The Amarillo Wranglers are a Tier II junior

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

team in the North American Hockey League's South Division. The team's home arena is the

Amarillo Civic Center The Amarillo Civic Center is a multi-purpose convention center in Amarillo, Texas. It consists of multiple facilities including: * A 2,848-seat auditorium with 2,324 permanent seats used for concerts, Broadway shows and other events. * The Ca ...

Amarillo, Texas Amarillo ( ; Spanish for "yellow") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of Potter County. It is the 14th-most populous city in Texas and the largest city in the Texas Panhandle. A portion of the city extends into Randall County ...

History

Lone Star Cavalry

The Lone Star Cavalry were granted an expansion franchise in the

America West Hockey League The America West Hockey League (AWHL) was a Tier II Junior A ice hockey league. The AWHL was formed in 1992 to offer junior ice hockey to the Rocky Mountain region of USA Hockey. It originally was called the American Frontier Hockey League (AFHL), ...

in March 2003. They stayed in the league when it merged with the North American Hockey League for the 2003–04 season. The Cavalry played out of the Blue Line Ice Complex in North Richland Hills, Texas and served the immediate "Mid-Cities" area of Metro Dallas-Fort Worth. The Cavalry were part of the NAHL's new South Division along with the Central Texas Blackhawks,

Fairbanks Ice Dogs The Fairbanks Ice Dogs are a Tier II junior ice hockey team in the North American Hockey League's Midwest Division. The Ice Dogs play home games at the 2,200-seat Big Dipper Ice Arena in Fairbanks, Alaska. History Originally started in 1997 in ...

, Springfield (MO) Spirit,

Texas Tornado The Texas Tornado were a Junior A hockey team located in Frisco, Texas, USA. The team joined the North American Hockey League's Central division in 1999 (and moved into the newly formed southern division three years later) while located in North ...

, Texarkana Bandits, and Wichita Falls Rustlers.

Santa Fe RoadRunners

After financial difficulties caused the Cavalry's home rink, the Blue Line Ice Complex, to close, the Cavalry were left without a home. Due to this and other factors, the Cavalry ended up being sold and relocated to Santa Fe, New Mexico. The team was granted membership on September 20, 2004, and began play on September 25, 2004, under their new identity as the

Santa Fe RoadRunners Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnight ...

. The Santa Fe RoadRunners played out of the Genoveva Chavez Community Center in Santa Fe. In their inaugural season in New Mexico, the RoadRunners played in the South Division, against the Central Texas Marshals, Springfield (IL) Jr. Blues, Springfield Spirit, Texarkana Bandits, Texas Tornado, and the

Wichita Falls Wildcats The Wichita Falls Wildcats were a Tier II junior ice hockey team in the North American Hockey League's South Division. The Wildcats played out of the 7,380-seat Kay Yeager Coliseum in Wichita Falls, Texas. After failing to find a buyer, the Wil ...

, finishing with a 33–15–8 record, good for 3rd place in the division. The following season they finished dead last in the South Division behind the Tornado, Bandits, Jr. Blues, and the Wildcats. The third and final season in Santa Fe saw the RoadRunners finishing with a 41–17–4 record for second place in a South Division that consisted of the St. Louis Bandits, Texas Tornado, Fairbanks Ice Dogs, Wichita Falls Wildcats, and the Alaska Avalanche.

Topeka RoadRunners

On February 26, 2007, the team announced their move to Topeka, Kansas, from Santa Fe, New Mexico, due to claims of poor attendance. Santa Fe ranked 17th out of 18 teams in attendance. The move to Topeka was initiated by a grass roots effort, led by hockey fans from Topeka. In their first season in Topeka, 2007–08, they were third in league attendance while playing in Landon Arena. That season the team won the NAHL South Division and South Division Playoffs. They finished in third place at the Robertson Cup competition. The 2008–09 season saw the RoadRunners finishing fourth in league attendance and 2nd in the South Division. The team lost in the second round of the South Division playoffs. In 2009–10 The RoadRunners finished first in the South Division, and they were second in attendance. The 2010–11 season saw the RoadRunners claim the NAHL President's Cup as the league's regular season champions. On January 7, 2016, the RoadRunners fired long-tenured head coach and general manager Scott Langer, who had been with the team since their days as the Cavalry and the head coach since their first season in Santa Fe. He was hired immediately after the season ended by the

Aberdeen Wings The Aberdeen Wings are a Tier II junior ice hockey team based out of Aberdeen, South Dakota, that began play for 2010–11. A member of the North American Hockey League in the Central Division, the Wings play their home games in the Odde Ice Ce ...

