Birth of the franchise The South Carolina Stingrays were founded in 1993 as an expansion team in the
East Coast Hockey League (ECHL). Its management team included Joseph Scanlon as president/CEO and retired
National Hockey League (NHL) player
Rick Vaive as head coach. The team was originally to be designated the South Carolina Sharks, but eventually settled on the Stingrays name to avoid a copyright dispute with the NHL's
San Jose Sharks. In late 1993, Scanlon filed a lawsuit in a Canadian court in an attempt to wrest control of the team from its ownership group. He was replaced as president and CEO by retired NHL
Hall of Fame member
Marcel Dionne in December of that year. Dionne was accused of assault in February 1994 by Lynn Bernstein, an ally of Scanlon, over a dispute regarding the removal of advertising signs at the
North Charleston Coliseum, but was later acquitted. Following dismissal of Scanlon's lawsuit, the ECHL board of governors ended the power struggle when it approved the sale of the franchise from its Canadian ownership group to a local investment group led by Edwin Pearlstine, owner of Pearlstine Distribution, the local
Budweiser distributor. The group also included
Jerry and
Anita Zucker, Harvey Nathan and Lynn Bernstein (owners of local restaurant Nathan's Deli), and the Greenwald family of Seabrook Island. Dionne remained the franchise's president and CEO. In early 1995, along with
Charlotte,
Greensboro, and
Hampton Roads, the team was offered an expansion spot by the
American Hockey League (AHL), the intermediate level between the ECHL and the NHL. However, team management decided to remain in the ECHL, citing a desire to retain the level of affordability for the team's fans. The other three franchises have since accepted AHL offers, becoming the
Charlotte Checkers,
Carolina Monarchs, and
Norfolk Admirals, respectively. Later that year, Dionne left the Stingrays organization. Vaive succeeded Dionne as director of hockey operations while retaining his head coaching position, thus giving him more control over personnel decisions.
Rick Vaive era (1993–98) The Stingrays finished sixth in the East Division in their inaugural season and were eliminated in the first round of the 1993–94 playoffs by the
Hampton Roads Admirals. Despite their early playoff exit, the team had several significant achievements during their inaugural season. Center
Sylvain Fleury finished tenth among league skaters for total points with 95 points in 68 games played and scored a league season-high five goals in an 11–6 victory over the Greensboro Monarchs on December 26. Left winger
Andy Bezeau was second in the league in penalty minutes, accumulating 352 minutes in 36 games (29 fewer games than
Trevor Buchanan, the league leader with 422 minutes). From January 19–28, the Stingrays went on a six-game winning streak wherein they totaled 43 goals for and only 13 goals against, including two games in which they scored 11 goals each against their opponents (one of which, against the
Huntington Blizzard, had 67 shots on goal by the Stingrays). The team led the league in attendance with an average of 9,151 fans per game. They set the current league record for the longest home winning streak that season with 18 victories at home between December 23, 1994, and March 19, 1995. The Stingrays returned to the East Division in 1995–96 and finished third in the regular season, falling in the second round of the playoffs to the Charlotte Checkers. They posted an 8-game road winning streak that season, lasting from December 15 until January 13, in which they accumulated 48 goals and surrendered 27 goals against. Defenseman
Scott Boston finished sixth among top-scoring defensemen in the league with 58 total points in 67 games. The Stingrays fell to second place in league attendance with an average 7,447 fans per game. In 1996–97, the Stingrays won both the ECHL championship
Kelly Cup (defeating the
Louisiana IceGators four games to one) and the
Brabham Cup (awarded to the team with the best regular season record), becoming the first ECHL team and one of three overall to win both a regular season and postseason championship in the same year. The
Alaska Aces (2006, 2011) and the
Cincinnati Cyclones (2008) later accomplished this feat. Forwards
Ed Courtenay and
Mike Ross tied for the highest total points in the league, each with 110 points in combined goals and assists. Forward
Dave Seitz finished seventh with 97 total points. Ross was also named the league's
Most Valuable Player (MVP), the only member of the Stingrays to receive this distinction through the 2010–11 season. Goaltender Jason Fitzsimmons was selected as the Kelly Cup playoffs MVP. Fitzsimmons totaled 13 wins in 17 playoff games and achieved a 3.38 GAA with a 0.903 save percentage. Following their Kelly Cup victory, ECHL management accused the franchise of circumventing the league's salary cap by colluding with the city of
North Charleston to funnel money through a city-run youth hockey program to provide payouts to players. After two months of investigation by the league, the Stingrays were assessed a US$50,000 fine, and Vaive was suspended for the first six games of the 1997–98 season. The
Internal Revenue Service determined that no state or federal tax laws were broken, but the incident sparked a re-evaluation by the ECHL of the teams' salary caps. Early in the 1997–98 season, the Stingrays won a league-high 12 consecutive home games from October 24 to January 2 in which they accumulated 52 goals and allowed 24 goals against. Defenseman
Chris Hynnes finished the regular season first in goals (19) and fourth in total points (58) among league defensemen. Goaltender
Cory Cadden finished seventh in the league with a 2.85 GAA, a 0.907 save percentage and 30 wins in 45 games. The team finished at the top of the Southeast Division, but fell in a first round playoff series against their new in-state rival, the
Pee Dee Pride. The Pride advanced after coming back from a three-goal deficit to win the fifth game of a best of five series in overtime. Vaive reported after the fact that replays indicated that the game-tying goal was invalid but the referee missed the call, resulting in the overtime period and the Stingrays' eventual defeat.
