The 2013–14 NBL Canada season was the third season of the
National Basketball League of Canada. The regular season began on November 1, 2013.[1] The regular season ended on Friday, February 28, 2014, and the playoffs began on Sunday, March 2, 2014 and ended on Thursday, April 17, 2014 with the
Windsor Express defeating the
Island Storm in seven games to win the 2014 NBLC Finals.[2]
Following the conclusion of the
2012-13 NBL Canada season, the Oshawa Power relocated to
Mississauga, Ontario, and were renamed the
Mississauga Power. The 2013–14 NBL Canada season also featured expansion to two new locations:
Ottawa, and
Brampton.
During preseason, another team announced its relocation, the
Summerside Storm moving to
Charlottetown, PEI. It was announced that the Storm name would be retained. In early August, the league's board of governors announced the Jazz would sit out the season due to failure of securing new ownership from the league.[3]
Coaching changes
Offseason
On August 6, 2013, the Halifax Rainmen hired Chris Terrell as head coach.[4]
On August 12, 2013, the St. John Mill Rats hired
Rob Spon as head coach.[5]
On August 16, 2013, the Mississauga Power hired
Fred Grannum as head coach.[6]
The 2013 NBL Canada draft took place on August 19 at the Hilton Suites Conference Centre & Spa in
Markham, Ontario. The
Ottawa SkyHawks made league history by drafting Alex Johnson of
NC State, the first Canadian to ever be drafted with the first pick in the NBLC draft.[7]
Regular season
The regular season began on November 1, 2013, and concluded on February 28, 2014. The number of games played by each team remains 40, similar to the prior season.
The NBL Canada Championship Playoffs format has changed after the 2013 expansion. Initially, the first 4 teams out of 5 in each division would qualify. After the Jazz withdrawal from the season, this posed the problem of having all 4 teams in the Atlantic Division be already qualified. Although nothing has been announced officially by the league, some newspapers wrote that indeed all 4 teams in Atlantic will qualify, as well as the first 3 teams in Central. Teams 4 and 5 in the Central Division will play a wild card game for playoff access.
After being unable to find new ownership, the NBLC announced the
Montreal Jazz would sit out the 2013–14 season.[30]
The Oshawa Power officially moved to Mississauga and were renamed the
Mississauga Power.[31]
The Summerside Storm officially moved to Charlottetown and were renamed the
Island Storm.[32]
The NBLC officially announced that expansion for the 2014–15 season will be open to ownership groups from Canada's Western Provinces.[33]
The NBLC officially named
Paul Riley as league commissioner.[34]
After a disappointing 2–4 start to the 2013–14 season, the
Mississauga Power released head coach
Fred Grannum. The Power promoted long time assistant coach
David Joseph to head coach.[35]
The November 21 game between the
Halifax Rainmen and the
Moncton Miracles was canceled at halftime due to a citywide power outage in Moncton. The second half of the game will be finished on January 2.[36]
The November 24 game between the
Ottawa SkyHawks and the
London Lightning was canceled due to inclement weather in London. The game is rescheduled for January 22.[37]
The
Halifax Rainmen relieved Chris Terrell of his head coaching duties on November 26 after a disappointing 0–6 start to the season.[39] The Rainmen named former NBA star
Craig Hodges as interim head coach.[40]
The December 10 game between the
Island Storm and the
Moncton Miracles was canceled due to inclement weather. The game was rescheduled to February 15.[41]
The December 15 games between the
Island Storm against the
Windsor Express, and the
Saint John Mill Rats against the
Moncton Miracles were postponed due to inclement weather. The Storm/Express game was played on December 16, while the Mill Rats/Miracles game is rescheduled for February 26.[42]
The December 21 game between the
Brampton A's and the
Halifax Rainmen was postponed due to inclement weather. The game was played on December 23.[43]
The December 22 game between the
Saint John Mill Rats and the
Moncton Miracles was postponed due to inclement weather. The game will be rescheduled to a future date in February.[44]
The January 15 regular season game between the
Windsor Express and their Central Division rivals
London Lightning was held at the Coliseum on the grounds of the
Caesars Windsor, dubbed the "Clash at the Coliseum". The Express won the game 86–78.[45]
The January 25 game between the
Windsor Express and the
Brampton A's was postponed due to inclement weather. The game will be rescheduled to a future date.
The January 29 game between the
Moncton Miracles and the
Halifax Rainmen was postponed due to inclement weather. The game will be rescheduled to a future date.
The January 31 games between the
Windsor Express versus the
Brampton A's and the
Halifax Rainmen versus the
Moncton Miracles were postponed due to inclement weather. The Rainmen/Miracles game is rescheduled for February 24 and the Express/A's game is rescheduled for February 25.
The
Windsor Express set a new NBL Canada league record of 12 straight wins with their February 15 win against the
Brampton A's.[47]
The February 16 game between the
Halifax Rainmen and the
Island Storm was postponed due to inclement weather. The game is rescheduled for February 26.