In the heart of Connecticut, hockey has always been more than a game — it’s a community, a culture, and sometimes, a legend. The Danbury Hat Tricks, founded in 2019, have carried that torch proudly, mixing the town’s love for grit with its hunger for championships.
📖 From Trashers to Hat Tricks: A City Built on Hockey
Danbury first made national headlines in the mid-2000s with the infamous Danbury Trashers, the mob-linked minor league team featured in Netflix’s Untold. The Trashers’ wild story became hockey folklore. But what many outside of Danbury don’t realize is that the city never lost its hockey heart.
Fast-forward to 2019, the Danbury Hat Tricks were born in the Federal Prospects Hockey League (FPHL). Their name is a nod to hockey tradition (a “hat trick” is three goals in one game) and Danbury’s own history in the hat-making industry.
🏆 Glory on the Ice
It didn’t take long for the Hat Tricks to make noise:
2019–20: Division champions in their first season.
2022–23: Regular season title and Commissioners Cup champions.
2024–25: Another strong season with a 33–15–8 record, finishing second in the Empire Division.
Players like Jonny Ruiz (the scoring machine), Daniel Amesbury (the enforcer with a fan-favorite edge), and Zach “Flyin’ Hawaiian” Pamaylaon (the first Hawaiian-born male pro hockey player) have turned the Hat Tricks into one of the most entertaining teams in minor league hockey.
🔥 The Return of AJ Galante
