2004–05 ECHL season

Infobox sports season
title =2004–05 ECHL season
league =ECHL
sport =Ice hockey
duration =
season =Regular season
season_champ =
MVP =flagicon|USA Scott Gomez (Alaska)
MVP_link =
top_scorer =flagicon|USA Scott Gomez (Alaska)
top_scorer_link =
playoffs =Playoffs
playoffs_link =
conf1 =American
conf1_link =
conf1_champ =Florida Everblades
conf1_runner-up =Charlotte Checkers
conf2 =National
conf2_link =
conf2_champ =Trenton Titans
conf2_runner-up =Alaska Aces
finals =Finals
finals_link =Kelly Cup
finals_champ =Trenton Titans
finals_runner-up =Florida Everblades
playoffs_MVP =flagicon|USA Leon Hayward (Trenton)
playoffs_MVP_link=
seasonslist = List of ECHL seasons
seasonslistnames = ECHL
prevseason_link = 2003–04 ECHL season
prevseason_year = 2003-04
nextseason_link = 2005–06 ECHL season
nextseason_year = 2005-06

The 2004-05 ECHL Season was the 17th season of the ECHL. This season marked uncharted territory for the ECHL as they established their first Canadian franchise, the Victoria Salmon Kings.

The league also adopted a "Mason-Dixon" format, as the conferences were split on the Mason-Dixon line, with the National Conference teams being north of the famed line, and American Conference teams south of the line -- in effect, all teams in states of the Confederacy, creating a "North vs South" format.

The ECHL All-Star Game was held at the Sovereign Center in Reading, Pennsylvania and was hosted by the Reading Royals. The National Conference All-Stars defeated the American Conference All-Stars 6:2, with Idaho's Frank Doyle named Most Valuable Player.

At the end of the season the Pee Dee Pride and Louisiana IceGators franchises ceased operations, with the Florence-based Pride announcing a move to nearby Conway (in the Myrtle Beach area), awaiting completion of the new Atlantic Center Arena. The Peoria Rivermen folded when replaced by an AHL team, and the Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies relocated to Stockton, California.

As a result of the NHL Lockout, players who would be in the AHL found themselves in the ECHL for another year, while some NHL stars found work in the ECHL, some as a way to return to their hometowns (or their wives'), and others to give back to the league which gave them a start. Scott Gomez (Alaska) chose to return home to his Anchorage roots, Curtis Brown played for his wife's hometown in San Diego, while Jeremy Stevenson, who played his first professional season as a Greensboro Monarch ten years ago, returned to the Carolinas as a member of a rival club, the South Carolina Stingrays. Stevenson's NHL teammate Shane Hnidy, who played 21 games with the former Baton Rouge Kingfish as a rookie, also rediscovered his roots, playing for the Florida Everblades. Hnidy and Stevenson would find themselves playing against each other in the second round of the Kelly Cup Playoffs. Bates Battaglia joined his younger brother Anthony on the Mississippi Sea Wolves of the ECHL for the 2004-05 season on February 21, 2005. This was the first time that he had played on the same team with his younger brother.

Regular Season

Final Standings

"Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L= Loses; T = Ties; GF = Goals For; GA = Goals Against; PTS = Points; Green shade = Clinched Playoff Spot; Blue shade = Clinched Division; (z) = Clinched Home-Ice Advantage"

American Conference

coring Leaders

"Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty Minutes"
valign="top"

North Division Semifinals

West Division Semifinals

2nd Round

American Conference Semifinals

National Conference Division Finals

Conference Finals

Kelly Cup Finals

ECHL Awards

ee also

* ECHL All-Star Game
* Kelly Cup