The Kentucky Thoroughblades were a minor professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two o ...

team in 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 developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...

, who existed from

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 800, causing the plane to crash and killing everyone on b ...

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanistan ...

. The Thoroughblades were based in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County. By population, it is the second-largest city in Kentucky and 57th-largest city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 28th-largest ...

, playing home games at

Rupp Arena Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center is an list of indoor arenas, arena located in downtown Lexington, Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Since its opening in 1976, it has been the centerpiece of Central Bank Center (formerly Lexington Ce ...

. The Thoroughblades were an affiliate of the NHL's

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are owned by San Jose Sports & Entertain ...

History

The Thoroughblades were the first professional ice hockey team to play in Lexington, Kentucky. Initially, attendance was high. During the 1997–98 season, Kentucky averaged 7,847 fans per game, despite a losing record on ice. Attendance decreased in the next three seasons, even with two consecutive division championships. In their final season, attendance averaged only 4,461 fans per game. In 2001, the team moved to Cleveland, Ohio, becoming the Cleveland Barons. In 2006, the team then moved to

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 census, making it the second- most populous city in New England after ...

, becoming the Worcester Sharks. In 2015, the team moved to

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...

to become the San Jose Barracuda. The void in Lexington was replaced in 2001, by another minor league hockey team, the

Lexington Men O' War The Lexington Men O' War were a minor league professional ice hockey team and member of the ECHL. The name Man o' War is from a thoroughbred race horse that was bred in Lexington, and also the name of a highly traveled road in Lexington. The M ...

of the

ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). Th ...

, lasting one season in Lexington.

Season-by-season results

Regular season

Playoffs

;Notables *

Miikka Kiprusoff Miikka Sakari Kiprusoff (; born October 26, 1976), nicknamed "Kipper", is a Finnish former professional ice hockey goaltender who played for the San Jose Sharks and Calgary Flames during his National Hockey League (NHL) career. He was selected in ...

* Johan Hedberg * Evgeni Nabokov * Vesa Toskala * Jonathan Cheechoo * Dan Boyle * Zdeno Chara *

Andy Lundbohm Andy may refer to: People *Andy (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters *Horace Andy (born 1951), Jamaican roots reggae songwriter and singer born Horace Hinds *Katja Andy (1907–2013), German-American pianist and piano ...

* Matt Bradley * Garrett Burnett ;Career leaders * Goals: 88 (

Steve Guolla Stephen K. Guolla (born March 15, 1973) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League for the San Jose Sharks, Tampa Bay Lightning, Atlanta Thrashers and the New Jersey Devils. Guolla is a 2016 Mic ...

, 1996–99) * Assists: 132 (Steve Guolla, 1996–99) * Points: 220 (Steve Guolla, 1996–99) * PIM: 692 ( Garrett Burnett, 1998–00)

References

External links

Stats from hockeydb.com
Ice hockey clubs established in 1996 Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 2001 Ice hockey teams in Kentucky Defunct ice hockey teams in the United States 1996 establishments in Kentucky 2001 disestablishments in Kentucky San Jose Sharks minor league affiliates New York Islanders minor league affiliates Florida Panthers minor league affiliates {{Kentucky-sport-team-stub