Rick Adduono era (1998–2002) For the 1998–99 season, Vaive accepted the head coaching position with the AHL's
Saint John Flames. His assistant coach,
Rick Adduono, was tapped to take over as Vaive's replacement as head coach and general manager. Former Stingrays
goaltender Jason Fitzsimmons was named assistant coach in Adduono's place. The Stingrays finished third in the Southeast Division, with defenseman
Brad Dexter third in the league for top-scoring defensemen with 55 points in 19 goals and 26 assists. Forward
Dave Seitz led the league in game-winning goals with 11, while goaltender
Jody Lehman finished seventh among league netminders with a 2.72 GAA and a 0.916 save percentage. After receiving a first-round bye for the playoffs, the Stingrays fell in a second-round 3-game shutout to the
Mississippi Sea Wolves. The final game was decided in overtime and ran to 110 minutes and 37 seconds, making it the fifth-longest overtime playoff game in league history as of the 2010–11 season. The Stingrays set the league postseason record for most goals by one team in a two-game series with 11 goals in their two-game shutout of the
Baton Rouge Kingfish in the preliminary round of the playoffs. They finished second in the league that season with a 9-game overall winning streak and had a league-record 10-game road winning streak.
Jason Fitzsimmons era (2002–07) After failing to advance to the first round of the ECHL playoffs the next season by losing a "play-in" game in the 2001–02 season to the
Florida Everblades in their practice facility (a concert at the Coliseum forced the move), Adduono was released from his contract and was replaced by Fitzsimmons.
Jared Bednar, another longtime Stingray, was made assistant coach later. Despite a long-standing association with the
Buffalo Sabres, the Stingrays broke away just before the 2001–02 season and played three seasons as an independent team. For the 2004–05 season, the team agreed to an affiliation with the
Washington Capitals. From 2003 to 2006, the Stingrays experienced another run of first and second round playoff defeats. Despite a strong second-place finish in the Southeast Division in 2003, they fell three games to one to the Pee Dee Pride in the first round of the playoffs. The Stingrays moved to the Southern Division for the 2003–04 season, finishing fourth in the regular season and advancing to the second round of the playoffs, where they were swept three games to none by the Florida Everblades, the final game a crushing 8–2 loss. For the 2004–05 season, the Stingrays returned to the East Division, where they finished second in the regular season. They were defeated three games to one in the first round of the playoffs, again to the Everblades. The 2005–06 season marked the Stingrays' first year in the newly designated South Division, in which they have remained to the present day. They finished fourth in the regular season and defeated the Charlotte Checkers in the Kelly Cup playoffs' first round, only to fall in a second round sweep—three games to none—by the
Gwinnett Gladiators. .
