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St. Louis Vipers

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
St. Louis Vipers
CitySt. Louis, Missouri
LeagueRoller Hockey International
Founded1993
Folded1999
Home arenaSt. Louis Arena
(1993–1994)
Kiel Center
(1995–1997, 1999)
ColorsRed, Black, Gold, White

       

Murphy Cups1999
Conference Championships1999
Division Championships1995

The St. Louis Vipers was a professional roller hockey team based in St. Louis, Missouri as a member of the now-defunct Roller Hockey International.[1]

History

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The St. Louis Vipers played their first two seasons of home games in the St. Louis Arena, but moved to the newer Kiel Center in 1995. The ownership of the club was led by former NHL St. Louis Blues star Bernie Federko, who also served as the head coach.

On August 16, 1994, the Vipers played the last official sporting event at the St. Louis Arena against the Tampa Bay Tritons in front of 11,146, the second largest Vipers home crowd.

The St. Louis Vipers hosted the 1995 RHI All-Star Game on July 15, 1995 in front of 9,166 at Kiel Center.[2] The East beat the West with a score of 14-12. Ed Anderson of the East was the game's MVP.

In 1999, the Vipers became Murphy Cup champions. It was the final year of Roller Hockey International's existence.

Over their six-year existence in the 1990s, the St. Louis Vipers had a total home attendance of 332,412 in 71 home games, an average of 4,682 per game (a few hundred less than what was seen as viable, had the league stayed afloat[3]). The largest home crowd in Vipers history was the final regular season home game in 1997 with an announced attendance of over 14,000 against the New Jersey Rockin' Rollers.[4]

Vipers 2.0

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A press conference was held on June 4, 2019, at Family Arena in St. Charles, Missouri, announcing the return of the St. Louis Vipers. The National Roller Hockey League announced the team along with the Vipers head coach, Perry Turnbull. Turnbull played in 608 NHL games and had 351 career points. He also coached the St. Louis Vipers of the RHI from 1993-99 seasons. The league canceled their 2020 season due to COVID but had a 2021 plan in place. As of May 2021, the NRHL has made no public comments since early 2020 regarding any attempted comeback and any information on the league has not been answered on any of their social media outlets regarding a season or any refunds to any season tickets holders stuck who paid up front.

Yearly records

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Year GP W L OTL PTS PCT GF GA PIM
1993 14 9 4 1 19 .679 104 115 292
1994 22 8 12 2 18 .409 154 173 495
1995 22 13 7 2 28 .636 166 157 520
1996 28 15 12 1 31 .554 207 209 520
1997 24 12 10 2 26 .542 174 169 339
1999 26 17 8 1 35 .673 221 168 297

Team records

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Player Seasons Stats Notes
Christian Skoryna (95-97, 99) 118 goals Single season point record (80) in 1996. Single season assist record (44) in 1996.
Frank Cirone (1994–97) 106 Single season goal record (37) in 1996.
Wayne Anchikoski (94-97) 74
Kevin Plager (96,97, 99) 74

References

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  1. ^ "1993-1999 St. Louis Vipers". Fun While It Lasted. April 23, 2013.
  2. ^ "RHI All-Star Game - 1995". RHI Stats. Retrieved August 10, 2019.
  3. ^ "Gordo: Remembering STL's fringe sports teams". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. November 18, 2018.
  4. ^ "Gordo: Remembering STL's fringe sports teams". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. November 18, 2018.
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St. Louis Vipers website