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Anyang Halla
City	Anyang, South Korea
League	Asia League Ice Hockey
Founded	December 12, 1994
Home arena	Anyang Ice Arena
Colors	Blue, white, gold
Owner(s)	The Halla Group
General manager	Yang Seung-jun
Head coach	Shim Eui-sik
Captain	Kim Woo-jae
Media	OBS, afreeca.com
Franchise history
1994-1997	Mando Winia
1998-2004	Halla Winia
2005-Present	Anyang Halla

The Anyang Halla (Korean: 안양 한라, Hanja: 安養 漢拏) are a professional ice hockey team based in Anyang City in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. They are one of the founding and current members of the Asia League Ice Hockey (AL). Formed in 1994, they are the oldest professional ice hockey team in South Korea. As members of the Asia League, they became the first non-Japanese team to finish first in the league in 2009. Official Website: www.anynaghalla.com (English)

Team history

1994–2003: pre-Asia League Ice Hockey

The team was originally founded in 1994 by the Halla Group to help promote hockey in Korea. The Halla Group also felt that by creating an ice hockey team, it would help them to fulfill their role as a responsible corporation by providing something to the community. The team was originally named "Mando Winia". It was so named because Mando is a subsidiary company of Halla and Winia is a brand of air conditioner sold by the company.

As a member of the Korean Ice Hockey League the team won the championship five times. During this time, the team also changed their name from "Mando Winia" to "Halla Winia". The team first looked at adding foreign players to their roster in late 2001 with other members of the Korean League. In 2003, the team was one of the founding members of Asia League Ice Hockey.

2003–Present: Asia League Ice Hockey

While the team participates primarily in the Asia League, they also play in tournaments like the All Korea Ice Hockey Championship each year. In the inaugural year of Asia League Ice Hockey, Halla played a shortened seasons of only 16 games, and failed to break .500. In the following year they brought Esa Tikkanen, a veteran player of 20 NHL seasons, on board. He was brought on primarily to coach the players but he also played during the team's games. Tikkanen felt that as the players played against more skilled teams their own skill level showed greater improvement. He also felt that they should play more games and that the season was too short. That year the team was also noted for showing great improvement over the first year's effort. Halla finished the season winning 18 games out of 42 with 5 ties. Their top offensive player, Marco Poulsen, finished 5th in the overall points race, however they didn't reach their goal that year of making the playoffs, finishing in 5th place one spot out of the playoffs. In the off-season the team changed their name from Anyang Halla Winia to Anyang Halla with the expiration of the sponsorship contract. As well they hired Otakar Vejvoda to be the team's new coach. Vejvoda was considered a legend in the Czech Extraliga both for his skill as a player and a coach.

In the 2005-2006 season Halla improved on the previous year's performance finishing in second place. The league saw a reduced season of only 38 games. Song Dong-Hwan was the leader in goals for the league with 31 and Patrik Martinec ranked 2nd in assists with 44. Martinec ranked number 2 on the total points list while Song finished in fourth place. Halla also scored the most short handed goals of any team in the league with 11. The city of Anyang won an award for being "The best Hockey Town in Asia". The team made the play-offs for the first time since the league's formation. They received a bye in the first round and played Kokudo, the winner of the 3rd place and 6th place match-up. Anyang managed to win only a single game of the first three which were played on home ice and were eliminated in the 4th game which was played in Kokudo's home rink by a score of 5-1. Kokudo went on to be the league champions for the second year in a row.

After the conclusion of the '05-'06 season there were some roster changes. Two of the team's top players, Song Dong-Hwan and Jang Jong-Moon, had to report for compulsory military service. Starting goaltender, Kim Sung-Bae, retired after the previous season. Even though they were missing these players they were noted for having more players with more than 10 goals and 10 assists than in the previous season. With the departure of Song offensive output dropped slightly, the team's top offensive player finished 7th overall in goals with 21. However Martinec won the assists race with 53 and the overall points total with 71. The team shared top spot in the short handed goals with 2 other teams scoring 10 over the course of the season. With a further shortened season of only 34 games the team finished in 5th place and faced the other Korean team, Kangwon Land in the quarter finals. During the regular season Kangwon won 6 of 7 meetings, and the quarter finals were no different. Kangwon swept Halla in 3 games, the final game ending in 3-2 with a last minute desperate bid by Halla to tie the game.

