Top-10 Portland Pirates Moments

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I've been working on a long running series that started with MVN.com before I moved to Maine Hockey Journal, where I listed the top-10 moments in Pirates franchise history.

 

The last one is completed so here's the Top-10 moments in Portland Pirates history.

 

 

10.) Ebright saves hockey in Portland

Tom Ebright saved hockey in Portland after many thought it had died with the lost of the Mariners. He earns a spot in the Top-10 moments for his contributions to the City of Portland and hockey fans all across Maine.

 

9.) Pirates look within to eliminate Bruins

The Portland Pirates need more than a scoring touch to beat the Providence Bruins. Down 0-2 in the series, the Pirates dug down to their inner core, prevailing in one of the most exciting series match-ups of all time.

 

8.) Pirates' Brochu wows the crowd in Binghamton

Martin Brochu was a special goaltender, making his mark on Portland Pirates history and establishing himself as one of the all-time great AHL goaltenders.

 

7.) Pirates set a franchise record for the quickest two goals in a period

During the 1996-1997 season, the Portland Pirates faced a number of challenges, but they stared down adversity all season long, in the process setting the franchise record for the quickest-two goals in franchise history.

 

6.) Pirates put up a dozen on the Bruins

It was a game in which the Pirates were in a dogfight for the Northern Division. Only five points behind the Adirondack Red Wings, Portland put the pedal down trying to catch the divison leader. Too bad� the Bruins were in the way.

 

5.) Boback rolls a seven in Albany

The Pirates first season in Portland was very magical for many reasons, but Mike Boback added more script to the Pirates lore with an amazing game in Albany as Portland eliminated the River Rats from the playoffs.

 

4.)Pirates and Bears engage in epic battle

Sometimes the villain can also turn out to be hero and vice versa. During the 2006 Eastern Conference Finals, some believed that Shane O?Brien could have been the villain, but if it wasn?t for his play in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Hershey Bears ? a team already up 2-0 in the series ? the Pirates might have been looking at a much shorter series than what turned out to be an epic seven game battle.

 

3.) Hulst and Kolzig put Pirates in the driver?s seat

Behind an amazing 49-save performance from Pirates? goaltender Olaf Kolzig, Kent Hulst scored 81 seconds into the second overtime to give the Pirates a 2-1 win, putting a stranglehold on the best-of-seven Calder Cup Finals, 3-1, against the Moncton Hawks.

 

2.) Pirates set North American record

It?s hard to believe that 15 years ago, the Portland Pirates were sitting atop the sports world.

 

In a time when ESPN2 was in its infancy and the internet was beginning to boom, the Portland Pirates became a daily topic of news on SportsCenter and water cooler talk across North America.

 

1.) Ebright keeps his promise

Portland, ME ? When the late Tom Ebright brought his AHL team to Portland from Baltimore, Maryland, he stood on the steps of city hall in front of a handful of hockey faithful in attendance and made two promises.

 

He promised to bring respectability and prominence back to the Civic Center ? something that was non-existent for several years under the Maine Mariners ? and he said he would make the newly named Portland Pirates a championship caliber team.

 

As Ebright?s legacy endures in Maine, it?s become very clear that not only did he keep his promises, but also, he didn?t waste much time in making those promises come true.

 

Something fans of the Portland Pirates will never forget.