Omaha Lancers

Omaha Lancers
CityOmaha, Nebraska
LeagueUnited States Hockey League
ConferenceWestern
Founded1986
Home arenaLiberty First Credit Union Arena
ColorsOrange, black, white
     
Owner(s)Mike Picozzi[1]
Head coachDavid Wilkie
MediaHockeyTV & MixIr (Broadcaster Nick Blaesser)
Franchise history
1986–2002Omaha Lancers
2002–2004River City Lancers
2004–presentOmaha Lancers
Championships
Regular season titles5 Anderson Cups (1989–90, 1992–93, 2001–02, 2004–05 (shared), 2007–08)
Playoff championships7 Clark Cups (1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1998, 2001, 2008)
2 USA Hockey Junior National Championships (2001, 2008)

The Omaha Lancers are a Tier I junior ice hockey team and are members of the Western Conference of the United States Hockey League (USHL). Founded in 1986, the Lancers play at the Liberty First Credit Union Arena in Ralston, Nebraska. Previous arenas of use include the Omaha Civic Auditorium, Mid-America Center, Ak-Sar-Ben Coliseum, and Motto McLean Ice Arena.

The Lancers have claimed a league-record seven Clark Cup championships as playoff champions, five Anderson Cup titles as regular season champions, and two USA Hockey national championships.[2] In addition, the Lancers have aided in the development of hundreds of NCAA Division I hockey players, National Hockey League (NHL) draft picks, and dozens of NHL players.

History

In 2014, the majority ownership of the Lancers was bought by Crossbar Down, LLC, led by Anthony DiCesare, from the American Hockey Group, Inc, who had owned the franchise since 2004.[3]

On July 10, 2021, Chadd Cassidy was hired as head coach and general manager.[4] During the 2021–22 season, the players boycotted the team and the coaching staff resigned on November 18 citing operational budget cuts causing inadequate player treatment and coaching the resources. The league then postponed the three scheduled weekend games and placed team president Dave DeLuca on administrative leave.[5][6][7] Former Fort Wayne Komets' head coach Gary Graham was then brought in as interim head coach and the league designated Josh Mervis to oversee operations of the team while an investigation into the operations of the team was underway.[8] In January 2022, the majority ownership of the Lancers was transferred from Anthony DiCesare to Mike Picozzi.[1]

Roster

As of September 21, 2022.[9]

No. S/P/C Player Pos Ht Wt DoB Hometown Previous team College commitment
3 Sweden Marcus Broberg D 6' 0" 175 lb 2003-10-23 Örebro, Sweden Malmö Redhawks J20 (J20 Nationell) Omaha
5 Michigan Tanner Rowe F 6' 0" 178 lb 2002-08-26 Calumet, Michigan Maryland (NAHL) UMass
6 New Jersey Mateo Picozzi D 6' 0" 170 lb 2003-04-29 Morristown, New Jersey Trinity-Pawling (USHS–NY) None
9 Sweden Max Wattvil D 6' 0" 180 lb 2002-08-11 Stockholm, Sweden Oskarshamn J20 (J20 Nationell) Merrimack
10 Florida Riley Rosenthal D 6' 2" 214 lb 2003-12-10 Boca Raton, Florida Dubuque (USHL) None
11 Wisconsin Braydon Beahm F 6' 4" 205 lb 2004-07-30 Waupun, Wisconsin Minot (NAHL) Clarkson
12 Michigan Griffin Jurecki F 5' 10" 179 lb 2003-05-03 Grosse Ile, Michigan Little Caesars U18 (Midget AAA) Denver
13 New Hampshire Nate Benoit D 6' 1" 188 lb 2002-11-26 Bow, New Hampshire Tri-City (USHL) North Dakota
14 Finland Aleksi Kivioja F 6' 4" 183 lb 2003-08-02 Helsinki, Finland Kiekko-Espoo U20 (U20 SM-sarja) Providence
16 Quebec Adam Cardona D 6' 2" 196 lb 2003-10-05 Beaconsfield, Quebec Waterloo (USHL) None
17 Connecticut Andon Cerbone F 5' 8" 156 lb 2004-04-13 Stamford, Connecticut Brunswick (USHS–CT) Michigan
18 Michigan Tucker Shedd D 6' 0" 177 lb 2004-09-08 Holt, Michigan Waterloo (USHL) Michigan State
19 Minnesota Alex Bump F 6' 1" 200 lb 2003-11-20 Prior Lake, Minnesota Prior Lake (USHS–MN) Vermont
21 Minnesota Charlie Lurie F 5' 11" 187 lb 2003-03-11 Minnetonka, Minnesota Youngstown (USHL) Omaha
22 Illinois Will Diamond F 6' 3" 197 lb 2003-12-22 Carpentersville, Illinois Aberdeen (NAHL) None
24 Pennsylvania Luke Amell D 6' 4" 193 lb 2003-09-02 Mars, Pennsylvania Aberdeen (NAHL) None
25 Illinois Matthew Romer F 5' 10" 174 lb 2002-09-01 Carpentersville, Illinois Janesville (NAHL) Arizona State
26 Michigan Ryan Kusler F 5' 11" 178 lb 2003-05-19 Battle Creek, Michigan Odessa (NAHL) None
27 Pennsylvania Justin Stupka F 6' 1" 195 lb 2005-03-15 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh Penguins Elite U18 (Midget AAA) None
28 Texas Evan Werner F 5' 8" 166 lb 2003-02-13 Flower Mound, Texas Youngstown (USHL) Colorado College
31 Switzerland Kevin Pasche G 5' 10" 170 lb 2003-02-14 Mézières, Switzerland Lausanne U20 (U20-Elit) None
35 Missouri Ben Behrens G 6' 2" 154 lb 2004-05-23 St. Louis, Missouri Bismarck (NAHL) None
44 New York (state) Donovan Hamilton D 6' 3" 188 lb 2005-12-03 Buffalo, New York Nichols (USHS–NY) Cornell
51 Michigan Luke Baker D 6' 1" 183 lb 2005-07-02 Howell, Michigan North Jersey Avalanche U18 (Midget AAA) Michigan State
62 Michigan Vincent Salice F 5' 6" 172 lb 2003-02-28 Commerce Township, Michigan Des Moines (USHL) Ohio State

