Moncton Wildcats

Moncton Wildcats
*Wildcats de Moncton*
Moncton Wildcats; Wildcats de Moncton
City	Moncton, New Brunswick
League	Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League
Division	Maritimes
Founded	1995
Home arena	Avenir Centre
Colours	Red, white, blue and gold ;
General manager	Taylor MacDougall
Head coach	Gardiner MacDougall
Website	moncton-wildcats.com
Franchise history
1995–1996	Moncton Alpines
1996–present	Moncton Wildcats
Championships
Playoff championships	2006, 2010 QMJHL Champions

The Moncton Wildcats are a Canadian junior ice hockey team in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) based in Moncton, New Brunswick. The franchise was granted for the 1995–96 season, and were known as the Moncton Alpines for one season prior to rebranding as the Wildcats. The team played at the Moncton Coliseum from 1995 until 2018, and moved into the Avenir Centre prior to the 2018–19 season. After winning the 2005–06 QMJHL championship, the team hosted the 2006 Memorial Cup and reached the final game. The Wildcats also won the league championship in 2009–10, which sent the team to compete at the 2010 Memorial Cup in Brandon, Manitoba where they were eliminated from contention after going winless in the round-robin portion of the tournament.

History

The Moncton Alpines joined the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League for the 1995–96 season. They played for one season under the ownership of racing driver John Graham and coached by Lucien DeBlois. The franchise was purchased by Robert Irving in May 1996, and renamed to the Moncton Wildcats with new uniforms and logo.

Moncton hosted the 2006 Memorial Cup. The team hired former NHL coach of the year Ted Nolan, and acquired players such as Keith Yandle, and various rookies. The Wildcats finished in first place in the league, going 52-15-0-3 for 107 points and winning the Jean Rougeau Trophy for the first time. The Wildcats defeated the Quebec Remparts to the President's Cup. In the Memorial Cup, Moncton finished second in the round-robin after defeating Peterborough and Vancouver but losing to Quebec. The Wildcats defeated the Giants in the semi-final, but lost to the Remparts 6-2 in the Memorial Cup final.

Coaches

1995–1996 Lucien DeBlois: 14–48–8–0
1996–1997 Bill Riley: 16–52–2–0
1997–2000 Réal Paiement: 111–77–21–3
2000–2001 Tom Coolen (Fired in November 2001): 43–82–10–9
2001–2005 Christian La Rue (Fired in January 2005): 126–91–21–0
2005 Daniel Lacroix: 8–8–5
2005–2006 Ted Nolan: 52–15–0–3
2006–2007 John Torchetti: 39–25–4–2
2007–2013 Danny Flynn: 222–151–47
2013–2019 Darren Rumble (Fired in January 2019): 33–32–0–3
2019 John Torchetti (Fired in December 2019): 24–9–0^[1]^[2]
2019–2024 Daniel Lacroix: 138–103–15–9^[3]
2024–present Gardiner MacDougall^[4]

Players

Retired numbers

29 Corey Crawford (Moncton Wildcats, 2001–2005)^[5]

NHL alumni

The following players have played in at least one National Hockey League (NHL) game as of the 2023-24 season:^[6]

NHL first round draft picks

List of first round selections in the NHL Entry Draft:^[7]

Year	#	Player	Nationality	NHL team
1997	24	Jean-François Damphousse (G)	Canada	New Jersey Devils
2003	16	Steve Bernier (RW)	Canada	San Jose Sharks
2010	13	Brandon Gormley (D)	Canada	Phoenix Coyotes
2019	26	Jakob Pelletier (LW)	Canada	Calgary Flames

Season-by-season results

1995–96 Moncton Alpines^[8]
1996–present Moncton Wildcats^[9]