The next season saw the AL further reduce the amount of games played to just 30. In the pre-season Halla won the Anyang Cup, which is a pre-season tournament held in Anyang. The team's record in the regular season remained relatively the same and they finished again in 5th place. Lee Yu-Won was the top offensive player with 16 goals and was tied for 4th place with 3 other players. Martinec continued to contribute many assists to the team and finished in second place with 29, one point off first. He finished in 4th place in the overall point totals. Halla did not have another player in the top 10. The team once again lead the league in short handed goals and gave up the fewest short handed goals against along with the Oji Eagles. In the playoffs the Halla faced the Nippon Paper Cranes in the first round. During the regular season the two teams split their series each winning 2 games. The playoffs told a different story and Nippon swept Halla in 3 games. Halla lost each game by a single goal. Vejvoda praised Nippon's goalie for his excellent play and commended his players for their effort.

Following the defeat in the post-season Halla replaced Vejvoda as head coach with Shim Eui-Sik. Shim had spent his entire professional career playing for Halla and during the 2007-2008 season he was the coach of Little Halla. As a player Shim had 30 points in 80 games. He vowed to reorganize the team and set his sights on a league championship. The team's general manager also hired Samuel H. Kim, then an analyst for SBS Sports and previously an NHL reporter from Vancouver, as a scout for the organization. Halla moved away from the heavy Czech influence which had previously dominated the team and filled 3 of the 4 spots for foreign players on the team with players from North America. Brock Radunske, Brad Fast and Jon Awe became the first three players from North America to play for the team. They also arranged for Eric Thurston, the head coach of University of Alberta's team, to spend the first 3 weeks of the training camp assisting the new coach and new North American players. Martinec was the only Czech player to remain on the team. In addition to the new foreigner players Song Dong-Hwan and Jang Jong-Moon returned from military service. In the 2008 pre-season Anyang Cup, Halla finished 4th out of 5 teams. The AL increased the number of regular season games for the 2008-2009 season to 36. In September head coach Shim was suspended for 5 games for refusal to play. The incident stemmed from a goal that was scored as the final buzzer sounded during a September 21 game against High1. Halla entered the dressing room and refused to return to the ice. The league considered the game a forfeit. Anyang Halla finished the season in first place with a total of 76 points. Their defeat of their rivals High1 in the final game of the season marks the first time a non-Japanese team has finished first place in the Asia League. Brock Radunske captured the titles for both the most goals scored with 29 and most points on the season with 57. Martinec finished in second place for the second year in a row in the assists category with 47. Overall the team finished with 5 players in the top 10 in the overall points tally. For the first time the team ended the season with the number one powerplay scoring 54 goals. In contrast to earlier seasons the team did not lead the league in short handed goals, ranking in the middle of the pack both in goals for and against. They were the only team not shutout during the regular season.

Community contributions

As a team and organization the Halla have engaged in charitable work. In 2008 they had two charity games on December 27 and 28. The admission fee was waved and instead fans were asked to make donations. The proceeds were donated to the poor children of Anyang city as well as the sick children's hospital. From mid-November 2008 to mid-January 2009 the team gave free tickets to any students who took the College Scholastic Ability Test to promote rest and comfort after the difficult exam.

Media

The Anyang Halla Hockey Club launched a new radio broadcast deal in 2007 with Afreeca.com. Former Halla forward Bae Sang-wun calls the play-by-play, he is joined with colour commentary by Samuel H. Kim. Former hockey player Oh Sol-gil is currently the main TV commentator for the Anyang Halla.

Arena

The Anyang Ice Arena (Korean: 안양종합운동장 빙상장) was opened November 24, 2000. It seats 1284 in the hockey arena. The Arena also contains a basketball court and is home to the KT&G Kites professional team. It has seating for 6690. The ice rink is also used for short track and figure skating among other sports. The team previously used the Mok-dong Ice Rink.

Team colors and mascots

Logo

The Anyang Halla logo features a black triangle in the background surrounded by a white and black border. A growling polar bear is shown protruding from the top half of the triangle and underneath the team name "Halla" is shown in stylized gold letters. Below the team name is a semicircular shape which contains the city name "Anyang" in white letters on a blue background.

Jerseys

As the team changed its name from the Winia to the Halla the uniforms had minor changes made to them. The logo changed names and the uniforms had colored shoulders removed from them. The current home jerseys feature a solid blue background with yellow stripes on the cuffs and bottom of the body as well as a number of blue rough shapes behind the gold trim as well as sponsor logos on the shoulders. The away jerseys feature a solid white background with dark blue striped borders on the cuffs and bottom of the body, it also contains the same rough blue shapes behind the trim. The Halla put the first name of Korean players on the jerseys to avoid confusion as several players share the same family name.

