The Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs were a professional

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 hock ...

team which played in the

Bossier City Bossier City ( ) is a city in Bossier Parish in the northwestern region of the U.S. state of Louisiana in the United States. It is the second most populous city in the Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan statistical area. In 2020, it had a ...

Shreveport Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population o ...

metropolitan area of

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

. From 1997 to 2001, the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs were members of the

Western Professional Hockey League The Western Professional Hockey League (abbreviated WPHL) is a defunct minor professional ice hockey league. The WPHL operated from 1996 to 2001 with teams based in the southern United States, primarily Texas and Louisiana. The league started with ...

, until a 2001 merger between the WPHL with the Central Hockey League. From 2001 to 2011, the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs played in the

Central Hockey League The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...

. From 1997 until 2000, they were known as the Shreveport Mudbugs, changing the name to the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs after the team relocated from the

Hirsch Coliseum Hirsch Memorial Coliseum is 10,000-seat multi-purpose arena in Shreveport, Louisiana, designed by the late local architect Edward F. Neild Jr. (1908–1958) who, with his father in 1937, had designed the Louisiana State Exhibit Museum in Shrevepo ...

in Shreveport to the

CenturyTel Center The Brookshire Grocery Arena (formerly CenturyLink Center, CenturyTel Center, and Bossier City Arena) is a 14,000-seat multi-purpose arena, in Bossier City, Louisiana. The naming rights were purchased by the company Brookshire Grocery Group of ...

in Bossier City. One of the few successful sports teams from the Bossier-Shreveport area, the Mudbugs found success early. Coached by former Mudbug player Scott Muscutt and owned by Tommy and Leslie Scott, the team increased attendance each year and hosted the All-Star festivities for the

in 2007. The Mudbugs maintained heated rivalries with the

Texas Brahmas The Fort Worth Brahmas were a professional ice hockey team in the Central Hockey League, and previously the Western Professional Hockey League. The team originally played at the Fort Worth Convention Center but played their final six seasons, inc ...

Laredo Bucks The Laredo Bucks were an ice hockey team in the Central Hockey League. The Bucks played in Laredo, Texas, United States at the Laredo Energy Arena, formerly known as the Laredo Entertainment Center. On May 1, 2012, the management, citing declin ...

Mississippi RiverKings The Mississippi RiverKings were a professional minor league ice hockey team. The RiverKings were a member of the Southern Professional Hockey League from 2011 to 2018 after playing their first nineteen seasons (1992–2011) in the Central Ho ...

, and

Colorado Eagles The Colorado Eagles are a professional minor league ice hockey team based in Loveland, Colorado. The Eagles play in the Pacific Division of the American Hockey League. The Eagles were founded as an expansion franchise in 2003 in the Central Hoc ...

History

In their first four seasons, the Mudbugs saw their most success. After the sweep from the

Fort Worth Brahmas The Fort Worth Brahmas were a professional ice hockey team in the Central Hockey League, and previously the Western Professional Hockey League. The team originally played at the Fort Worth Convention Center but played their final six seasons, incl ...

in the second round of their opening season, the Mudbugs went on to win the President's Cup Championships three straight years in the WPHL. Following the merger of the WPHL and CHL, the Mudbugs found their way back to the

Ray Miron President's Cup The Ray Miron President's Cup is a trophy that was awarded to the playoff champion of the Central Hockey League (CHL) from 2002 until 2014, when the remaining CHL teams joined the ECHL. The trophy was known as The William "Bill" Levins Memorial Cup ...

Finals three times (2004, 2006, 2011). The Mudbugs were the only team in history of the WPHL and CHL to ever win the Cup three straight years. During the 2009–10 season, Mudbugs legend goaltender Ken Carroll and Travis Clayton were named to the Central Hockey League's All Decade Team. On July 20, 2010 former player Jason Campbell was named the new Vice President & General Manager for the Mudbugs. With the merger of the CHL and the IHL beginning with the 2010–11 season, the Mudbugs played in the Berry Conference. The Mudbugs would go on to win the

that season in a seven-game series with the

, but would cease operations two weeks later citing low attendance and financial issues. In October 2015, it was announced that a new Mudbugs team would return for the 2016–17 season after signing a 12-year lease agreement with the Louisiana State Fairgrounds to play their home games in the Hirsch Coliseum as a member of the Tier II junior

North American Hockey League The North American Hockey League (NAHL) is one of the top junior hockey leagues in the United States and is in its 48th season of operation in 2022–23. It is the only Tier II junior league sanctioned by USA Hockey, and acts as an alternati ...

