The 1989–90 ECHL

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and po ...

was the second season of the ECHL. The league brought back all five teams from the inaugural season and added three more franchises in

Greensboro, North Carolina Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte, North Car ...

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

, and

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 cen ...

. Before the season began, the

Carolina Thunderbirds The Carolina Thunderbirds were a professional ice hockey team located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States. The Thunderbirds played their home games at the old Winston-Salem Memorial Coliseum before the arena was demolished in 1989. ...

changed their name to the Winston-Salem Thunderbirds. The eight teams played sixty games in the schedule, unchanged from the total games played in the inaugural

1988–89 ECHL season The 1988–89 ECHL season was the inaugural season of the East Coast Hockey League. The leagues first season consisted of five teams in Erie, Pennsylvania, Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Knoxville, Tennessee, Vinton, Virginia and Winston-Salem, North C ...

. The Winston-Salem Thunderbirds finished first overall in the regular season. The Greensboro Monarchs won their first

Riley Cup The Patrick J. Kelly Cup goes to the playoff champion of the ECHL. The Kelly Cup has been awarded to teams since 1997. Prior to 1997, the playoff winner was awarded the Riley Cup, named after former American Hockey League president Jack Riley. ...

championship.

Regular season

''Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L= Losses; OTL = Overtime losses; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points; Green shade = Clinched playoff spot''

Riley Cup playoffs

Bracket

1st Round

2nd Round

Riley Cup Finals

ECHL awards

All-Star Teams

First All-Star Team

Forward:

Bill McDougalli Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak ...

, Erie Panthers
Forward: Trent Kaese, Winston-Salem Thunderbirds
Forward: Len Soccio, Winston-Salem Thunderbirds
Defense:

Dave Doucette Dave may refer to: Film, television, and theater * ''Dave'' (film), a 1993 film starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver * ''Dave'' (musical), a 2018 stage musical adaptation of the film * Dave (TV channel), a digital television channel in the ...

, Winston-Salem Thunderbirds
Defense:

Bill Whitfield Bill Whitfield (1884–1958) was an Australian rugby league footballer who played in the 1900s and 1910s. He played for North Sydney in the NSWRL competition and was a foundation player of the club. Playing career Whitfield played in North Sy ...

, Virginia Lancers
Defense: Andre Brassard, Nashville Knights
Goaltender: Alain Raymond,

Hampton Roads Admirals The Hampton Roads Admirals were a professional ice hockey team in the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL). They played in Norfolk, Virginia at the Norfolk Scope Arena from 1989 until 2000, when the owners purchased an expansion American Hockey Leag ...

Head Coach: Dave Allison, Virginia Lancers

Second All-Star Team

Forward: Joe Ferras, Winston-Salem Thunderbirds
Forward: Glen Engevik, Nashville Knights
Forward:

Trevor Jobe Trevor Jobe (born May 14, 1967) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. He last played for the Winston-Salem Polar Twins of the Southern Professional Hockey League in 2005. He is known for being a well-traveled, high scoring forward w ...

, Hampton Roads Admirals
Forward: Brian Martin, Hampton Roads Admirals
Defense: Scott Drevich, Virginia Lancers
Goaltender: Craig Barnett, Erie Panthers
Head Coach: Ron Hansis, Erie Panthers ''Note: The East Coast Hockey League did not hold an official All-Star game until the 1992–93 season. All-Star Teams were announced at the conclusion of the season.''