Mascots

The teams mascots are a male and female polar bear. The male polar bear wears the Halla home jersey and the female polar bear wears the away jersey. She also wears a white skirt and has red eyes. No name has been released for either of the polar bears.

Current Roster

Updated December 28, 2008

Goaltenders
#	Country	Player	Catches	Acquired	Place of Birth
30		Son Ho-sung	L	2007	Seoul, South Korea
32		Kim Sun-ki	L	2006	Seoul, South Korea

Defencemen
#	Country	Player	Shoots	Acquired	Place of Birth
2		Jon Awe	R	2008	Memphis, Tennessee, United States
4		Jang Jong-moon	L	2003	Seoul, South Korea
5		Kim Woo-jae – C	R	2002	Seoul, South Korea
7		Lee Seung-yup	R	2006	Seoul, South Korea
15		Ko Byung-hee	R	2006	Seoul, South Korea
24		Park Sung-min	L	2004	Seoul, South Korea
27		Brad Fast – A	L	2008	Fort St. John, British Columbia, Canada
37		Jeon Sang-hyun	L	2006	Seoul, South Korea
44		Lee Kwon-joon	L	2003	Seoul, South Korea
79		Yoon Kyung-won – A	L	2004	Seoul, South Korea

Forwards
#	Country	Player	Position	Shoots	Acquired	Place of Birth
1		Kim Ki-sung	LW/RW	L	2008	Seoul, South Korea
6		Kim Hong-il	C	R	2003	Bu-Choen, South Korea
8		Kim Won-jung	LW/RW	R	2006	Seoul, South Korea
9		Jeong Yeon-taek	RW	R	2008	Jin-Joo, South Korea
11		Lee Yu-won	LW/RW	R	2006	Seoul, South Korea
16		Lee Kwon-jae	RW/LW	R	2007	Seoul, South Korea
17		Kim Kyu-hun	C/W	C	2007	Seoul, South Korea
25		Brock Radunske	C/LW	L	2008	Kitchener, Ontario, Canada
36		Park Woo-sang	C	R	2008	Seoul, South Korea
43		Patrick Martinec	C	L	2005	Jilemnice, Czech Republic
72		Kim Geun-ho	C/W	R	2006	Seoul, South Korea
81		Kim Hong-ik	LW	L	2006	Bu-Cheon, South Korea
89		Kim Han-sung	C/W	R	2004	Seoul, South Korea
96		Song Dong-hwan	RW	R	2003	Seoul, South Korea

Leaders

Team captains

• Lee Dong-ho 1994-98
• Rho Jung-won 1998-00
• Shim Eui-sik 2000-02
• Kim Chang-bum 2002-04
• Park Sung-min 2004-06
• Kim Woo-jae 2006-present

Head coaches

• Kim Sae-il, 1994–04
• Byun Sun-wook, 2004–05
• Vejvoda Otakar, 2005-08
• Shim Eui-sik, 2008-present

Year-By-Year Record

Anyang Halla (AL Hockey 2003-2008)

complete records for previous seasons

*prior to the 2008-2009 season, there were no shoot-outs and games ended in a tie

Past import players

Prior to the 2008-2009 season Halla drew most of their imports from the Czech Republic, including their head coach of 3 seasons.

• Michal Madl 2003-04, D
• Miroslav Stefanka 2003-04, C
• Ales Zima 2003-04, F
• Vesa Ponto 2004-05, D
• Marco Poulsen 2004-05, W
• Esa Tikkanen 2004-05, W/Head Coach (Former Oilers/Rangers/Blues/Devils/Canucks/Panthers/Capitals)
• Daniel Seman 2005-06, D
• Jaroslav Nedved 2005-07, D (Brother of Petr Nedved)
• Zdenek Nedved 2005-07, C/W (Former Maple Leafs)
• Pavel Falta 2006-07, G
• Tomas Hruby 2007-08, F
• Patrik Hucko 2007-08, D
• Milan Kopecky 2007-08, F
• Filip Stefanka 2007-08, D

Retired Numbers

• 91 Shim Eui-sik (1994 - 2006) was the Korean League MVP 5 times and held the record for most career goals and career points. He spent his entire professional career with Halla. He said after his retirement that he hoped to have the chance to coach Halla in the future.

