WPHL · Central Texas Stampede
1999-2000 Season
Fifty Wins Through the Noise
Record
50-17-3
Points
103
Games
70
Goals For
282
Goals Against
187
From the archive
Everything went right on the ice. Almost nothing went right off it. The fourth season was the best the Stampede ever played.
Central Texas finished 50-17-3 — 103 points, the only Central Division title in franchise history, and the best regular-season record in the WPHL. Ron Newhook, a 22-year-old center, ran away with the league: 35 goals, 76 assists, 111 points, and the WPHL Most Valuable Player award. Behind him, goaltender Matt Barnes won Outstanding Goaltender, and the defense allowed just 187 goals — fewer than any Stampede team before or after.
The playoffs brought the franchise's best swing at a title. Down two games to none to the Shreveport Mudbugs — who had lost only five games at home all season — the Stampede went into Shreveport and stole Game Three. They could not finish the comeback, and the run ended in the semifinals.
All of it happened while the team was quietly running out of money, even as a fight to keep the Stampede in local hands played out behind the scenes. The franchise had just reached its ceiling. It would never get the chance to climb past it.
Honors & recognition
Team
- Central Division TitleThe franchise's only division title.
- League-best regular season
Players
- Ron Newhook · WPHL Most Valuable PlayerThe franchise's only league MVP.
- Matt Barnes · WPHL Outstanding Goaltender
Roster
| Player | Pos | Age | Games | Goals | Assists | Points | Penalty mins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ron Newhook | Right Wing | 22 | 70 | 35 | 76 | 111 | 53 |
| Chris Johnston | Left Wing | 24 | 61 | 41 | 54 | 95 | 152 |
| Gerald Tallaire | Wing | 27 | 69 | 32 | 55 | 87 | 91 |
| Peter Zurba | Left Wing | 24 | 54 | 22 | 31 | 53 | 342 |
| Mike Dick | Center | 24 | 54 | 24 | 23 | 47 | 38 |
| Jamie Hearn | Defense | 28 | 59 | 13 | 30 | 43 | 131 |
| Aldo Iaquinta | Defense | 30 | 65 | 7 | 35 | 42 | 89 |
| Chris Fawcett | Right Wing | 24 | 64 | 18 | 22 | 40 | 21 |
| Sean Hughes | Left Wing | 24 | 41 | 25 | 14 | 39 | 43 |
| Brad Baber | Right Wing | 25 | 64 | 13 | 23 | 36 | 54 |
| Brad Preston | Center | 24 | 33 | 12 | 16 | 28 | 18 |
| Eric Preston | Right Wing | 26 | 49 | 10 | 16 | 26 | 38 |
| Chad Michalchuk | Left Wing | 26 | 25 | 5 | 20 | 25 | 85 |
| Brad Shaver | Forward | 27 | 35 | 7 | 15 | 22 | 28 |
| Jesse Andersson | Defense | 22 | 69 | 4 | 18 | 22 | 60 |
| Craig Johnson | Left Wing | 27 | 63 | 6 | 15 | 21 | 254 |
| Paul Tzountzouris | Defense | 25 | 44 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 40 |
| Matt Brenner | Defense | 26 | 57 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 50 |
| John Murphy | Defense | 22 | 23 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 98 |
| Cory Evans | Left Wing | 25 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| Derek Nicolson | Defense | 26 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Jacques Mailhot | Right Wing | 37 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 51 |
| Tyson Cross | Defense | 21 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Goaltenders
| Player | Age | Games | Wins | Losses | Ties | Goals against avg | Save % | Shutouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jason Carey | 26 | 37 | 24 | 9 | 0 | 2.88 | 0.913 | 2 |
| Matt Barnes | 25 | 42 | 26 | 8 | 3 | 2.34 | 0.931 | 1 |