ECHL: Lions Roar

The latest chapter in the short history of the Trois-Rivieres Lions was written this past Friday in Portland, Maine’s Cross Insurance Arena. With a 6-4 win, the Lions captured their first ever division title. Finishing the weekend with 96 points and 4 games to go, the Lions can now look to top the 100 point milestone on their way into the Kelly Cup playoffs.

To call it an impressive achievement would be putting it mildly considering a year ago the team appeared to be on its way out of hockey and onto the list of defunct teams. 

The Lions 4 season history has been full of highs and lows, with seemingly more lows. However, a new ownership group has clearly reinvigorated both the team and the fans in Trois-Rivieres.  

The team came into the league with a bang in the 2021-22 season with a sparkly new arena, an affiliation with the Montreal Canadiens and a roster full of homegrown Quebec talent. A 3rd place finish in the division and ensuing 1st round playoff exit seemed to be a sign of good things. However, things began a steady decline as the 2022-23 season started. 

The team dropped out of playoff contention and finished 6th in the division. Worse yet, rumblings were starting about off ice issues. Attendance dropped from an estimated 2,900 per game in the inaugural season to 2,617 when the second season ended without a playoff berth. 

The 2023-24 season started where the previous one left off- the rumor mill was churning. A few unexpected player departures, and a mid-season coaching shift that saw the head coach leave for an AHL Position caused the bottom to fall out of the fan base. Furthering the difficulties, rumors began to swirl about unpaid bills with the arena. Only an internal coaching change that saw 13-year coaching veteran Ron Choules take the helm could be seen as a positive. Despite the personnel and off ice challenges, Choules managed to guide the team back to 3rd place in the division. However, the worst was yet to come. 

With the season winding down, and the team headed back to the playoffs, the team’s owner officially pulled the plug, shutting down the team (along with his other team, the Newfoundland Growlers). In an emergency meeting, the ECHL took over operations of the team with the expectations that a new owner was on the horizon. The team would go to the playoffs, with another first round exit, and saw the attendance bottom out at 2,241 per game.

Then came motorsports mogul Jeff Dickerson and his Spire Sports and Entertainment Group. Dickerson took care of the financial backlog and made changes to put the team on the right track business-wise. He held on to Choules and the on-ice product is now at it’s best ever. Bringing the fans back has been a challenge, but things have been looking better since mid-season. A nice playoff run always helps attendance, and who knows what a Kelly Cup could do. 

That, however, is still to come. Right now, the Lions are riding high on their first division title and the home ice playoff advantage that will come with it in 2 weeks. The King of the Jungle is roaring in Trois-Rivieres.