Tag: L.C. Walker Arena

Muskegon Lumberjacks International Hockey League

Muskegon Lumberjacks (1984-1992)

January 23, 2021

Muskegon, Michigan was a mainstay of the Rust Belt-based International Hockey League from 1960 until 1992. The Lumberjacks were the last of three Muskegon clubs to play in the IHL, following in the footsteps of the Zephyrs (1960-1965) and the Mohawks (1965-1984). The ‘Jacks were a league dynasty during the late 1980’s, appearing the Turner Cup finals in six of their eight seasons and winning in 1986 and 1989. The team combined outstanding independent players such as Scott Gruhl, Jock Callander and Dave Michayluk with NHL prospects thanks to a late 80’s farm team affiliation with the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Lumberjacks relocated to Cleveland following the 1991-92 season.

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Michigan Mayhem Continental Basketball Association

Michigan Mayhem

February 15, 2019

The Michigan Mayhem were a ramshackle minor league hoops outfit based out of Muskegon’s L.C. Walker Arena for two winter seasons between 2004 and 2006. The team played in the Continental Basketball Association, the former Official Developmental League of the NBA. But by the time the Mayhem joined the CBA in 2004, the league was on its last legs, having been pushed aside by the NBA’s own in-house minor league system, the National Basketball Development League (known today as the “G-League”). Former NBA players Sam Mack and Roy Tarpley both played for the Mayhem near the end of their careers.

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Muskegon Mohawks

September 23, 2018

International Hockey League (1965-1984) Born: Re-branded from Muskegon Zephyrs Re-Branded: 1984 (Muskegon Lumberjacks) First Game: October 29, 1965 (L 5-4 @ Toledo Blades) Last Game: April 8,

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1997-98 Muskegon Fury Yearbook from the United Hockey League

Muskegon Fury

December 26, 2015

After the International Hockey League’s Muskegon Lumberjacks abandoned the Western Michigan city in favor of Cleveland in 1992, a former Lumberjacks staffer named Tony Lisman swiftly organized a new franchise in the cheaper, lower-profile Colonial Hockey League.  Lisman’s Muskegon Fury entered the CoHL as an expansion franchise in the fall of 1992. The Fury were remarkably successful on the ice. The team never posted a losing season or missed the playoffs in 16 years of play and won four Colonial Cup championships. In 2008, the team reclaimed the “Lumberjacks” name, bringing the successful Fury era to a close.

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