Preserving the Legacy

Welcome to the Springfield Hockey Heritage Society!

Springfield, Massachusetts has had a reputation for many years as a "hockey town".

Western Massachusetts is home to many great attractions. Six Flags, Basketball Hall of Fame, restaurants and shopping to name a few. However to many of us this has always been a hotbed of hockey action. Some of the best players the game has ever seen have either played with the home team, or passed through as opponents. From Shore to Howe to Orr to Gretzky and beyond, the hockey fans of Springfield have been treated over the years to many of the sport's all time greats.

With our Springfield Falcons falling short in their bid for the Calder Cup playoffs this season, there was some joy and possibly some relief when it was learned that the Hershey Bears were eliminated from the Calder Cup playoffs in the first round.

The Bears held the Cup high the past two seasons. Lofting it again in 2011 would have made it three in a row for the team from Chocolatetown.

So when the first year Charlotte Checkers managed to skate away with a 2-1 overtime victory at the Giant Center in Hershey on April 24th, most who were around for the three consecutive Calder Cups in 1960, '61 and '62 were able to relax, knowing that those Glory Days Indians, from nearly 50 years ago still remain the only club in the long history of the American Hockey League to skate with the Cup in three straight seasons.

Locally, the Falcons were on the cusp of post season play for much of the season. A dismal stretch of 12 consecutive losses between February 27th and March 23rd sealed the fate of the Falcons. There were some bright spots down the stretch though, which gives us reason to be optimistic for next season here in Springfield.

The parent Columbus Blue Jackets have done a good job in building their organization through solid drafting and keeping the talented youngsters, rather than using them for trade bait. This was evident for the final few weeks of the season when Allen York made his pro debut in goal. York went 3-1-0 in four games and managed to record the Falcons' only shutout of the season. Another newcomer was Hobey Baker award finalist, Cam Atkinson. Atkinson at 5'8" and 185 pounds has the skills to make Springfield fans remember Danny Briere from a decade ago. Cam recorded five points in five games at the tail end of the season.

It has always been exciting to see the NHL stars of tomorrow skate through Springfield. As we look forward to the 2011-2012 season, it looks like a fair share of them will be wearing Falcons' sweaters!

How many of us were fortunate enough to see our first hockey game at the Coliseum?

The SHHS had the pleasure of being on hand at the Barnes and Noble store in Holyoke on Saturday October 16th. The occasion was the release of a new biography, "Eddie Shore and that Old Time Hockey" by author C. Michael Hiam. Mr. Hiam was on hand to speak about the book as was Eddie "Ted" Shore, Jr. who also spoke about the book as well as telling some stories about his father.

Thank you for submitting your membership application to the Springfield Hockey Heritage Society. Before you go to our secure Google Checkout page, we want to express our thanks to you for becoming a part of hockey history here in Springfield. About half of the respondents to our poll have answered that their first game was in the 1960s or 1970s. That means for many of you, it might have been a Saturday night at the Coliseum. While many of us remember those "good old days", newer fans may look back fondly on the back to back Calder Cup Champions of the early 90s...having never even seen a hockey game at The Old Barn! We will continue to research and do our best to put all the information in one place for hockey fans of all ages. With your membership, please feel free to share your stories with us! Don't forget - all of the stories and information will be here for generations to come! Thank you for supporting the Springfield Hockey Heritage Society!

Below, choose your one season or two season membership, then click the "Buy Now" button. You will be redirected to our secure Google Checkout page to complete your membership.

$20.00 - Single Season Membership $40.00 - Two Season Membership