. Former RoadRunner player and assistant coach Josh Kamrass was hired as his replacement. On November 24, 2017, assistant coach Justin DeMartino took over as an interim head coach, so that Kamrass could spend more time at home and took a front office job with the organization overseeing all the ownership's teams including their Tier III teams.

Topeka Pilots

On April 18, 2018, owners of the franchise since 2009, Barbara & Donald Stone, sold the franchise to Loretto Sports Ventures, a company owned by Lamar Hunt Jr., that also operates the

Kansas City Mavericks The Kansas City Mavericks are an ice hockey team in the ECHL. Founded in 2009 as the Missouri Mavericks of the CHL, the team plays in Independence, Missouri, a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri, at the Cable Dahmer Arena. History On April 16 ...

in the

ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The ...

. In the same press conference, Hunt announced the new head coach and general manager as Simon Watson for the 2018–19 season. The new ownership also announced the team would be rebranded and was renamed the Topeka Pilots on June 5, 2018.

Amarillo Wranglers

On February 28, 2020, Lamar Hunt Jr. announced he was moving the team to the Kansas City metropolitan area for the 2020–21 season. The team was renamed after the former NHL team, the

Kansas City Scouts The Kansas City Scouts were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1974 to 1976. In 1976, the franchise relocated to Denver, and became the Colorado Rockies. In 1982, the Rockies relocated to New Jersey where ...

, and were to play at least the 2020–21 season at the Kansas City Ice Center in the suburb of

Shawnee, Kansas Shawnee is a city in Johnson County, Kansas, United States. It is the seventh most populous municipality in the Kansas City metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 67,311. History Territory of Kansas Before ...

. However, the team instead went dormant for the 2020–21 season due to the on-going

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

with plans to return for the 2021–22 season. The Scouts also received dormancy status for the 2021–22 season on March 4, 2021, however, the team would never play a game as the Scouts. On May 21, 2021, the NAHL announced Hunt had instead sold the team to Amarillo Ice Sports, LLC, a locally owned and operated group including Chris Wright, Roger Wright, and Amarillo hockey alumni Eric Andersen, and Austin Sutter. The new team was named after the original Amarillo Wranglers. The Wranglers re-entered the league for the 2021–22 season, replacing the recently relocated

Amarillo Bulls The Amarillo Bulls were a Tier II junior ice hockey team based in Amarillo, Texas. They were a member of the North American Hockey League's South Division and played home games in the Amarillo Civic Center. History The franchise joined the NAHL ...

in the

, with Harry Mahood as general manager and head coach. The Wranglers then hired Karlis Zirnis as director of player personnel.

Season-by-season records

Playoffs

*2005 :First Round – Texarkana Bandits defeated Santa Fe Roadrunners, ''3-games-to-1'' *2007 :First Round –

defeated Santa Fe Roadrunners, ''3-games-to-2'' *2008 :Division Semifinals – Topeka RoadRunners defeated

, ''3-games-to-0'' :Division Final – Topeka RoadRunners defeated

, ''3-games-to-2'' :Robertson Cup Round Robin – Topeka RoadRunners (2-1) - Advance to Semifinal, ''(W, 3-2 vs. Phantoms; W, 4-2 vs.

Blizzard A blizzard is a severe snowstorm characterized by strong sustained winds and low visibility, lasting for a prolonged period of time—typically at least three or four hours. A ground blizzard is a weather condition where snow is not falling ...

; L, 2-5 vs. Bandits)'' :Robertson Cup Semifinal Game –

Mahoning Valley Phantoms The Youngstown Phantoms are a Tier I junior ice hockey team that plays in the Eastern Conference of the United States Hockey League (USHL). The team plays home games at the 5,200-seat Covelli Centre in Youngstown, Ohio. The team was co-owned by ...

defeated Topeka RoadRunners, ''5-2'' *2009 :Division Semifinals – Topeka RoadRunners defeated

, ''3-games-to-2'' :Division Finals – St. Louis Bandits defeated Topeka RoadRunners, ''3-games-to-1'' *2010 :Division Semifinals – Topeka RoadRunners defeated Springfield Jr. Blues, ''3-games-to-1'' :Division Finals – St. Louis Bandits defeated Topeka RoadRunners, ''3-games-to-2'' *2011 :Division Semifinals – Topeka RoadRunners defeated

