34 in 34: Atlanta Capitals
August 2, 2015
The 34 in 34 series will feature an in-depth look into all 34 teams in the NA3HL for the 2015-16 season, with a new team being highlighted daily, leading all the way up until the start of the regular season. 34 in 34 goes in-depth into each NA3HL team and will include interviews with all 34 head coaches in the NA3HL, as they provide fans with their expectations and outlook for the 2015-16 season, including taking a look at their potential roster and their strengths as a team for the upcoming season. It will also take a look back on the 2014-15 season and how each team fared and what they accomplished. Best of all, 34 in 34 will provide the fans of the NA3HL with an inside look at their favorite team and what to expect.
Atlanta Capitals
2014-15 Record: 30-13-4, 64 pts. (2nd in South Division) *as Topeka Capitals
2014-15 Playoffs: Lost in South Division Semi-Finals to Texas, 2 games to 0 *as Topeka Capitals
Head Coach: Anthony Bohn
2015-16 Division: South
For the first time in league history, the NA3HL will extend its footprint to the Southeastern United States as the Atlanta Capitals take to the ice in 2015-16. In June, the team announced that it had relocated from Topeka to Atlanta, but would keep the Capitals nickname. The team will play its home games out of Center Ice Arena in Sandy Springs, a suburb of Atlanta.
“I truly believe that Atlanta and the Sandy Springs community is a great location for the Capitals. The facilities we will play in are great, and I believe the city is very appealing to many junior hockey players,” said team owner Don Stone.
Atlanta will be inheriting a team that has been one of the best in the NA3HL’s South Division the last two seasons. During the Capitals inaugural season in 2013-14, the team went 33-11-1 and won the South Division regular season crown. Last year, the team went 30-13-4 and finished 2nd in the South. There aren’t many NA3HL teams with at least 63 wins in the last two seasons.
“It is always good to have an NAHL team in your backyard, which we had the last two seasons with the RoadRunners, but some of our best players got the call up to play with them and that is what we are all about,” said Capitals head coach Anthony Bohn, who will relocate with the team to Georia. “Every year is the same expectation and that is to move guys on and we have done a good job with that the past two seasons and it is something that will be focus in Atlanta.”
As for the 2015-16 season, Bohn thinks the team in Atlanta will be strong thanks to several players who will be back for another year in the NA3HL. Most of the top scorers from a year ago are eligible to return. “We are fortunate in that we are going to have some guys on the team this year that were on the team last year and went through the process and have valuable experience. We hope to have the majority of our 2015-16 team in place by the first or second week in August and then get started,” said Bohn.
“The reception so far by the Sandy Springs community has been amazing. They have opened their arms up to us and are excited to have this level of hockey in the area. I think the popularity and anticipation will only increase as the players start arriving and the season gets closer.”
“One of the other big things that stands out is our facility,” said Bohn. “The building was built for junior hockey and we are getting excited to see this place in full swing with a great atmosphere is just over a month.”
Next up in the 34 in 34 series: Billings Bulls
