The Flint Generals were a minor 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 based in

Flint, Michigan Flint is the largest city and seat of Genesee County, Michigan, United States. Located along the Flint River, northwest of Detroit, it is a principal city within the region known as Mid Michigan. At the 2020 census, Flint had a population of 8 ...

. They were a member of the International Hockey League and played their home games at

Perani Arena and Event Center The Dort Financial Center (originally IMA Sports Arena and formerly Perani Arena and Event Center) is a sports, entertainment and convention venue located in Flint, Michigan, United States. It opened in 1969 and is the home of the Flint Firebird ...

. The Generals won two league championship Colonial Cups in the

Colonial Hockey League Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

and

United Hockey League The United Hockey League (UHL), originally known as the Colonial Hockey League from 1991 to 1997 and last known as the International Hockey League from 2007 to 2010, was a low-level minor professional ice hockey league, with teams in the Unite ...

History

Flint had been home to minor professional hockey in some incarnation since 1969, except a one-year break in the 1990–91 season. This incarnation of the Flint Generals came about in the 1993–94 season after the

's (CoHL) Flint Bulldogs owner Skip Probst moved the Bulldogs from Flint to

Utica, New York Utica () is a Administrative divisions of New York, city in the Mohawk Valley and the county seat of Oneida County, New York, United States. The List of cities in New York, tenth-most-populous city in New York State, its population was 65,283 ...

. The following summer, Dr. Khaled M. Shukairy was granted an expansion franchise in the CoHL to play in Flint. After a fan vote, "Generals" had been voted on by the fans to be the name of the new franchise after the original Generals' team that relocated to

Saginaw Saginaw () is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the seat of Saginaw County. The city of Saginaw and Saginaw County are both in the area known as Mid-Michigan. Saginaw is adjacent to Saginaw Charter Township and considered part of Greater ...

in 1985. Flint won their first Colonial Cup against the

Thunder Bay Senators The Thunder Bay Thunder Cats was a minor professional ice hockey team based in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and a member of the United Hockey League. The team went through a number of different names prior to being the Thunder Cats, including th ...

in the 1995–96 season, in which the Generals claimed the championship in a six-game upset and won the final game by a score of 9–0. This team included such players as Kevin Kerr, who would later break the all time minor league hockey scoring record and coach the Generals; Robin Bouchard, who was traded early the next season in a lopsided trade that did not favor the Generals;

Andrei Mezin Andrei Anatolyevich Miezin ( be, Андрэй Анатольевiч Мезiн, russian: Андрей Анатольевич Мезин; born 8 July 1974) is a Belarusian ice hockey coach and a retired goaltender. Playing career Mezin left his n ...

, the goalie who would go on to play for his native Belarus in the Olympics and upset Sweden; and female goaltender,

Erin Whitten Erin Hamlen (born October 26, 1971) is an American retired ice hockey goaltender and the current head coach of the Merrimack Warriors women's ice hockey program in the Hockey East (HEA) conference of the NCAA Division I. She was among the first ...

. The second Colonial Cup came in a 4–0 sweep of the Generals rival, the

Quad City Mallards The Quad City Mallards were a minor league professional ice hockey team based in the Quad Cities area of Illinois and Iowa that competed in the International Hockey League, Central Hockey League and ECHL. They were named after the Mallards team ...

, in 2000. The Generals were coached by former NHL player

Doug Shedden Douglas Arthur Shedden (born April 29, 1961) is a Canadian ice hockey coach and former player. He played in the National Hockey League between 1981 and 1991. After his playing career he became a coach, and worked in the minor leagues for several ...

and included former NHL players

Bobby Reynolds Robert Thomas "Bobby" Reynolds (born July 17, 1982) is an American retired professional tennis player who resides in Auburn, Alabama. He was named head men's tennis coach at Auburn University in June 2016. Professional career Reynolds, a nativ ...

Mark Major Mark Major (born March 20, 1970) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey left winger. He played two games in the National Hockey League with the Detroit Red Wings during the 1996–97 season. He was drafted 25th overall by the Pittsburgh ...

, and Nick Stajduhar, as well as two 100 point scorers in Ross Wilson and

Don Parsons Donald Parsons may refer to: * Donald F. Parsons, American former judge * Donald J. Parsons (1922–2016), American Episcopal bishop * Donald Parsons (businessman) (1930–2012), American businessman * Don Parsons (politician), member of the Ho ...

, UHL Defenseman of the Year Gary Roach, late season additions Cory Cyrenne and Vladmir Serov, and goalie Mark Richards. Serov and Cyrenne totaled 60 points in 37 regular season games, and in the 2000 finals, Serov scored the game-winning goal with 50 seconds left in game three, and the game-winning goal with 3:52 left in game four to preserve the victories for the Generals. After several years of mediocre hockey and questionable ownership, the Generals finished the 2009–10 season on a hot streak, clinching the final Turner Cup playoff berth on the final day of the season. The Generals faced the

Muskegon Lumberjacks The Muskegon Lumberjacks are a Tier I junior ice hockey team in the Eastern Conference of the United States Hockey League. They play in Muskegon, Michigan, at Mercy Health Arena. The Lumberjacks replaced the International Hockey League franchi ...

in the first round of the Turner Cup playoffs, and after falling behind three games to one, came back to win the series in seven games. The Generals then fell to the

Fort Wayne Komets The Fort Wayne Komets are a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This team was previously a member of the Central Hockey League, the original Inte ...

in a five-game series; the Generals only win in the series was a 7–6 overtime win in Game 3. Despite the turnaround in 2009–10 and rumors of more stable ownership taking over, the Generals folded when Perani Arena management decided to give the arena lease to the junior

Michigan Warriors The Michigan Warriors were a Tier II Junior A ice hockey team based in Flint, Michigan. The Warriors played in the North American Hockey League's North Division. Previously known as the Marquette Rangers, the Warriors played their home games ...

of the North American Hockey League.

Championships

Season-by-season results

Retired numbers

* #1 — Bob Perani * #5 — Stephan Brochu * #16 — Doug Manchak * #20 — Kevin Kerr * #77 —

Brett MacDonald Brett MacDonald (born January 5, 1966) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played in one National Hockey League game with the Vancouver Canucks during the 1987–88 NHL season, on February 14, 1988 against the Edmonton Oilers. ...

References

External links

Flint Generals official site
{{IHL Ice hockey teams in Flint, Michigan International Hockey League (2007–2010) teams Professional ice hockey teams in Michigan Ice hockey clubs established in 1993 Sports clubs disestablished in 2010 Chicago Blackhawks minor league affiliates New Jersey Devils minor league affiliates 1993 establishments in Michigan 2010 disestablishments in Michigan