Utica Bulldogs (CoHL, 1993-94)

1993-94 Regular Season
Bulldogs vs. St. Thomas Wildcats

     After two seasons of mediocre hockey, small crowds and growing financial losses, Flint Bulldogs owner Leslie J. "Skip" Probst had had enough. Probst relocated his Bulldogs to Utica, New York and the 3,930-seat Utica Memorial Auditorium, recently vacated when the AHL's Utica Devils moved to St. John, New Brunswick. While The Aud was slightly smaller than Flint's IMA Sports Arena (4,021 seats), the Utica-Rome area had a much larger population than the Flint area, with about 299,000 people. 

     Upon leaving Flint, Probst took a few parting shots at the City of Flint and the area's hockey fans, saying that the city might no longer be able to support professional hockey. "People don't care here. It's amazing. We're absolutely doing the right thing in leaving Flint," Probst said after the announcement.  "If another team can come into Flint and make it, God bless them. They'll have my support and my encouragement."

     The Bulldogs were coming off a mediocre 27-29-4 record in 1992-93, good enough for sixth place in the Colonial League, 12 points ahead of last place Chatham. In the playoffs, they were knocked out in six games by eventual champion Brantford. Off the ice, the Bulldogs averaged 2,238 per game, second-highest in the league. 

     Probst would retain the Bulldogs name and colors. The logo was slightly modified from the Flint days, as the outer two circles were dropped. The jerseys were significantly changed, using striping patterns closer to the Philadelphia Flyers. Marty Howe was retained as head coach, while Probst remained as President/General Manager. 

     1993-94 was significantly worse for the new Utica Bulldogs. Now in the Eastern Division, Utica collapsed to last place in the entire league, with a woeful 21-39-4 record, the sole team eliminated from postseason play. Their 46 points were only six back of third place St. Thomas for the last playoff spot. Probst stepped down in December as General Manager to concentrate on ownership duties, hiring former Brantford GM Rod Davidson. By January, the Colonial League assumed control of the franchise when Probst ran into heavy debt and was unable to meet payroll. Attendance was actually worse at The Aud than the previous year in Flint, as just 2,206 per game bothered to show up.

     The Bulldogs had the worst offense by far in the league that season, scoring a mere 226 goals, 58 fewer than St. Thomas. Former Penguins draft pick Tim Fingerhut led the team with 24 goals and 58 points in 58 games. The only other two 20-goal scorers that season were Mike Tomlinson (24) and Matt Zilinskas (22). Top scoring defenseman was Dan Sawyer, who had 10 goals and 31 points in 45 games in his only Colonial League season.

     Utica was nearly as rotten on defense, surrendering 330 goals, third-most in the league. Despite this, the team used just three goaltenders. Pat Szturm was the lone holdover from the Flint days, playing in 36 games, with an 8-21-2 record and a 4.93 GAA. Wayne Marion, formerly of St. Thomas, also played in 36 games, sporting a 13-17-2 record and 4.89 GAA. Grant Wood rounded out the netminders, playing in just one game in his pro career, allowing four goals on eight shots. 

     The Bulldogs didn't have much bite when it came to penalty minutes either, drawing the second-fewest minutes in the league with 1,415. Tomlinson led the team with 148 PIM in 63 games. And then there's Darren Miciak, one of the most notorious bruisers in Colonial Hockey League history. Coming off a season in which he had a whopping 396 PIM in 53 games for Flint in 1992-93, Miciak played just 6 games for Utica before being traded to St. Thomas. In those six games, Miciak had zero points, but 129 PIM, second most on the team. You don't see players like Darren Miciak anymore.

     As stated earlier, the Bulldogs didn't qualify for the playoffs that season. The Thunder Bay Senators regained the Colonial Cup by dispatching the Chatham Wheels in five games.

     The program itself is actually pretty good, 60 pages all in black and white, with plenty of advertisements. The title, "Bulldogs Bark" was another thing carried over from the team's Flint days. The cover is similar to the team's 1991-92 program. This program is from the December 19, 1993, game between the Bulldogs and St. Thomas Wildcats. Utica defeated the Wildcats, 7-6, in a shootout. 

Matt Weir was the player profile in the insert for that night's program. An Ottawa native, Weir played two seasons for Elmira College before having a career year in 1992-93 with the Medway Bears of the British Hockey League. In just 32 games, Weir scored 47 goals and 99 points.

     1993-94 would be Weir's lone season in pro hockey in North America. He played the majority of the year with Utica, scoring 8 goals and 36 points in 57 games before being traded to Thunder Bay, where he had one point in five games. 

