Editing Avalanche (section)

== History ==

=== Formation and early competition ===

Avalanche was established during the 1990s and became closely associated with Ed Poorman, owner of paintball retailer and equipment manufacturer [[Warped Sportz]]. Chris LaSoya was identified as one of the team's founding members in a contemporary Warped Sportz announcement published in 2002. [1]

The team developed a reputation for recruiting established professional players and promoting an identifiable team image through customised equipment and apparel.

By 1998, Avalanche was competing successfully in the NPPL professional divisions.

At the 1998 NPPL World Cup in Orlando, Florida, Avalanche won the professional five-player division. [7]

=== NPPL championship (1999) ===

The 1999 season was one of Avalanche's most successful.

The team won the NPPL professional 10-man season championship, finishing ahead of other leading American organisations. [3]

At the 1999 NPPL World Cup in Orlando, Avalanche finished second in the professional 10-man division behind [[Chicago Aftershock]]. [[Lockout]] and the Southern California [[Ironmen]] finished third and fourth respectively. [8]

The World Cup result secured Avalanche's position among the leading professional tournament teams of the period.

=== International success (2000) ===

Avalanche competed extensively in European tournaments during 2000, participating in the developing Millennium Series.

In May, the team won the professional division of the Toulouse 7-Man World Cup in France. The final included several American professional teams, with Avalanche finishing ahead of the Ironmen and two [[Team Image]] squads. [9]

The team also won the 2000 Campaign Cup in London, defeating opponents including [[Russian Legion]] during the professional finals. [10]

In the United States, Avalanche won the professional 10-man division at the 2000 NPPL Nashville Open in Tennessee, finishing ahead of the All Americans, Ironmen and Rage. [11]

These results demonstrated Avalanche's competitiveness across different tournament formats and international events.

=== NPPL competition (2001–2002) ===

Avalanche continued competing in the NPPL professional 10-man division.

In May 2001, the team won the professional division at the NPPL Gettysburg Open in Pennsylvania, defeating Aftershock in the decisive match of the finals. [12]

Avalanche subsequently finished third at the 2001 NPPL Chicago Open, behind the All Americans and Southern California Ironmen. [13]

The published 2001 NPPL roster listed Steve Rabackoff as captain, alongside Rocky Cagnoni, Shawn Ellis, Glenn Forrester, Todd Hugo, Mark Knop, Chris LaSoya, Travis Lemanski, Todd Martinez, Ed Poorman, Jon Richardson, Eric Roberts, Jeremy Salm and a player identified as Weasel. [4]

At the 2001 World Cup, Avalanche finished first in the professional preliminary standings but failed to advance to the final four. [14]

In October 2002, Avalanche was withdrawn from the NPPL World Cup following a rules incident during a preliminary match against Ground Zero Gold. Contemporary tournament reporting stated that Jeremy Salm had entered the playing area from outside the field and fired upon opposing players. The team forfeited its points from the match, and Salm received a suspension from NPPL and PSP competition for the 2003 season. [15]

The organisation subsequently underwent significant roster changes.

=== Rebuilding and the Super 7 era (2003–2005) ===

Avalanche continued competing following the separation of the NPPL and PSP tournament circuits.

Several former Avalanche players joined the Miami Effect programme and later became associated with [[Infamous (paintball team)|Infamous]]. Ed Poorman rebuilt Avalanche with a revised roster for the NPPL Super 7 series. [16]

The team returned to the professional podium at the 2004 NPPL Huntington Beach Open, finishing second behind [[San Diego Dynasty]]. [17]

Avalanche reached the final four again at the 2004 Denver Open, finishing fourth behind Infamous, Sacramento XSV and Dynasty. [16]

During 2005, the team competed as '''San Francisco Avalanche'''.

At the 2005 Huntington Beach Open, Avalanche finished third in the professional division after defeating the Portland Naughty Dogs. [18]

Another third-place finish followed at the 2005 Denver Open, where Avalanche defeated Oakland Empire in the consolation final. [19]

=== St. Louis Avalanche and later competition ===

Avalanche subsequently competed under the '''St. Louis Avalanche''' name.

At the 2008 NPPL Huntington Beach Open, St. Louis Avalanche reached the professional final against [[San Antonio X-Factor]]. X-Factor won the best-of-three series, leaving Avalanche in second place. [20]

The team continued competing in professional NPPL and NXL tournaments through the late 2000s.

At the 2010 NPPL Las Vegas World Championships, St. Louis Avalanche finished fourth in the professional seven-player division. [21]

By 2011, the organisation was associated with professional player [[Frank Connell]], who led the team in NPPL competition.

Avalanche used equipment from [[Vanguard Paintball]], including the Creed and Demon electronic markers.

In 2012, Connell was identified as the owner of the professional franchise competing as '''New England Avalanche'''. He also acquired the assets of Vanguard Paintball, whose customised Avalanche Demon markers were used by the team. [6]

New England Avalanche competed in the 2012 NPPL professional season. The name was included in the league's list of professional teams promoted or retained for the 2013 season. [22]