Roller Hockey International (1994-1996)
Tombstone
Born: 1994 – RHI expansion franchise
Folded: Postseason 1996
First Game: June 10, 1994 (L 11-5 @ New Jersey Rockin’ Rollers)
Last Game: August 16, 1996 (W 9-5 vs. New Jersey Rockin’ Rollers)
Murphy Cup Championships: None
Arena
The CoreStates Spectrum (17,380)
Opened: 1967
Demolished: 2010-2011
Marketing
Team Colors:
- 1995: Teal, White & Purple
Ownership
- 1994: Ron Salcer, Bill Salcer, Tony Danza, Mike Foy, & Dave Schultz
- 1995-1996: Ron Salcer & Tony Danza & CoreStates Spectrum
Editor's Pick
Wheelers, Dealers, Pucks & Bucks
A Rocking History of Roller Hockey International
Who won the first professional sports championship for the city of Anaheim? Which Roller Hockey International team owner posed for Playboy? Which RHI team’s logo did Sports Illustrated describe as looking like “a malevolent vacuum-cleaner attachment?” Which coach won two championships for two different teams in RHI’s first two seasons? Why were fans nearly ejected from the Oakland Skates’ arena for celebrating a hat trick?
Author Richard Graham takes you behind the scenes to show how Dennis Murphy created Roller Hockey International, and why Murphy might be the most unlikely, least known and most influential visionary in North American professional sports history.
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Background
The Philadelphia Bulldogs roller hockey club was an expansion team for the second season of Roller Hockey International (RHI) during the summer of 1994. RHI was an attempt to cash in on the inline skating craze of the early 1990’s. Despite the sport’s grass roots appeal, the league struggled mightily to convert recreational skaters into paying customers.
Bulldogs owners Ron Salcer and Tony Danza felt this pain acutely. Salcer was an NHL player agent and a recreational roller hockey player in Southern California where he played with Danza, the erstwhile star of sitcoms “Taxi” and “Who’s The Boss?” Salcer hired a pair of Philadelphia Flyers stars from the Broad Street Bullies era of the 1970’s to head the front office. Dave Schultz was Head Coach and General Manager and Bob Kelly handled sales and marketing. The team sold somewhere in the neighborhood of 900 season tickets. But after a decent turnout for the Bulldogs’ home debut at the Spectrum on June 30, 1994 (the team announced 10,273, the Philadelphia Inquirer eyeballed it at 6,000), crowds plummeted quickly. The Bulldogs lost around $700,000 in the first season and half their investor group.
The Bulldogs did manage a winning record of 12-10 under Dave Schultz and advanced to the 1994 RHI playoffs, where they were bounced in the first round by the Montreal Roadrunners.
Downsizing & Demise
Salcer described the Bulldogs debut season as his “worst nightmare” to The Philadelphia Daily News in 1995 and considered disbanding the team. Instead, he hung in for another year but downsized the team’s operations. Salcer laid off Schultz and Kelly, and relied on staff from the Corestates Spectrum to market and operate the team. Only 2,369 turned out for the 1994 home opener. The team went 12-10-2 and made it to the second round of the RHI playoffs before running into their old nemesis the Montreal Roadrunners, who eliminated them for the second straight year.
In 1996, the Bulldogs posted their best record (16-9-3) but with a slimmed down playoff format, this wasn’t good enough to qualify for postseason play. The Bulldogs disbanded after the 1996 season.
Trivia
Philadelphia also had a minor league football team called the Philadelphia Bulldogs in the Continental Football League in 1965 and 1966.
Philadelphia Bulldogs Shop
Philadelphia Bulldogs Video
The Bulldogs host the Chicago Cheetahs at the Spectrum on July 11th, 1994. ESPN2 partial broadcast.
Links
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One Response
Craig Minervini the in studio host of the Miami Marlins on Fox Florida Sports. Didn’t realize he had a stint with RIHL with ESPN.