, ''3-games-to-2'' :Division Finals –

defeated Topeka RoadRunners, ''3-games-to-2'' *2012 :Division Semifinals – Topeka RoadRunners defeated

, ''3-games-to-0'' :Division Finals –

defeated Topeka RoadRunners, ''3-games-to-1'' *2013 :Division Semifinals –

defeated Topeka RoadRunners, ''3-games-to-0'' *2014 :Division Semifinals – Topeka RoadRunners defeated Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees, ''3-games-to-0'' :Division Finals – Topeka RoadRunners defeated

, ''3-games-to-2'' :Robertson Cup Semifinals – Austin Bruins defeated Topeka RoadRunners, ''2-games-to-1'' *2015 :First Round – Topeka RoadRunners defeated

, ''3-games-to-1'' :Robertson Cup Quarterfinals –

Lone Star Brahmas The Lone Star Brahmas are a Tier II junior ice hockey team in the North American Hockey League (NAHL) based in North Richland Hills, Texas (a suburb of Fort Worth). The Brahmas play their home games at the NYTEX Sports Centre. The Brahmas nic ...

defeated Topeka RoadRunners, ''3-games-to-1'' *2016 :Division Semifinals – Topeka RoadRunners defeated

, ''3-games-to-1'' :Division Finals –

defeated Topeka RoadRunners, ''3-games-to-0'' *2023 :Division Semifinals –

Oklahoma Warriors The Oklahoma Warriors are a Tier II junior ice hockey team in the North American Hockey League's South Division. The Warriors play their home games at Blazers Ice Centre in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. History On October 15, 2019, the North Americ ...

defeated Amarillo Wranglers, ''2-games-to-0''

Players

Team captains

* Eric Trax: 2003–04 Lone Star Cavalry * Andrew Johnson: 2004–05 Santa Fe RoadRunners * Brandon Vossberg: 2005–06 Santa Fe RoadRunners * John Stoddard: 2006–07 Santa Fe RoadRunners and 2007–08 Topeka RoadRunners * Matt Hartmann: 2008–09 Topeka RoadRunners * Kurtis Anton: 2009–10 Topeka RoadRunners * Michael Hill / Jordan Davis: 2010–11 Topeka RoadRunners * Chris Bond: 2011–12 Topeka RoadRunners * Drew Kariofiles: 2012–13 Topeka RoadRunners * Jared Tafoya: 2013–14 Topeka RoadRunners * Mike Gornall: 2014–15 Topeka RoadRunners * Cam Strong / Dominic Lutz: 2015–16 Topeka RoadRunners * Marshall Bowery: 2016–17 Topeka RoadRunners * Nick Granowicz / Jake Rosenbaum / Nigel Nelson: 2017–18 Topeka RoadRunners * Brenden Rons: 2018–19 Topeka Pilots * Austin McCarthy: 2019-20 Topeka Pilots

Honored members

''Retired numbers'': The Topeka RoadRunners retired two numbers: the 11 of forward and team captain John Stoddard, and the 21 of Peter Halash. On January 6, 2014, Topeka Roadrunner Peter Halash died in a car wreck. The Roadrunners team had a jersey retirement ceremony before a game against the Springfield Jr. Blues on March 23, 2014.

Alumni

The RoadRunners have had a number of alumni move on to

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athletic ...

NCAA Division III NCAA Division III (D-III) is a division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States. D-III consists of athletic programs at colleges and universities that choose not to offer athletic scholarships to their st ...

, ACHA Division I and II, higher levels of junior ice hockey, and

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and ski ...

ice hockey, including: * Eriah Hayes (2007–08, Topeka RoadRunners) – Played 19 games for the

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are owned by San Jose Sports & Entertainm ...

of the

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

* Cole Schneider (2009–10, Topeka RoadRunners) – Played for the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1970, along w ...

in the NHL and for the Binghamton Senators,

Rochester Americans The Rochester Americans (colloquially known as the Amerks) are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League; the team is an owned and operated affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres. The team plays its home games in Rochester, New York, ...

, and Hartford Wolf Pack in the AHL.

References

External links

Official SiteNAHL website
{{Texas sports North American Hockey League teams Sports in Topeka, Kansas Ice hockey teams in Kansas Ice hockey clubs established in 2007 Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 2020 2007 establishments in Kansas 2020 disestablishments in Kansas Ice hockey teams in Texas Sports in Amarillo, Texas