The Denver Cutthroats were a minor league

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, as a member of 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 ...

, that began play in the 2012–13 season. They served as a farm team of 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 ...

Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The Avalanche play thei ...

and the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...

Lake Erie Monsters The Cleveland Monsters are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL). The team began play in 2007 as the Lake Erie Monsters and since 2015 has served as the top affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hock ...

. Based in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

, the Cutthroats played their home games at the

Denver Coliseum Denver Coliseum is an indoor arena, owned by thCity and County of Denver operated by itsDenver Arts & Venuesand located in Denver, Colorado. The arena holds 10,200 people and was built from 1949 to 1951. The coliseum is located in Denver's Elyria ...

. On August 20, 2014, after only two seasons in the CHL, the Cutthroats announced they would go dormant for the 2014–15 season, with hopes to gain additional investors for 2015–16. Besides sharing the city/market with their parent club the Avalanche, the Cutthroats were the fifth hockey team to play at the

, after the original International Hockey League's

Denver Mavericks The Denver Mavericks were a minor league professional ice hockey team in the International Hockey League (1945–2001), International Hockey League during the first half of the 1959–1960 season. They played at the Denver Coliseum in Denver, Colo ...

(1958–59), the original

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 ...

Denver Invaders The Denver Invaders were a minor pro ice hockey team that played in Denver, Colorado in the Western Hockey League (WHL) during the 1963–1964 season. In June 1963, the Spokane Comets WHL franchise was purchased by a group led by the Toronto Mapl ...

(1963–64), the

Denver Spurs The Denver Spurs were a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. The Spurs began play in the Western Hockey League in 1968, and played at the Denver Coliseum. The Spurs became the first professional sports team in Colorado to win a champions ...

of the WHL (and later the original

) (1968–75), and finally the IHL's

Denver Rangers The Denver Rangers were a professional hockey team based in Denver, Colorado that played for two seasons in the late 1980s. They were a member of the International Hockey League, and an affiliate of the New York Rangers. The team was originally ...

(1987–89).

History

Reports of a CHL team playing at the Coliseum for 2012-13 came as early as February, with initial reports stating they would be named the Denver Grizzlies, after the city's most recent IHL franchise which won the

Turner Cup The Turner Cup was the championship trophy of the International Hockey League from 1945 to 2001 and the renamed United Hockey League from 2007 to 2010. The Cup was named for Joe Turner, a goaltender from Windsor, Ontario. Turner became professi ...

in its only season in the city and is widely credited for garnering enough interest to entice the

Quebec Nordiques The Quebec Nordiques (french: Nordiques de Québec, pronounced in Quebec French, in Canadian English; translated "Quebec City Northmen" or "Northerners") were a professional ice hockey team based in Quebec City. The Nordiques played in the W ...

to relocate to Denver and become the Colorado Avalanche. However, once the team was officially announced on April 10, 2012, it was confirmed the team would not go by the "Denver Grizzlies" name because of unspecified copyright issues (likely related to the

Utah Grizzlies The Utah Grizzlies are a professional ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Maverik Center in West Valley City, Utah. Franchise history The current Utah Grizzlies franchise started in 1981 as the Nashville South Stars ...

ownership of said name). Although the team had registered the "Denver Cutthroats" name with the city and the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the name was still not officially announced, with the team holding a "Guess the Name" contest in the meantime. On May 17, 2012, the Cutthroats officially announced their name, logo, and color scheme. With the addition of the Cutthroats, the CHL aligned to the one Berry Conference. The Cutthroats opened the season in Denver against the

Missouri Mavericks The Kansas City Mavericks are an ice hockey team in the ECHL. Founded in 2009 as the Missouri Mavericks of the Central Hockey League, CHL, the team plays in Independence, Missouri, a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri, at the Cable Dahmer Arena. H ...

on October 19, marking the first hockey game in the Coliseum since 1989. The Cutthroats' first season saw them skate to 30 wins, and the eighth seed in the 2013 Ray Miron's President's Cup Playoffs. They faced the top seeded (and eventual CHL champions)

Allen Americans The Allen Americans are a professional ice hockey team headquartered at the Credit Union of Texas Event Center in Allen, Texas, which currently plays in the ECHL. The team was founded in 2009 in the Central Hockey League (CHL) where they played ...

, and, after taking Game 1, the Cutthroats lost four straight to lose the series in five games. In the following 2013–14 season, a vastly improved Cutthroats team, with the help of CHL MVP

Garett Bembridge Garett Bembridge (born July 6, 1981) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger currently playing for the Kenaston Blizzards of the Sask Valley Hockey League (SVHL). Playing career Bembridge was selected by the New York Rangers i ...

, recorded 38 wins, and the 2nd seed in the Ray Miron's President's Cup Playoffs. The Cutthroats won their first playoff series in team history, defeating the

Tulsa Oilers The Tulsa Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and play in the ECHL. The Oilers played their home games at the Tulsa Convention Center until 2008 when they moved into the new BOK Center. For many years, the Tuls ...

in six games before advancing to the finals after a five-game series win over the

Arizona Sundogs The Arizona Sundogs were a minor league professional ice hockey team based in Prescott Valley, Arizona. They played in the Central Hockey League from 2006 to 2014 with their home games at Tim's Toyota Center. History The team name, Sundogs, re ...

. This marked the Cutthroats' first berth in the

Ray Miron 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 ...

Final in only their second year of existence. In the final, the Cutthroats once more faced the defending champions in the Allen Americans who had dispatched them a year earlier. After taking Game 1, the Cutthroats again lost four straight games, allowing Allen to win back-to-back championships. After months of rumors, and speculation, on August 20, 2014, the Denver Cutthroats announced an immediate suspension of operations and elected for dormancy for the 2014–15 season. All players of the Cutthroats were rendered free agents, however the Cutthroats planned to seek additional investors to re-join the league for the 2015–16 season, an ambition made moot by the league itself folding several weeks later.

Staff

The Cutthroats were owned by Boulder resident John Hayes, CEO of Broomfield-based Ball Corp. Former NHL player Derek Armstrong served as the Cutthroats' first head coach; although his NHL career had him playing for the

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ( ...

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a membe ...

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home ...

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...

and

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the ...

, he is best remembered in Denver for being a member of the Grizzlies' 1994-95

run. After their inaugural season, Armstrong was joined by former teammate and Cutthroat

Brad Smyth Bradley Smyth (born March 13, 1973) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who endured a journeyman career and played in the National Hockey League with the Florida Panthers, Los Angeles Kings, New York Rangers, Nashville Predators a ...

as an assistant coach and assistant of hockey operations.

Season-by-season results

Regular season

Playoffs

References

External links

Denver Cutthroats official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Denver Cutthroats Central Hockey League teams Sports teams in Denver Ice hockey clubs established in 2012 Ice hockey teams in Colorado 2012 establishments in Colorado Colorado Avalanche minor league affiliates Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 2014 2014 disestablishments in Colorado Defunct sports teams in Colorado