The Cleveland Monsters are an Eastern Conference American Hockey League (AHL) team that's been an affiliate of the NHL's Columbus Blue Jackets since the 2015-2016 season. Coached by Mike Eaves since 2019, the team has won one Calder Cup and one conference championship during its existence.

The Monsters play at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, a downtown Cleveland venue built in 1994 that was known as the Quicken Loans Arena before being renamed after renovations were finished in 2019. The team's mascot is appropriate for a city located on a lake: He's a ferocious (but friendly) seagull named Sullivan C. Goal, or Sully for short. The Monsters specialize in high-energy, physical play that prepares players for the rigors of the NHL — a fact that's not lost on Cleveland fans, who pack the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on a regular basis for games.

Cleveland Monsters History

Cleveland has had multiple professional hockey franchises over the years, including an NHL team, the Cleveland Barons, from 1976 to 1978, and an AHL team of the same name from 2001 to 2006. The Cleveland Monsters began play in the 2007-2008 season, and were initially an affiliate of the NHL's Colorado Avalanche. The franchise was originally called the Lake Erie Monsters, a moniker nodding to local lore that the nearby body of water has a Loch Ness-like creature named Bessie living in it. In 2016, however, the team started calling itself just the Monsters.

The squad has appeared in the playoffs three times, most recently in the 2018-2019 season when they were swept in the second round by the Toronto Marlies. To date, the Monsters' most successful season was 2015-2016. Not only did they set a team record for points (with 97), but during their second-ever playoff appearance they won the Western Conference championship and took home the Calder Cup, the AHL's version of the Stanley Cup.