Lowell Lock Monsters

Lowell Lock Monsters™ History

Who were the Lowell Lock Monsters?

The Lowell Lock Monsters played at Tsongas Arena on the campus of UMass-Lowell from 1998 through 2006. The team sported one of the best names and most unique logos in minor hockey.
 
The Tsongas Center gained a lot of attention for the Lock Monsters starting out. For the first six months, they had a decent crowd in attendance for their games. The arena was part of a downtown renovation project in Lowell, and everyone was excited to check it out. The team was solid on the ice, making the playoffs in five of their eight seasons. There were also a few big name stars that came through their ranks including Zdeno Chara, Roberto Luongo and Eric Staal.

Unfortunately for the Lock Monsters, an $11 million baseball stadium was also on the revamp docket. When LeLacheur park opened, crowds flocked to watch the Lowell Spinners play. They were a minor league baseball team which served as a farm club to the Boston Red Sox. People loved the Spinners so much, they sold out LeLacheur Park for 11 years straight.

With the Lock Monsters’ affiliates being located in New York, Colorado, and Los Angeles and a competing baseball team, it was just simply harder for them to maintain their initial wave of fan support. Due to lack of revenue, the Lock Monsters sold to the New Jersey Devils and lost their unique name as they were rebranded the Lowell Devils. They franchise played another 4 seasons in Lowell under the new ownership. In 2010, the team moved to Albany, New York.