The Buffalo Wings are an

inline hockey Roller inline hockey, or inline hockey is a variant of hockey played on a hard, smooth surface, with players using inline skates to move and ice hockey sticks to shoot a hard, plastic puck into their opponent's goal to score points. The sport ...

team, playing in

Major League Roller Hockey Major League Roller Hockey (MLRH) is a limited liability company which operates multiple inline hockey leagues and tournaments. Headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, MLRH is one of the only full-contact inline hockey competitions in the world. ...

and formerly in

Roller Hockey International Roller Hockey International was a professional inline hockey league that operated in North America from 1993 to 1999. It was the first major professional league for inline hockey. History League president Dennis Murphy had been involved in the ...

, that is based in the city of

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

History

The Buffalo Wings franchise was originally the Phoenix Cobras from 1994 to 1995, and the Empire State Cobras in 1996. The 1996 Cobras consisted of former

Buffalo Stampede The Buffalo Stampede was a basketball team in the Atlantic Coast Professional Basketball League (ACPBL) that started as a franchise in the Premier Basketball League (PBL) in the 2009 season. The team was originally the NexxNow Buffalo Dragons (c ...

players who joined the team after their franchise folded following the 1995

season. Relocated from

Glen Falls, New York Glens Falls is a City (New York), city in Warren County, New York, Warren County, New York, United States and is the central city of the Glens Falls, New York metropolitan area, Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 14,7 ...

and renamed as the Buffalo Wings, the team played the 1997 season at the

Marine Midland Arena KeyBank Center is a multipurpose indoor arena located in Buffalo, New York. Originally known as Marine Midland Arena, the venue has since been named HSBC Arena and First Niagara Center. Home to the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League ...

.Doyle, Fletcher
"Roller Hockey League Lands at Arena with Buffalo Wings"
''

The Buffalo News ''The Buffalo News'' is the daily newspaper of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area, located in downtown Buffalo, New York. It recently sold its headquarters to Uniland Development Corp. It was for decades the only paper fully owned by W ...

'', January 10, 1997. Accessed January 26, 2017. "The Empire State Cobras, searching for a new home after one financially disastrous Roller Hockey International season in Glens Falls, have landed in Marine Midland Arena as the Buffalo Wings." The arrival of the Wings marked the return of professional roller hockey to Buffalo, having been the home of the short-lived

, which played at the

Buffalo Memorial Auditorium Buffalo Memorial Auditorium, colloquially known as The Aud, was a multipurpose indoor arena in downtown Buffalo, New York. Opened on October 14, 1940, it was home to the Canisius Golden Griffins (NCAA), the Buffalo Bisons ( AHL), the Buffalo Biso ...

from 1994-1995. From 1998-1999, the team played at the

Buffalo State Sports Arena The Buffalo State Sports Arena is a multi-purpose sports complex, in Buffalo, New York, located at Buffalo State College, a campus of SUNY. The building contains an ice arena, sports arena, fitness center, the Houston Gym, Robert Kissinger Memo ...

Buffalo State College The State University of New York College at Buffalo (colloquially referred to as Buffalo State College, SUNY Buffalo State, Buffalo State, or simply Buff State) is a public college in Buffalo, New York. It is part of the State University of Ne ...

. Following the demise of Roller Hockey International, the organization continues to exist to this day as a youth hockey development organization. The professional team has been revived at least once (in 2004) in the

Professional Inline Hockey Association The Professional Inline Hockey Association (PIHA) is an "incorporated for-profit association" which operates an inline hockey league, with two conferences, of 11 franchised member clubs, all of which are currently located in the United States. H ...

. The Wings were announced as one of the six teams participating in the 2008 Major League Roller Hockey Pro Tour.

Records

* 1994 - Phoenix Cobras - 13-11 - (

/ Home:

Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum is a 14,870-seat multi-purpose indoor arena in Phoenix, Arizona, located at the Arizona State Fairgrounds. It hosted the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association from 1968 to 1992, as well as indoor s ...

) * 1995 - Phoenix Cobras - 11-09 - (

/ Home:

) * 1996 - Empire State Cobras - 16-07 - (

/ Home:

Glens Falls Civic Center The Cool Insuring Arena (originally called Glens Falls Civic Center) is a 4,794-seat multi-purpose arena located in downtown Glens Falls, New York, that currently serves as the home of the Adirondack Thunder of the ECHL. Built in 1979, it was ori ...

) * 1997 - Buffalo Wings - 06-18 - (

/ Home:

) * 1998 - Buffalo Wings - 11-08 - (

/ Home:

) * 1999 - Buffalo Wings - 13-13 - (

/ Home:

)

Playoff records

* 1994 - Lost to

Calgary Rad'z The Calgary Rad'z were a professional inline hockey team that played two seasons in the Roller Hockey International in 1993 and 1994. The Rad'z were a founding member of the RHI. The Rad'z began play in the Olympic Saddledome, but moved to the ...

in Quarterfinal * 1995 - Lost to

San Jose Rhinos The San Jose Rhinos were an inline hockey team in Roller Hockey International from 1994-97 and 1999 (the RHI did not operate in 1998). In its second year, the team won the Murphy Cup with a victory over the Montreal Roadrunners The Montreal Roa ...

in Quarterfinal * 1996 - Lost to

Orlando Jackals The Orlando Jackals were a professional roller hockey team based in Orlando, Florida, United States that played in Roller Hockey International. History The Edmonton Sled Dogs were established in Edmonton, Alberta Edmonton ( ) is the capit ...

in Quarterfinal * 1998 - Defeated Port Huron North Americans 19-8 in Quarterfinal; Lost to Columbus Hawks in Semifinal * 1999 - Defeated

Minnesota Blue Ox The Minnesota Blue Ox were a professional roller hockey team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States that played in Roller Hockey International. History Formed in the wake of the Minnesota Arctic Blast, who played at Target Center in 19 ...

in Quarterfinal (8-3 in one game playoff); Lost to St. Louis Vipers in Semifinal by a score of 11-7Staff
"Wings are Grounded by Vipers"
''

'', August 20, 1999. Accessed January 26, 2017. "The Wings, decimated by injuries to their defensemen, lost to the St. Louis Vipers, 11-7, in Thursday night's conference final in the Roller Hockey International playoffs at the Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim."

References

{{Reflist, 30em

External links

Buffalo Wings - Official Website
Roller Hockey International teams Sports in Buffalo, New York Phoenix Cobras Sports clubs established in 1997 1997 establishments in New York (state)