Virginia Lancers
The Virginia Lancers had a relatively short history, but managed to play in three different leagues. They began as the Nashville South Stars in Tennessee during the 1982-83 season in the ACHL. The team relocated to Salem, VA, in the middle of the season. The team would play in the ACHL through the 1986-87 season, making the playoffs in all four years and claiming the ACHL in the league's final year in 1987 by beating the Winston Salem Thunderbirds. The Lancers were coached by a future big timer in John Tortorella.Â
After the ACHL folded, the Lancers moved to another short-lived circuit for one season, the All-American Hockey league. They stormed through the league with a 37-5 record but would lose the title to the Carolina Thunderbirds. Both of those teams would leave to form the ECHL after the season ended, where the Lancers would spend the next two seasons with middling success. After that, they would rebrand to the Roanoke Valley Rebels, then the Roanoke Rampage, finally leaving town in 1993 for Huntsville, Alabama.Â