External links

• ANYANG HALLA Official Homepage
• Asia League Official Homepage

References and notes

1. ^ "Anyang Halla Ice Hockey Club". Retrieved 11 January 2009.
2. Claude Leblanc (11 March 2005). "Les hockeyeurs asiatiques veulent briser la glace". Courrier international. Retrieved 11 January 2009.
3. "Anyang Halla Team Guide". Retrieved 11 January 2009.
4. "Anyang Halla History". Retrieved 11 January 2009.
5. Gang Ho-cheol (13 December 2001). "Ice Hockey League Looks to Foreign Players". Chosun. Retrieved 11 January 2009.
6. 김성원 (7 November 2008). "종합아이스하키선수권] 하이원 3연패 '빙판의 무적함대'". Chosun. Retrieved 20 January 2009. News story noting Halla's participation in 63rd All Korean Hockey Championship
7. Jim Armstrong (17 January 2005). "Tikkanen hits the ice in South Korea". Associated Press. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
8. Andrew Mitchell (26 November 2004). "Asia League more than just a bunch of hockey hullabaloo". Asahi. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
9. "Point Ranking 2004-2005 season". Retrieved 18 January 2009.
10. "Esa Tikkanen's indecipherable hockey journey continues in South Korea". The Asian Pacific Post. 9 December 2004. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
11. "News Release". 8 July 2005. Retrieved 18 January 2009.
12. ^ Bill Meltzer (19 December 2007). "Asia League: Korean clubs aim to break Japanese dominance". NHL.com. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
13. "Point Ranking 2005-2006 season". Retrieved 18 January 2009.
14. "PP SH Ranking 2005-2006 season". Retrieved 18 January 2009.
15. "구단연혁 Team History (Korean)". Retrieved 18 January 2009.
16. "KOKUDO defeated ANYANG HALLA and advances to the Final!!". 15 March 2006. Retrieved 18 January 2009.
17. "News Release: Get ready for the playoff games!! 【Anyang Halla】What has happened to the Korean power house!?". 30 January 2007. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
18. "Point Ranking 2006-2007 Season". Retrieved 19 January 2009.
19. "PP SH Ranking 2006-2007 Season". Retrieved 19 January 2009.
20. "Kangwon Land sweeps Anyang Halla and now going to play against Cranes!!". Retrieved 19 January 2009.
21. ^ "News Release: Oji Paper and Cranes sweep to Semifinal". 21 February 2008. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
22. "Point Ranking 2007-2008 season". Retrieved 19 January 2008.
23. "PP SH Ranking 2007-2008". Retrieved 19 January 2009.
24. "Anyang Halla announces its new head coach". 24 April 2008. Retrieved 19 January 2008.
25. ^ Bill Meltzer (30 July 2008). "New-look Anyang Halla adds western flavor". NHL.com. Retrieved 19 January 2008.
26. "EAGLES won the Anyang Cup 2008". 8 September 2008. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
27. "HALLA Avengers". 11 January 2009. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
28. "AL News Release" (PDF). 3 October 2008. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
29. "Halla, Clinch Top Spot in AL". 26 January 2009. Retrieved 26 January 2009.
30. "Point Ranking 2008-2009". Retrieved 26 January 2009.
31. "PP SH Ranking 2008-2009 Season". Retrieved 26 January 2009.
32. "Scores/Game sheet". Retrieved 26 January 2009.
33. "HIGH1, Spoiled the party". 28 December 2008. Retrieved 20 January 2009.
34. "HALLA, looking to extend winning streak to 8 & 9". 27 December 2008. Retrieved 20 January 2009.
35. "수능 수험생 무료관람 안내". 12 November 2008. Retrieved 20 January 2009.
36. 김윤구 (2 October 2007). "아이스하키 한라, 전 홈 경기 인터넷 중계". 연합뉴스. Retrieved 18 January 2009.
37. "Anyang Halla Home". Retrieved 11 January 2009.
38. "Sports Facilities". Retrieved 11 January 2009.
39. Ines Cho (3 January 2003). "Have an ice day!". JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 11 January 2009. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
40. Geoff McClure (24 April 2006). "Eagle who shouldn't be an Eagle". The Age. Retrieved 11 January 2009.
41. "Anyang Halla Q&A". Retrieved 18 January 2009.
42. "Anyang Halla Roster". Retrieved 11 January 2009.
43. "Archive Record". Retrieved 12 January 2009.
44. 이경재 (3 October 2006). "심의식, 지도자 힘찬 새출발!". YTN. Retrieved 20 January 2009.

• Sports clubs established in 1994
• Ice hockey in South Korea
• Asia League Ice Hockey teams