Regular season

OTL = Overtime loss
SL = Shootout loss

Season	Games	Won	Lost	Tied	OTL	SL	Points	Pct %	Goals For	Goals Against	Standing
1995–96	70	14	48	8	–	–	36	0.257	215	360	7th in Dilio
1996–97	70	16	52	2	–	–	34	0.243	192	354	7th in Dilio
1997–98	70	39	32	9	–	–	67	0.479	240	229	4th in Dilio
1998–99	70	38	25	7	–	–	81	0.593	257	235	4th in Dilio
1999–2000	72	44	20	5	3	–	96	0.646	292	211	1st in Maritimes
2000–01	72	23	41	6	2	–	54	0.361	246	323	4th in Maritimes
2001–02	72	20	41	4	7	–	51	0.306	214	287	4th in Maritimes
2002–03	72	37	20	10	5	–	89	0.583	255	216	3rd in Maritimes
2003–04	70	46	19	3	2	–	97	0.679	270	206	2nd in Atlantic
2004–05	70	37	23	8	2	–	84	0.586	206	175	2nd in Atlantic
2005–06	70	52	15	–	0	3	107	0.776	345	184	1st in East
2006–07	70	39	25	–	4	2	84	0.557	254	263	3rd in East
2007–08	70	21	34	–	5	10	57	0.300	191	242	8th in East
2008–09	68	48	14	–	2	4	102	0.706	236	149	1st in East
2009–10	68	48	14	–	2	4	102	0.706	276	164	2nd in Atlantic
2010–11	68	33	25	–	3	7	76	0.485	232	256	3rd in Maritimes
2011–12	68	30	31	–	3	4	67	0.441	190	228	4th in Maritimes
2012–13	68	42	23	–	2	1	87	0.640	274	202	2nd in Telus Maritimes
2013–14	68	33	32	–	0	2	69	0.507	214	226	3rd in Telus Maritimes
2014–15	68	46	19	–	0	3	95	0.699	287	232	1st in Maritimes
2015–16	68	36	21	–	9	2	83	0.610	268	250	2nd in Maritimes
2016–17	68	14	51	–	2	1	31	0.228	170	356	6th in Maritimes
2017–18	68	27	33	–	5	3	62	0.456	233	282	5th in Maritimes
2018–19	68	38	21	–	4	5	85	0.625	274	222	4th in Maritimes
2019–20	64	50	13	–	1	0	101	0.789	276	148	1st in Maritimes
2020–21	31	11	17	–	2	1	25	0.403	105	136	5th in Maritimes
2021–22	68	28	31	–	6	3	65	0.478	208	273	5th in Maritimes
2022–23	68	35	29	–	2	2	74	0.544	255	249	2nd in Maritimes
2023–24	68	38	23	–	4	3	83	0.610	274	231	2nd in Maritimes

Playoffs

Season	1st round	2nd round	3rd round	Finals
1995–96	Did not qualify
1996–97	Did not qualify
1997–98	W, 4–2, Chicoutimi	3rd, round-robin, Quebec/Rimouski
1998–99	L, 0–4, Rimouski
1999–2000	W, 4–0, Acadie–Bathurst	W, 4–3, Quebec	L, 1–4, Rimouski
2000–01	Did not qualify
2001–02	Did not qualify
2002–03	L, 2–4, Quebec
2003–04	W, 4–0, Baie-Comeau	W, 4–2, P.E.I.	W, 4–1, Rimouski	L, 1–4, Hull
2004–05	W, 4–2, Drummondville	L, 2–4, Rouyn-Noranda
2005–06	W, 4–1, Victoriaville	W, 4–1, Halifax	W, 4–1, Gatineau	W, 4–2, Quebec
2006–07	L, 3–4, Halifax
2007–08	Did not qualify
2008–09	W, 4–1, P.E.I.	L, 2–4, Rimouski
2009–10	W, 4–1, Cape Breton	W, 4–1, Rouyn-Noranda	W, 4–1, Drummondville	W, 4–2, Saint John
2010–11	L, 1–4, Lewiston
2011–12	L, 0–4, Halifax
2012–13	L, 1–4, Victoriaville
2013–14	L, 2–4, Blainville-Boisbriand
2014–15	W, 4–1, Chicoutimi	W, 4–3, Halifax	L, 0–4, Quebec
2015–16	W, 4–1, Victoriaville	W, 4–2, Gatineau	L, 2–4, Rouyn-Noranda
2016–17	Did not qualify
2017–18	W, 4–3, Rimouski	L, 1–4, Blainville-Boisbriand
2018–19	W, 4–3, Baie-Comeau	L, 0–4, Halifax
2019–20	QMJHL playoffs cancelled due to ongoing COVID-19 pandemic
2020–21	Lost round-robin tournament
2021–22	L, 0–3, Charlottetown
2022–23	W, 4–3, Baie-Comeau	L, 1–4, Halifax
2023–24	L, 0–4, Chicoutimi

Game Six of the QMJHL Final. — Saint John 4 @ Wildcats 7.

Memorial Cup

The Memorial Cup is contested annually by the champions of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), and Western Hockey League (WHL), as well as a predetermined host team. The competition consists of a round-robin, a semifinal game, and a final game. Below are the results of every game the Moncton Wildcats have competed in.

Year	Round-robin	Semifinal	Final
2006^[a]	W, 3–2 Vancouver Giants W, 4–2 Peterborough Petes L, 3–4 Quebec Remparts	W, 3–1 Vancouver Giants	L, 2–6 Quebec Remparts
2010	L, 4–5 Calgary Hitmen L, 0–4 Brandon Wheat Kings L, 3–4 Windsor Spitfires