     The back of this insert is the player profile, in which you find the typical stats on the player as well as numerous questions about their "favorites". Weir noted that his favorite opposition arena was Thunder Bay, but his favorite road dressing room was Brantford. His biggest thrill in hockey was being named All-American at Elmira College. His favorite bus activity was "sleep" while his favorite way to relax after a game was "beer". 

     This is the roster for the Bulldogs for that night. Szturm started the game, making 22 saves for the win. Szturm, a Thunder Bay native, was a member of the 1991-92 Colonial Cup Champion Thunder Bay Thunder Hawks. He would return to Thunder Bay for the last two seasons of his career, helping the now-Senators win the 1994-95 Colonial Cup and reach the 1995-96 Colonial Cup Finals. Szturm is now an Executive Financial Consultant CFP at IG Wealth Management in Thunder Bay. On a side note, Szturm and Darren Miciak attended one of my brother's hockey practices in Saginaw during the 1992-93 season. 

     His goaltending partner, Wayne Marion, came over from St. Thomas, where he helped lead the Wildcats to two straight Colonial Cup Finals appearances. He split the 1994-95 season between the new Utica Blizzard and Brantford Smoke, before moving on to the Winston-Salem Mammoths of the Southern Hockey League. 

     Scott Allen was a holdover from the Flint Bulldogs, and played all three seasons of the franchise's existence. He started his pro career in the old All-American Hockey League in Troy, Ohio, and played until 1996-97, his final season with the Johnstown Chiefs in the ECHL. Allen then moved into coaching, spending the next 29 years as either an assistant or head coach in various leagues. He is currently an assistant coach with the Washington Capitals. 

     I saw the Utica Bulldogs play twice that season. The first game was a memorable one, October 30, 1993, at the IMA Sports Arena against the new Flint Generals. This was the first game back for the Bulldogs, and an overflow crowd of 4,471 saw the Generals annihilate the Bulldogs, 11-2. The second game was on March 6, 1994, at Fraser Ice Arenas (aka The Falcondome), as the Bulldogs lost 7-1 to Detroit.

     This is the St. Thomas Wildcats' roster for that night. Head Coach Wayne Maxner was head coach of the Detroit Red Wings from 1980-82, compiling a 34-68-27 record before moving on to the Ontario Hockey League. St. Thomas was his final coaching stop, as the Wildcats finished 22-34-8. Maxner passed away at age 80 on July 27, 2023. 

     Goaltender Ron Bertrand would play for several Colonial League teams in his pro career. He would play in Utica for the Blizzard for two seasons. He would finish his career in the English Premier League in 2000-01. 

     Defenseman Bernie John was a dependable player on the blueline in the minor leagues throughout the course of his career. He followed the Wildcats to London, Ontario, in 1994-95, then joined the Brantford Smoke for the next two seasons. John later played severals seasons with the Indianapolis Ice of the CHL, winning the 1999-2000 President's Cup. 

     Tim Bean had a career year with the Wildcats that season, scoring 40 goals and 95 points in just 62 games. A former Toronto Maple Leafs draft pick, Bean never made it to the NHL, but played four seasons with the Leafs' AHL affiliate in Newmarket, as well as three games with the 1988-89 Flint Spirits. Bean would finish his pro career with the 1995-96 Saginaw Wheels, scoring eight goals and 17 points in 29 games.

     Gary St. Pierre played the previous season with the Flint Bulldogs and Detroit Falcons, part of the trade that sent Jason Simon to Detroit. During warmups prior to a Bulldogs game, St. Pierre cracked his hockey stick. When he was heading to the locker room, he gave me the broken stick. I still have it. 

     Nothing too significant for articles in this program. Just the usual stuff, like "Hockey Terms", introductions to staff members, and "The Man in the Striped Shirt". The league directory is on page 22. The Phillie Phanatic's (mascot for the Philadelphia Phillies) picture is on page 33, as he was appearing at that night's game. Speaking of mascots, Boris the Bulldog was brought over from Flint and is pictured on page 43.

     Local advertisements include WFRG 1450 AM, Bob's Pro Shop and Equipment Repair, The Savings Bank of Utica and the Observer-Dispatch.

Aftermath: The Bulldogs folded after just one season of operation, losing over $160,000 in the process. The Colonial Hockey League replaced the Bulldogs with the expansion Utica Blizzard, owned by Utica native Jeff Croop. Utica is currently home to the AHL's Utica Comets, an affiliate of the New Jersey Devils. 

References:

Colonial Hockey League Regular Season Statistics: 1993-94, from hockeydb.com

"Shootout Win Gives Bulldogs Their Second Straight Victory", Daily Sentinel, Rome, NY, December 20, 1993.