Jared Bednar era (2007–09) After failing to qualify for the ECHL playoffs for the only time in franchise history during the 2006–07 season, Fitzsimmons resigned, and was assigned by the Washington Capitals as a scout. Bednar took over as head coach, with
Cail MacLean, who had been the
captain for the Stingrays, as a part-time assistant while completing his studies at The Citadel. Bednar took the Stingrays to the Kelly Cup playoffs for both of his seasons as head coach. In the 2007–08 season, the Stingrays advanced to the American Conference finals, losing 4–1 to the Cincinnati Cyclones in a suspense-filled series wherein three games (including the final) were decided in overtime. The Stingrays built on this momentum in the 2008–09 season, sweeping Cincinnati 4–0 in the conference finals and winning the Kelly Cup on the road in the culmination of a 4–3 series with the Alaska Aces. Bednar resigned shortly thereafter, joining the
Calgary Flames' system in
Abbotsford as assistant coach, and later earned his first AHL head coaching assignment with the
St. Louis Blues' farm club in
Peoria for 2010–11. MacLean was named head coach, with the assistant coach position becoming vacant. Building on their championship success, many players on the 2009 Kelly Cup team were called up to the American Hockey League during the 2009–10 season. Six players from the 2009 team played in the
2010 Calder Cup Championship – five for the victorious
Hershey Bears, and one for the runner-up
Texas Stars.
Cail MacLean era (2009–11) This success, however, was short-lived. Despite a strong regular season showing that left the Stingrays tied with the South Division (and American Conference) leader Charlotte Checkers and North Division leader
Kalamazoo Wings, the team ended up fourth seed in the
2010 Kelly Cup playoffs, falling three games to two in the first round to the eventual champions, the Cincinnati Cyclones. For a team that was the first in the ECHL to reach 30 wins that season (in a 5–3 victory over the
Reading Royals in front of a record sellout crowd of 10,570), the first round defeat was disappointing to players and fans alike. faces off against
Barret Ehgoetz of the Cincinnati Cyclones during the 2009–10 season. Former Stingray Rob Concannon was picked to succeed Darren Abbott as team president at the end of the 2009–10 season. In August 2010, the Stingrays announced that former
forward Spencer Carbery had been named the team's assistant coach. With the return of forwards
Maxime Lacroix and
Pierre-Luc O'Brien—both of whom played a vital role in the 2009 Kelly Cup championship—the team looked to build momentum towards a fourth championship. However, injuries, call-ups, and ultimately inconsistent play on the ice resulted in another disappointing first round playoff loss, this time to the
Wheeling Nailers. A bright spot in the midst of the team's disappointing seasons came from a terrible tragedy. In February 2011, former Stingrays goaltender
Kirk Daubenspeck—who played for the team from 1999 to 2006 and was part of the Kelly Cup championship team in 2001—was in a near-fatal car accident that resulted in a traumatic brain injury that left him in a coma for six days. Friends, family members and former teammates from the Stingrays, the Hershey Bears,
Culver Military Academy and the
University of Wisconsin (Daubenspeck's alma maters) banded together to raise money to help defray the extensive medical bills. The team sold T-shirts bearing Daubenspeck's name and number (29) at the season's remaining home games. In April 2011, current and former Stingrays donned their skates and took to the ice for the team's first ever alumni game, held to benefit the Daubenspeck family. The event (held at the Carolina Ice Palace) drew a capacity crowd of over 700 and raised over $20,000 in ticket sales and from a post-game jersey auction. Daubenspeck and his family were in attendance, and Daubenspeck dropped the game's ceremonial first puck.
Spencer Carbery era (2011–2016) The team announced in July 2011 that head coach Cail MacLean had accepted the assistant coaching position for the AHL's Abbotsford Heat, a spot previously held by former Stingrays head coach Jared Bednar. Assistant coach Spencer Carbery was tapped to take MacLean's place, making him the team's sixth head coach and the youngest head coach in the league. In a break with recent practice, the team selected a new assistant coach from outside the organization.
