The Calgary Mustangs were a

junior A Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...

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 in the

Alberta Junior Hockey League The Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) is an Alberta-based Junior A ice hockey league that belongs to the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL). It was formed as a five-team league in 1964. There are currently 16 teams in the league. The reg ...

(AJHL). They played in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, Canada at the

Father David Bauer Olympic Arena The Father David Bauer Olympic Arena is an ice hockey arena in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It seats about 1,750 for hockey with a standing room capacity of over 2,000. It is named after David Bauer (ice hockey), Father David Bauer. Canada's defunct ...

. They were known as the Calgary Royals from 1990 until 2010. On May 4, 2019, it was announced that the Mustangs had elected to take a leave of absence for the 2019–20 season.

History

The franchise began play in the 1972–73 season as

The Pass Red Devils The Pass Red Devils were a Junior A ice hockey team in the Alberta Junior Hockey League that played in the municipality of Crowsnest Pass, Alberta, from 1972 to 1976. The team relocated to nearby Pincher Creek for two years before settling in Calg ...

based in

Crowsnest Pass, Alberta The Municipality of Crowsnest Pass is a specialized municipality in southwest Alberta, Canada. Within the Rocky Mountains adjacent to the eponymous Crowsnest Pass, the municipality formed as a result of the 1979 amalgamation of five municipalit ...

. The Red Devils franchise lasted four years before relocating to the nearby community of

Pincher Creek Pincher Creek is a town in southern Alberta, Canada. It is located immediately east of the Canadian Rockies, west of Lethbridge and south of Calgary. History For centuries before European settlers reached this area and inhabited it, Indigen ...

to become the

Pincher Creek Panthers The Pincher Creek Panthers were a Junior A ice hockey team in the Alberta Junior Hockey League from Pincher Creek, Alberta. Founded in 1972 as The Pass Red Devils, the team relocated to Pincher Creek for the 1976–77 season. The Panthers last ...

. The team lasted two seasons in Pincher Creek before relocating to Calgary to become the

Calgary Chinooks The Calgary Chinooks were a Junior ice hockey#Junior A, junior "A" ice hockey team in the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. History Founded in 1972 as The Pass Red Devils, the team relocated to Pincher Cre ...

. In 1979–80, under a new ownership group, the Chinooks became the

Calgary Spurs The Calgary Spurs were a Junior A ice hockey team in the Alberta Junior Hockey League. Founded in 1972 as The Pass Red Devils and following a two-year stop as the Pincher Creek Panthers, the franchise became the second AJHL franchise in Calgary ( ...

. Following the 1989–90 season, the Spurs ceased operations, leaving the AJHL with just seven franchises. The league opted to keep a second Calgary-based franchise along with the

Calgary Canucks The Calgary Canucks are a junior A ice hockey team in the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL). They play in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, with home games at the Ken Bracko Arena. They have won the AJHL championship nine times and one national champ ...

, and sold a new franchise to four local businessmen who named it the Calgary Jr. "A" Royals with the mandate of providing Calgary and area kids with the opportunity to combine a high level of hockey with a quality education. The Royals were immediately successful, finishing second in the regular season standings, behind the

Fort Saskatchewan Traders The Fort Saskatchewan Traders were an ice hockey team in the Alberta Junior Hockey League. They played in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, Canada, at the Jubilee Recreation Centre, capacity 2000. :Founded: 1976–77 :Division titles won: 1983–84 :R ...

and winning the league championship in their first season. The Royals were unable to duplicate that success, as the team failed to make it past the second round of the playoffs since winning the title. Faced with the challenges of sharing a market with the

National Hockey League 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 ...

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior h ...

, and another AJHL team, the Royals were supported through corporate partnerships and volunteers. Seeking to distinguish itself from the city's minor hockey program of the same name, the franchise renamed itself the Mustangs prior to the 2010–11 season. After several seasons of struggling financially, the Mustangs were granted a leave of absence for the 2019–20 season. The Mustangs are approved to move to

Blackfalds, Alberta Blackfalds is a town in central Alberta, Canada. It is located along Highway 2A 13.5 km north of Red Deer. The town's name, Waghorn (for Walter Waghorn, post master), changed in 1903 to Blackfalds, after Blackfalds, a Scottish hamlet. Dem ...

for the 2021–22 season, after being sold to Doug Quinn.

Season-by-season record

''Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T/OTL = Ties/Overtime losses, SOL = Shootout losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against''

NHL alumni

Some of the players that played on the Royals that went on to play in the NHL include: *

T. J. Galiardi Terry Joseph Galiardi (born April 22, 1988) is a Canadian-born American former professional ice hockey forward. He most notably played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Colorado Avalanche, San Jose Sharks, Calgary Flames and Winnipeg ...

* Cale Hulse *

Krystofer Kolanos Krystofer Stanley "Krys" Kolanos (born July 27, 1981) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. He played with the Phoenix Coyotes, Edmonton Oilers, Minnesota Wild, and Calgary Flames in his National Hockey League (NHL) career. Playi ...

Tyler Sloan Tyler Sloan (born March 15, 1981) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman. An undrafted player, Sloan spent seven years in the minor leagues before making his National Hockey League debut for the Washington Capitals in his hometown ...

Jay Beagle Jay Beagle (born October 16, 1985) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who last played for the Arizona Coyotes of the National Hockey League (NHL). As an undrafted free agent, Beagle joined the Washington Capitals's organization fo ...

* Brandon Kozun

References

External links

Alberta Junior Hockey League websiteCalgary Mustangs websiteCalgary Royals website
{{Defunct AJHL Alberta Junior Hockey League teams Royals, Calgary Ice hockey teams in Alberta Ice hockey clubs established in 1990 1990 establishments in Alberta

History

Season-by-season record

NHL alumni

See also

References

External links