The first season of the EIHL saw the Panthers finish second in the league and claim their first silverware since 1998, the Challenge Cup, by beating the Steelers in a final for the first time in 8 years. With uncertainty over the future of the club, the Panthers became one of the founding member of the news Elite Ice Hockey League. September 2000 saw the Panthers move to their current home at the National Ice Centre, however that first season didn’t feature many highlights.Ģ003 saw the collapse of the Superleague and a tumultuous time for the participating teams. Unfortunately, the league title continued to elude the Panthers with great starts to the season arrested by poor endings. Blaisdell assembled a strong side and began to dominate the Benson & Hedges cup, winning it 3 of the next 5 years. But once the trophies started to flow, they wouldn’t stop for a while. With the departure of Dampier in 1992-93 the Panthers has to wait a couple of years for the 1994-95 season and the arrival of Mike Blaisdell to taste glory again. Winger Gavin Fraser said in the hospitality bar afterwards: "We don't want to watch the tape, in case we lose it second time around!". It was Panthers first big win since the fifties. Favourites Whitley were brushed aside on the Saturday and Sunday Ayr had little answer to the Panthers' tactics. With imported forward Paul Adey helped by those rushes of Durdle and solidity of defence provided by Kurtenbach, the Panthers booked their place in the Wembley Heineken Finals for the first time ever. Panthers hockey wouldn’t be seen in the city again for another two decades.ġ988-89 saw Dampier’s carefully designed plans finally pay off. That would be the last title win of the original Panthers with the league disbanding at the close of the 1960 season. The 55-56 season was the club’s most successful with them winning the Autumn Cup and League Title, all coming under the tutelage of, you guessed it, player-coach Chick Zamick. Another title came to the Panthers in 1953-54 as well as 1955-56. A league title in 1950-51 saw the team as the highest scoring, and least conceding, side in the English League. With Zamick playing to the incredible standard he was, it would come as no surprise that it didn’t take the team too long to find success. Even now, 54 years after playing in the opening season in Nottingham, I still see some familiar faces at the home games,". Les said “Nottingham Panthers supporters are the best in the world and always have been. He scored his 100th goal inside a season and a half, his 200th goal in January 1950 and by January 1954 he was up to 500 goals.Įven back in 1946, it was clear though that the #PanthersNation was the greatest group of fans in the UK. The 5’7” centre was soon setting records. He arrived in Nottingham in a borrowed suit and with borrowed money in his pocket. And in all fairness to Zamick, he deserved those plaudits.
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