Chiefs Relocating & Other Notes
Tuesday · Mar 30 · 2010 | 9:52 AM PDT
The ECHL's Johnstown Chiefs will be moving to Greenville, South Carolina beginning in the 2010-11 season. This must've slipped past our collective radar when it was announced and approved by the league last month. But I just read an interesting article yesterday on ESPN.
Basically, the Chiefs, named by fans after the iconic team from the film Slap Shot — which was shot locally — have been on their last legs. Nobody is going to games and the team is piling up losses in more than just the standings.
Now the club will head to a former ECHL city which lost its original team, the Greenville Grrrowl (yes, that's three Rs in Grrrowl), when it folded in 2006. Not sure why hockey's expected to be a better draw four years later, but that's not a question for me to ask.
The reason this is relevant to Icethetics is it means we'll be following the rebranding of a franchise. Former Chiefs minority owner Ned Nakles is retaining the name and logo which means the ECHL will add a new team name and logo next season. (Hoping it's not Grrrowl.)
Chiefs' Marine jerseyAnd finally, the Chiefs wore what will probably be their last specialty sweater over this past weekend.
The jerseys are a tribute to the U.S. Marine Corps and the design is based on their dress uniforms. The Chiefs first wore them on Friday, grabbing their first W in two weeks with a 7-4 victory of the Toledo Walleye.
Unfortunately I can't seem to track down any photos of the jersey in action. Seems the Chiefs' web guys have pretty much given up this season too. They're just recycling photos in their game recaps.
Anyway, I noticed the numbers come straight from their NHL affiliate's white jerseys — the Minnesota Wild. Anyone know if the Wild will retain their affiliation agreement with the new Greenville team?
Rivermen Revert to the Past
Rivermen dress as PrancersThe AHL's Peoria Rivermen pranced out in Peoria Prancers jerseys over the weekend, paying tribute to the 1980s.
The Prancers were founded in the International Hockey League in 1982 and became the Peoria Rivermen two years later. Then in 1996, the franchise moved to San Antonio, Texas and were renamed the Dragons.
That same year an ECHL franchise was created with the Peoria Rivermen name. No one would've noticed except that all the players and management would've changed. Same logo and colors otherwise.
Then in 2005, that team went away and the AHL's Worcester IceCats moved to Peoria — becoming the third franchise to use that Rivermen moniker. I only offer the history lesson to point out that this isn't a tribute to franchise's past so much as the town's hockey past.
Looking at this jersey, I can't imagine why they ever changed their name in 1984. If you can't get enough of it either, Central Illinois Sports Photography has posted a huge gallery from the game — which Peoria won 4-1 (video included).
Thanks to Joe for the tip on this story.
Heated Tirade
Usually my hobby (hockey blogger) and my job (TV promotions producer) never intersect. I work at a news station in Florida and hockey isn't a popular topic here for obvious reasons. But last night was the exception.
Every night, I write/produce/edit a :30 promo for our 11 PM newscast to run during primetime. And in last night's newscast, our producer included video of Jim Playfair's freak-out behind the Abbotsford Heat bench over the weekend. Naturally I had to include it in the promo. And I thought I'd share it with you guys too.
Caps vs. Pens for 2011 Winter Classic?
Canada's National Post is reporting that the Pittsburgh Penguins will host the Washington Capitals for the next Winter Classic in 2011. Word is they would use Heinz Field — home of the NFL's Steelers. But the Post doesn't cite a source for the report.
The NHL has yet to make an official statement on which teams will be involved in the next outdoor game. The Pens participated in the inaugural event in 2008 at Ralph Wilson Stadium against the Buffalo Sabres.
Reader Comments (45)
Penguins get to play in another winter classic??? I sure hope this isn't true. I think New England has seen its fair share of outdoor hockey for a while, and Im tired of reports saying they want to see the "first ever" winter classic in Canada. I recall the first outdoor game was a Heritage Classic and it took place in Canada. Different name, but still outdoor hockey! I'm a Blues fan, and as much as I'd love to see a Winter Classic in St. Louis, I don't think it would go over well. I think Denver would be a great location for the next winter classic. Or perhaps Minnesota and get a team from the far west involved.
Enough already with the freakin Pens. I know they're the defending champs and all, but can't the NHL ever learn to share the wealth/national exposure? I'd rather see Minnesota vs. Dallas at the new Target Field or Rangers vs. Isles/Devils/Leafs at Citi Field (Yeah, I'm biased)
The pens outdoor game has been on all the news stations here in Pittsburgh. I would love to see them host the game here (cuz i would likley get to attend) but i couldn't belive that the NHL would let us play in the game again. I didn't think that we would get to atleast not for a few more years. Remember though, this is all still rumors, nothing will be official until probably late summer. The only other reason besides us already participating in the winter classic is the weather. Living in Pittsburgh my whole life I can say that our winters are unpredictable. Last year we had almost no snow, this year we had a huge winter storm. Idk if the NHL would risk ruining the witer classic unless it decided to use an artifical ice surface. (highly unlikley)
I would love to see my team host thw winter classic, but to be fair, I belive a team in the North West or upper Central division should get the game.
not surprisingly, abbotsford drew 3,000 more fans than their season average for last night's game. nothing like a bit of negative attention to boost ticket sales.
once again another reason i hate bettman.... lets put in the same team in the winter classic again.... i say put a game in winnipeg and have colorado and pheonix play with the nordiques and jets jerseys... thatd be sick
This is so weird, on Sunday I told Chris to look at the Rivermen's website to see what he could find about the jerseys. Two days later, BOOM! Chris has an entire story about the jerseys that even comes with a history lesson. I must have special powers or something!
Thanks Joe! