The Fresno Falcons were a minor league

hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...

team. They were charter members of several long standing leagues in the western

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

including the

Pacific Southwest Hockey League The Pacific Southwest Hockey League was a semi-professional ice hockey league that operated in California, Nevada and Alaska starting in 1972 and ran through 1995, when its members were incorporated into the upstart professional West Coast Hockey Le ...

and the

West Coast Hockey League The West Coast Hockey League was a professional minor ice hockey league active in the western United States from 1995 to 2003. The number of teams ranged from six to nine. The teams were located in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nev ...

. In their final years, they were members 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). The E ...

(formerly East Coast Hockey League). They were located in

Fresno, California Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, makin ...

Early history

The Fresno Hockey Club, originally known as the Flyers, was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the

Pacific Coast Hockey League The Pacific Coast Hockey League was an ice hockey minor league with teams in the western United States and western Canada that existed in several incarnations: from 1928 to 1931, from 1936 to 1941, and from 1944 to 1952. PCHL 1928–1931 The firs ...

, where they played until the league folded in 1950. The all time goal leader is Adrian Marin with 40 goals in a season The team picked up in 1952 for a season in the

Pacific Coast Senior League The Pacific Coast Senior League (also known as the Pacific Coast Hockey League) was a senior men's amateur ice hockey league that operated for the 1952–53 season. Teams *Fresno Falcons The Fresno Falcons were a minor league hockey team. They w ...

. Following just one season, hockey was dormant in Fresno until 1968, when the Fresno Aces were introduced for a season in the short-lived Cal-Neva Hockey League. Cal-Neva was a loosely linked group of professional and semi-pro teams from around the West Coast. The league lacked structure, and played games for a selection of regional championships rather than a league championship. In the 1970–71 season, the Las Vegas Gamblers club was expelled from the league, following numerous rules violations. The Gamblers were in first place at the time, and all records of games involving them were voided. The league was dissolved following the 1971-72 season, as league commissioners cited the need for more structure, and without a

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

team, a need for a new name. During the 1968–69 season, Fresno's team was officially known as the Fresno Aces. For 1969–70, the name was changed back to the Fresno Falcons.

Playing in the PSHL

The

was founded in 1972 following the dissolution of the Cal-Neva Hockey League. and the Falcons were one of the league's staples, as the only franchise in the league that was present from its beginning, throughout to the 1995–96 merger that formed the

. The Falcons were the PSHL's signature franchise largely due to convenience and the availability of a then-relatively new showcase arena,

Selland Arena Selland Arena is a multi-purpose arena built in 1966 that makes up part of a four-venue complex of the Fresno Convention and Entertainment Center in Fresno, California. It is named after former Fresno mayor Arthur L. Selland and has had over ...

in Fresno's Convention Center. At times throughout the league's history, some games even if not involving the Falcons were held at Selland Arena, including several Championship Finals series throughout the 1970s. A PSHL season ranged from 15 to 30 games each between anywhere from 4 to 8 teams. Franchises shifted frequently, often with new teams appearing the next season from the same cities. The mainstays of the league were the Falcons, the Los Angeles Bruins and later in the league's history, the Burbank or Los Angeles Jets and the West Covina or California Blackhawks (later just Hawks). Falcons games were often paired with side attractions when it came to teams' marketing, including

broomball Broomball is a both a recreational and organized competitive winter team sport played on ice or snow and is played either indoors or outdoors, depending on climate and location. It is a ball sport and is most popularly played in Canada and the ...

and

roller derby Roller derby is a roller skating contact sport played by two teams of fifteen members. Roller derby is played by approximately 1,250 amateur leagues worldwide, mostly in the United States. Game play consists of a series of short scrimmages (jam ...

Joining the WCHL/merging with the ECHL

Following an experimental partnership with the

Sunshine Hockey League The Sunshine Hockey League (SuHL) was a low-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 to 1995. The league was based in Florida and consisted of five teams in its inaugural 1992–93 Sunshine Hockey League season, 1992–93 ...

in 1994–95, The Falcons became a charter member of the professional

to begin the 1995–96 season. The team was a member throughout the league's eight-year existence. During the 1997–98 season they were known as Fresno's Fighting Falcons. Fresno won the league's Taylor Cup championship for the 2001–02 season, defeating the

Idaho Steelheads The Idaho Steelheads are an American professional minor league ice hockey team based in Boise, Idaho, and a member of the ECHL. The Steelheads play in the Mountain Division of the ECHL's Western Conference since the 2016–17 season. In 1996, th ...

in the finals. Along with other active WCHL teams, the Falcons joined the ECHL after the West Coast Hockey League was absorbed by the larger league in 2003.

Affiliates

Arenas

For most of its history, the team played at Fresno's

, and their green and gold colors and hard-knocks play made them a staple of sports and entertainment in Fresno. The Falcons were the centerpieces of the league, as the Falcons dominated, winning sixteen league championships in 24 seasons. The Falcons moved to the

Save Mart Center Save Mart Center at Fresno State is a multi-purpose arena, on the campus of California State University, Fresno (Fresno State), located in Fresno, California. An open house was held for the community on November 5, 2003, with the official ribbon ...

on the campus of

California State University, Fresno California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California. It is one of 23 campuses in the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers bachelo ...

to coincide with their transfer to the ECHL in 2003. They played there until returning to Selland Arena in 2008.

Financial troubles and franchise's end

On December 22, 2008, Fresno Hockey Club, LLC announced that the Fresno Falcons team would cease operations immediately citing operating cost due to dwindling attendance, lack of corporate sponsorships and the faltering economy. President Dave Dakers of the

Victoria Salmon Kings The Victoria Salmon Kings were a professional ice hockey team based in Victoria, British Columbia, and members of the ECHL. The team debuted in the 2004–05 season and folded after the 2010–11 season. The Chilliwack Bruins of the major junio ...

ECHL team expressed some negative commentary on the Falcons team management abilities, but praised the team itself as being "competitive". The owners did not do all they could to salvage the situation, according to Dakers and gave up too easily as there were still other options available to minimize the economic damage. He was rather disappointed and not too pleased as quoted in the ''

Victoria Times Colonist The ''Times Colonist'' is an English-language daily newspaper in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It was formed by the Sept. 2, 1980 merger of the ''Victoria Daily Times'', established in 1884, and the ''British Colonist'' (later the ''Daily C ...

'' newspaper article. The Falcons were the second team that season to fold, following the

Augusta Lynx The Augusta Lynx were a minor-league professional ice hockey team based in Augusta, Georgia. The Lynx played their home games at the James Brown Arena. The Lynx, who played in the ECHL, had affiliations with the Tampa Bay Lightning of the NHL ...

. Arguments were made that the ECHL had expanded into markets that were unable to sustain their market, though the perception in Fresno's case was that the franchise had issues beyond that which prevented the team from being profitable. Fresno was without hockey at any level until the

Fresno Monsters The Fresno Monsters are a junior ice hockey team based in Fresno, California. The team is a member of the United States Premier Hockey League and plays in the Premier Division. The Monsters' home venue is Gateway Ice Center. History The Monsters w ...

began play in the 2009–10 season in the Tier III Junior A

Western States Hockey League The Western States Hockey League (WSHL) was a junior ice hockey league established in 1993. It was sanctioned by the United Hockey Union, the junior hockey branch of the Amateur Athletic Union. Previously, it was sanctioned by USA Hockey from 199 ...

. The city briefly hosted two junior teams called the Monsters from 2010 to 2013 when the Tier II

North American Hockey League The North American Hockey League (NAHL) is one of the top junior hockey leagues in the United States and is in its 48th season of operation in 2022–23. It is the only Tier II junior league sanctioned by USA Hockey, and acts as an alternati ...

expanded into Fresno. In 2013, the NAHL Monsters relocated to

Wenatchee, Washington Wenatchee ( ) is the county seat and largest city of Chelan County, Washington, United States. The population within the city limits in 2010 was 31,925, and was estimated to have increased to 34,360 as of 2019. Located in the north-central part ...

; however, the Monsters continue to field a team in the WSHL.

Season records

Championships

1968–69 San Joaquin Valley Champions 1970–71 Cal-Neva Hockey League Champions 1972–73 PSHL Champions 1973–74 PSHL Champions 1974–75 PSHL Champions 1975–76 PSHL Champions 1977–78 PSHL Champions 1979–80 PSHL Champions 1983–84 PSHL Champions 1985-86 PSHL Champions 1986-87 PSHL Champions 1993–94 PSHL Champions 2001–02 Taylor Cup Champions (WCHL) 2005–06 Pacific Division Champions (ECHL)

References

{{San Joaquin Valley Sports Defunct ECHL teams Sports in Fresno, California Defunct ice hockey teams in California West Coast Hockey League teams Ice hockey clubs established in 1946 1946 establishments in California Ice hockey teams in California Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 2008 2008 disestablishments in California San Jose Sharks minor league affiliates