Cape Breton Screaming Eagles

Hockey team |CAN_eng=1
team = Cape Breton Screaming Eagles

city = Sydney, Nova Scotia
league = Q.M.J.H.L.
division = Eastern
founded = 1997–98
arena = Centre 200
colours = Black, White, Gold & Grey
coach = Mario Durocher
GM = Mario Durocher
name1 = Sorel Éperviers
dates1 = 1969–77
name2 = Verdun Éperviers
dates2 = 1977–79
name3 = Sorel/Verdun Éperviers
dates3 = 1979–80
name4 = Sorel Éperviers
dates4 = 1980–81
name5 = Granby Bisons
dates5 = 1981–95
name6 = Granby Prédateurs
dates6 = 1995–97
name7 = Cape Breton Screaming Eagles
dates7 = 1997–PresentThe Cape Breton Screaming Eagles are a junior ice hockey team in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. They play at Centre 200 in Sydney, Nova Scotia.

History

Before Cape Breton (1969–1997)

The franchise was granted to the Sorel Eperviers (Black Hawks) for the 1969-70 season. They moved from Sorel to Verdun in 1977 to become the Verdun Eperviers. In 1979 they played in both Sorel and Verdun before moving back to Sorel for the next season. In 1981 they moved to Granby to become the Granby Bisons, and in 1995 they changed their names to the Granby Prédateurs. In 1996, the Prédateurs won the Memorial Cup. In 1997 they moved to Sydney to become the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. Prior to the Eagles' arrival, Sydney played host to the AHL's Cape Breton Oilers from 1988 to 1996.

Cape Breton (1997–Present)

The Screaming Eagles' very first captain was Daniel Payette under coach Dany Dubé. They had very poor success in their first few seasons and often had difficulty earning respect around the league, with some players not wanting to come to Cape Breton or complaining while they were there. As enforcers were more common in the league at the time, the Screaming Eagles often made up for lack of skill by having an abundance of fighters, such as Trevor Ettinger, Pascal Morency, George Davis, and Hunter LaHache. Ettinger unfortunately commited suicide in 2003 while playing in the AHL.

The turn of the new millennium brought some hope to the Screaming Eagles franchise as new head coach and general manager Pascal Vincent was able to slowly turn things around. Star goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury is often credited as the one who landed the Screaming Eagles on the map and prevented them from folding. Along with star players Dominic Noel, Stuart MacRae, and Stephen Dixon, the Screaming Eagles reached the league's conference final in 2002, only to lose in 5 games to Acadie-Bathurst Titan. Fleury's #29 went on to be retired by the Screaming Eagles on January 25th, 2008.

After six seasons in the league and only a conference final appearance to show for it, Vincent made a bold move and stacked the Screaming Eagles lineup with many NHL prospects for the 2003-2004 season in hopes of bringing a league title to Cape Breton. Most of the players came from a notorious "boomerang" trade with the Halifax Mooseheads. After the Screaming Eagles won 49 games and captured a division title, Fleury returned from the Pittsburgh Penguins, leading many to think the team would be unstoppable in the playoffs. The Screaming Eagles lost in the second round to the Chicoutimi Sagueneens.

Despite the embarrassment, President Greg Lynch opted not to fire Vincent. The Screaming Eagles adopted a new motto that character, will, and work ethic wins games over skill. In August 2004, Lynch died. At the 2004 QMJHL draft, the Screaming Eagles chose James Sheppard with the 1st overall pick. In 2006-2007, along with star players Luc Bourdon, Ondrej Pavelec, and Oskars Bartulis, Sheppard led the Screaming Eagles to the league semifinals, only to lose in a legendary 7-game series to the Val-d'Or Foreurs. In game 3, Screaming Eagles forward Chris Culligan won the game in overtime on a penalty shot, a moment many consider to be one of the greatest at Centre 200. Bourdon unfortunately died in a tragic motorcycle accident a year later.

The 2007-2008 season saw 16 year-old goaltender Olivier Roy rise to prominence after Marek Benda, the team's attempt at a second star Czech goalie, fell to injury for much of the season. The Screaming Eagles were able to finish 4th in their division and win their first round playoff series despite having a roster that normally dressed at least ten rookies. Vincent went on to be named the 2008 QMJHL Coach of the Year for his efforts. However, Vincent's tenure with the Screaming Eagles was ended on a negative note. Following the end of the season, Vincent violated the terms of his contract and became the head coach and general manager of the Montreal Junior Hockey Club, the new QMJHL team based out Verdun, Quebec. The Screaming Eagles traded Neil Sherren (an 11th round pick from the 2007 draft) to Montreal and received a 3rd round draft pick in return. This is widely considered as the Screaming Eagles' compensation from Montreal for Vincent's illegal departure, even though there are no official rules in place for such compensation to exist.

The new head coach and general manager would be assistant coach Mario Durocher.

Players

Current roster

NHL alumni

*Luc Bourdon *Jean-Philippe Côté *Marc-Andre Fleury *Ryan Flinn

*Martin Houle *Tomas Kloucek *Guillaume Lefebvre *Adam Pardy

*Ondrej Pavelec *Alexandre Picard *Tim Ramholt *James Sheppard

NHL 1st round draft picks

*2003 NHL Entry Draft - Marc-Andre Fleury #1 Overall (Pittsburgh Penguins)
*2006 NHL Entry Draft - James Sheppard #9 Overall (Minnesota Wild)

Retired numbers

*#29 - Marc-Andre Fleury

Award winners

CHL Scholastic Player of the Year *2007-2008: Robert Slaney Jacques Plante Memorial Trophy *2003-2004: Martin Houle (2.32) *2005-2006: Ondrej Pavelec (2.51) *2006-2007: Ondrej Pavelec (2.52) Luc Robitaille Trophy *2006-2007: Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (308) Marcel Robert Trophy *2004-2005: Guillaume Demers *2007-2008: Robert Slaney Maurice Filion Trophy *2006-2007: Pascal Vincent Mike Bossy Trophy *2002-2003: Marc-Andre Fleury Philips Plaque *2001-2002: Pierre-Luc Emond

Raymond Lagacé Trophy *2005-2006: Ondrej Pavelec *2007-2008: Olivier Roy RDS Cup *2005-2006: Ondrej Pavelec *2007-2008: Olivier Roy Robert Lebel Trophy *2003-2004: Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (2.33) Ron Lapointe Trophy *2007-2008: Pascal Vincent Telus Cup – Defensive *2002-2003: Marc-Andre Fleury *2004-2005: Martin Houle

eason-by-season record

* Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (1997–Present) [ [http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/teamseasons.php?tid=1330 Cape Breton Screaming Eagles season-by-season record on www.hockeydb.com] ]

Regular season

:OL = Overtime loss, SL = Shootout loss, Pct = Winning percentage

ee also

*List of ice hockey teams in Nova Scotia

References

External links

* [http://www.capebretoneagles.com Official Site]