016–17 60 34 22 — 2 2 72 173 145 — 5th of 9, Eastern Did not qualify2017–18 60 30 24 — 4 2 66 172 170 — 3rd of 9, Eastern Lost quarterfinals, 0-2 vs. Dubuque Fighting Saints2018–19 62 19 34 — 6 3 47 173 250 967 8th of 9, Eastern Did not qualify2019–20 48 24 19 — 2 3 53 168 147 840 3rd of 8, Eastern Season cancelled2020–21 51 30 17 — 2 2 64 190 182 821 3rd of 6, Eastern Lost conference semifinals, 0–2 vs. Muskegon Lumberjacks2021–22 62 23 34 — 3 2 51 195 266 837 8th of 8, Eastern Did not qualify2022–23 62 32 23 — 3 4 71 204 204 829 4th of 8, Eastern Lost quarterfinals, 1–2 vs. Dubuque Fighting Saints2023–24 62 34 18 — 7 3 78 233 214 1046 3rd of 8, Eastern Won quarterfinals, 2-1 vs. Chicago SteelLost conference semifinals, 2–3 vs. Muskegon Lumberjacks2024–25 62 27 31 — 2 2 58 202 242 1119 6th of 8, Eastern Lost quarterfinals, 0–2 vs. Madison Capitols2025–26 62 38 18 — 4 2 82 234 185 1281 3rd of 8, Eastern Lost quarterfinals, 0–2 vs. Madison CapitolsTotals 1808 934 706 4 90 74 2020 5890 5761 30576
Players Team captains
Notable alumni NHL On March 25, 2013, former Gamblers head coach Jon Cooper was named the head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning. He is the first USHL coaching alumnus to lead an NHL team. Former Gamblers head coach Derek Lalonde was hired by the Lightning as an assistant coach on July 12, 2018, joining Cooper's staff.
On June 30, 2022, the Detroit Red Wings hired Derek Lalonde as head coach.
Notable NHL draft picks
Green Bay Gamblers have had the following players selected in the NHL draft. Year Player Drafted team Pick 1999 Jeff Finger Colorado Avalanche 8th round 2002 Matt Greene Edmonton Oilers 2nd round Matt Jones Phoenix Coyotes 3rd round Nate Guenin New York Rangers 4th round Joey Crabb 7th round Adam Burish Chicago Blackhawks 9th round 2004 Blake Wheeler Phoenix Coyotes 1st round Victor Oreskovich Colorado Avalanche 2nd round Wes O'Neill New York Islanders 4th round 2006 Michael Forney Atlanta Thrashers 3rd round Eric Gryba Ottawa Senators 2007 Justin Braun San Jose Sharks 7th round 2009 Nick Jensen Phoenix Coyotes 5th round Anders Lee New York Islanders 7th round 2011 Andy Welinski Anaheim Ducks 3rd round 2012 Jordan Schmaltz St. Louis Blues 1st round 2013 Gustav Olofsson Minnesota Wild 2nd round 2014 Nick Schmaltz Chicago Blackhawks 1st round Brendan Lemieux Buffalo Sabres 2nd round 2015 Vili Saarijärvi Detroit Red Wings 3rd round Christian Wolanin Ottawa Senators 4th round Adam Húska New York Rangers 7th round 2016 Andrew Peeke Columbus Blue Jackets 2nd round Rhett Gardner Dallas Stars 4th round 2017 Casey Mittelstadt Buffalo Sabres 1st round 2018 John Leonard San Jose Sharks 6th round 2020 Mason Lohrei Boston Bruins 2nd round 2024 Artyom Levshunov Chicago Blackhawks 1st round
Olympics
Year Player Country Finish 2006 Māris Ziediņš Latvia 12th2014 Blake Wheeler United States 4th2022Markus LauridsenDenmark7th
NCAA champions
Gamblers alumni have played on multiple NCAA men's hockey national champions teams: +YearPlayerSchoolDivision2006Adam BurishWisconsinDivision IJosh EngelKyle Klubertanz2009Eric GrybaBostonDivision I2016Christian WolaninNorth DakotaDivision INick Schmaltz2022David CarleDenverDivision I
Statistical leaders
Points Player Chad StauffacherF13573671401.04Kyle NovakRW12644841281.02Nick SchmaltzC13037821190.92Billy PuglieseF9154621161.27Luke StauffacherRW18939771160.61Matthew WeisC14142701120.79Reed SeckelC/LW11435751100.96Nick SchilkeyRW11848591070.91Alex BroadhurstC10839671060.98Kevin GranatoC9845571021.04
Goals Player Chad StauffacherF73Billy PuglieseF54Sergio SommaLW52C.J. LeeF50Nick SchilkeyRW48Alex KileLW47Kevin GranatoC45Nolan LaPorteRW45Kyle NovakRW44Matt JohnsonRW43
Assists Player Kyle NovakRW84Nick SchmaltzC82Luke StauffacherRW77Reed SeckelC/LW75Jeff FingerD72Matthew WeisC70Dan CalzadaD68Chad StauffacherF67Alex BroadhurstC67Billy PuglieseF62
Points per game Player John EichelbergerC1.408Aaron SmithF1.364Ryan ForbesF1.277Billy PuglieseF1.275Casey MittelstadtC/LW1.250Jason CuppC1.241Mario LeBlancF1.200Anders LeeLW1.119Brian McDonaldLW1.053Chris LineRW1.050
Games played Player Luke StauffacherRW189Dallas StewardF164Corey CouturierLW164Dan CalzadaD162Jeff FingerD161Anthony HayesF160Ryan LittleF/D155C.J. LeeF152Brandon LongleyD148Matthew WeisC141
Head coaches
Don Granato (1994–97) Mark Osiecki (1997–2004) Mark Mazzoleni (2004-2008) Dave Insalaco (2008) (interim) Jon Cooper (2008–2010) Eric Rud (2010–11) Derek Lalonde (2011–2014) Pat Mikesch (2014–2022) Michael Leone (2022–2024) Patrick McCadden (2024–present)
References
External links Green Bay Gamblers Official Website