J.B. Bittner, previously an assistant coach for
Ohio State University's ice hockey team as well as a former professional player, joined the team in September 2011. The team also faced some controversy when it was revealed that fan favorite and veteran enforcer
Nate Kiser would not be returning to the Stingrays for the 2011–12 season. Kiser had not been offered a contract for the season and subsequently announced his retirement from professional hockey. To honor his contributions to the team over his seven-year career, the organization announced that Kiser would be inducted into the team's Hall of Fame on October 14, 2011, the opening night for the 2011–12 season. On July 25, 2012, the Stingrays announced an affiliation deal with the NHL's
Boston Bruins and their AHL affiliate
Providence Bruins. Spencer Carbery announced on September 4, 2013, that the team has agreed to terms with rookie forward Tory Allan and first-year defenseman Tom Janosz. On June 26, 2014, the Washington Capitals announced an affiliation agreement with the Stingrays for the 2014–15 season giving the Stingrays two NHL affiliates for the season for what was intended to be a 20-team ECHL. In 2015, the ECHL Board of Directors voted to only allow one NHL affiliate per ECHL team following the merger with the Central Hockey League just before the 2014–15 season (a 28-team league) and the Boston Bruins switched their affiliation to the
Atlanta Gladiators beginning with the
2015–16 season. The Capitals' affiliation with the Stingrays also included the Capitals sending their radio broadcaster to Charleston during selected 2015 ECHL playoff games, including the Kelly Cup Finals. In the first round of the
2015 playoffs, the Stingrays defeated the
Reading Royals in seven games. After dispatching the
Florida Everblades in six games in the second round, the Stingrays faced the regular season champion
Toledo Walleye in the Eastern Conference Finals. South Carolina won the first three games, but Toledo won the next three games to force a seventh game. Toledo was on the verge of becoming the sixth team in the history of North American sports to come back from an 0–3 deficit to win a playoff series, but South Carolina won the seventh game in the third overtime period to advance to the Kelly Cup Finals. In the championship series, the Stingrays faced the
Allen Americans. Both teams split the first four games of the series, but the Americans won the fifth game to have a chance to clinch the Kelly Cup in South Carolina. In response, the Stingrays won the sixth game on home ice to force a seventh game back in Allen. However, they lost the seventh game of the series to the Americans, who subsequently won their first championship title since coming from the Central Hockey League before the 2014–15 season. In the
2015–16 season, the Stingrays would once again finish first in their division and qualify for the
Kelly Cup playoffs. The team made it to the conference finals before losing to the
Wheeling Nailers 4-games-to-3. After the season ended, head coach
Spencer Carbery would leave to take the head coaching position with the
Saginaw Spirit of the
Ontario Hockey League.
Ryan Warsofsky era (2016–18) On July 6, 2016, Stingrays' assistant coach
Ryan Warsofsky (later an NHL head coach) was announced as the new head coach and director of hockey operations. The
2016–17 season was also successful for the team. After the Stingrays made the playoffs with two games left in the season, they defeated the lower-seeded
Greenville Swamp Rabbits in six games, before winning their second round series against the
Florida Everblades in five games. They came back against the
Manchester Monarchs in the Eastern Conference finals, winning in seven games after losing the first two games at home. Ultimately, the Stingrays were swept by the
Colorado Eagles in four straight games in the Kelly Cup finals.
New ownership (2018–present) On April 17, 2018, the Zucker family, part owners of the franchise since 1994 and the controlling interest since 2011, sold the majority stake of the franchise to Connecticut businessman Todd Halloran. Following the
2017–18 season, Warsofsky was hired as an assistant coach with the
Charlotte Checkers in the
American Hockey League and was replaced by Spiros Anastas. Anastas kept the job for one season and the Stingrays were the last team to qualify for a spot in the
2019 Kelly Cup playoffs. They were then eliminated in five games by the
Orlando Solar Bears and Anastas was fired on April 26, 2019. He was replaced by assistant coach Steve Bergin. Bergin then lead the team to a 44–14–4 record in the
2019–20 season, and were leading the league when the rest of the season was cancelled due to the
coronavirus pandemic. Bergin won the 2020
John Brophy Award for coach of the year and then left to become an assistant coach for
Sacred Heart University. Assistant Ryan Blair was then named the head coach for the 2020–21 season. Blair was coach until March 7, 2022, when the Stingrays fired him. Brendan Kotyk replaced him as interim coach. He was coach through the rest of the 2021-22 season, named head coach before 2022-23, then fired at the end of the 2023-2024 season.
Jared Nightingale took over as the Stingrays head coach for the
2024-25 season, leading the team to franchise records in points (109) and wins (52) in a single season. The Stingrays lost in the first round of the playoffs to the
Orlando Solar Bears, and Nightingale was signed by the
Rockford IceHogs, the AHL affiliate of the
Chicago Blackhawks, to be their head coach.
David Warsofsky, the brother of former Stingrays head coach Ryan Warsofsky, took over as head coach after serving as a special coaching advisor for the Stingrays in the 2024-25 season. ==Team culture==