Lancers NHL alumni

  • Keith Ballard: Phoenix Coyotes (2004–2008), Florida Panthers (2008–2010), Vancouver Canucks (2010–2013), Minnesota Wild (2013–2015)
  • Jacob Bryson: Buffalo Sabres
  • Thatcher Demko: Vancouver Canucks
  • Ryan Donato: Boston Bruins, Minnesota Wild, San Jose Sharks, Seattle Kraken
  • Dan Ellis: Dallas Stars, Nashville Predators, Tampa Bay Lightning, Anaheim Ducks, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers
  • Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson: Boston Bruins
  • Erik Haula: Minnesota Wild, Vegas Golden Knights, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, Boston Bruins, New Jersey Devils
  • Louis Leblanc: Montreal Canadiens, Anaheim Ducks
  • Alex Lyon: Philadelphia Flyers, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers
  • Ryan Malone: Pittsburgh Penguins (2003–2008), Tampa Bay Lightning (2008–2014), New York Rangers (2014–2015)
  • Will O'Neill: Philadelphia Flyers
  • Jed Ortmeyer: New York Rangers, Nashville Predators, San Jose Sharks, Minnesota Wild, Florida Panthers
  • Tucker Poolman: Winnipeg Jets, Vancouver Canucks
  • Trevor Smith: Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Islanders, Tampa Bay Lightning, Pittsburgh Penguins
  • Paul Stastny: Colorado Avalanche, St. Louis Blues, Vegas Golden Knights, Winnipeg Jets, Carolina Hurricanes
  • Akira Schmid: New Jersey Devils

References

  1. ^ a b "USHL, Omaha Lancers Announce New Majority Owner". OurSports Central. January 28, 2022.
  2. ^ "Team History". Omaha Lancers. Archived from the original on August 19, 2022. Retrieved June 3, 2017.
  3. ^ "New Lancers owner seeks to 'build on team's success'". Omaha World-Herald. October 7, 2014. Archived from the original on April 11, 2023.
  4. ^ "Lancers Name Chadd Cassidy as Head Coach, General Manager". OurSports Central. July 10, 2021.
  5. ^ "Breaking News: Firestorm in Omaha". The Hockey News. November 18, 2021.
  6. ^ "USHL's Omaha Lancers idle as player treatment investigated". NBC Sports. November 19, 2021.
  7. ^ "Junior hockey team postpones weekend games amid chaos in program". KLKN-TV. November 19, 2021.
  8. ^ "USHL Update on the Omaha Lancers". OurSports Central. November 20, 2021.
  9. ^ "Omaha Lancers Roster". USHL. Retrieved September 17, 2022.

External links

  • Omaha Lancers


Stub icon

This American ice hockey team-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Stub icon

This article about a sports team in Nebraska is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Omaha_Lancers&oldid=1215610969"