. On April 8, 2016, the

Shreveport Mudbugs The Shreveport Mudbugs are a Tier II junior ice hockey team based in Shreveport, Louisiana, as a member of the North American Hockey League. The new Mudbugs replaced a former professional team that played in the area from 1997 to 2011 known as th ...

were officially announced as an expansion team in the NAHL.

Season-by-season results

WPHL & CHL team awards and trophies

Champions *1998–1999 *1999–2000 *2000–2001 *2010-2011 Governor's Cup Champions *1998–1999 *2006–2007 *2007–2008

Northern Conference Champions *2003–2004 *2005–2006 Division Championships *WPHL Eastern Division 1998–1999 *WPHL Eastern Division 1999–2000 *CHL Northeastern Division 2003–2004 *CHL Northeastern Division 2004–2005 *CHL Northeastern Division 2005–2006 *CHL Northeastern Division 2006–2007 *CHL Northeastern Division 2007–2008

Franchise of the Year *2005–2006

WPHL & CHL player awards and trophies

Coach of the Year *Scott Muscutt: 2007-08

Rookie of the Year *Cam Abbott: 2006-07

Most Outstanding Goaltender *Ken Carroll: 2005-06 *John DeCaro: 2006-07, 2007–08

Rookie of the Year *Ken Carroll: 2000-01

Playoff Most Valuable Player *John Vecchiarelli: 1998-99 *Hugo Hamelin: 1999-00 *Jason Campbell: 2000-01

Man of the Year *Scott Muscutt: 1999-00

Most Outstanding Goaltender *Kevin St.Pierre: 1997-98 *Ken Carroll: 2000-01

Franchise individual records

*Most Saves in a single game: Ken Carroll, 57 (March 19, 2007) *Most Goals in a season: Paul Jackson, 55 (1997–98) *Most Assists in a season: Brian Shantz, 82 (1997–98) *Most Points in a season: Paul Jackson, 115 (1997–98) *Most Penalty Minutes in a season: Dan Wildfong, 340 (2001–02) *Most Wins in a season: Kevin St. Pierre, 36 (1997–98) *Most Shutouts in a season: John DeCaro, 10 (2007–08) *Most Goals in a career: Dan Wildfong, 213 (1999–2007) *Most Assists in a career: Dan Wildfong, 339 (1999–2007) *Most Points in a career: Dan Wildfong, 552 (1999–2007) *Most Penalty Minutes in a career: Dan Wildfong, 2234 (1999–2007) *Most Win in a career: Ken Carroll, 187 (2000-01 & 2002–2010) *Most Shutouts in a career: Ken Carroll, 31 (2000-01 & 2002–2010)

Franchise records

*Most Goals in a season: 315 (1998–99) *Fewest Goals Against in a season: 146 (2003–04) *Most Points in a season: 99 (1998–99) *Most Penalty Minutes in a season: 1,988 (1997–98) *Most Wins in a season: 47 (1998–99) *Fewest Losses in a season: 14 (2006–07) *Consecutive victories: 15 (12/08/2007-1/20/2008) *Consecutive victories on home ice: 17 (12/08/2007-Current) *All Time Regular Season Wins: 439 *All Time Regular Season Losses: 195 *All Time Regular Seasons Overtime Losses: 68 *All Time Wins: 506 *All Time Losses: 229 *Games Played: 803

References

External links

Bossier-Shreveport MudbugsMudbugs Swamp
{{Central Hockey League 1997 establishments in Louisiana 2011 disestablishments in Louisiana Defunct Central Hockey League teams Ice hockey clubs established in 1997 Ice hockey teams in Louisiana Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 2011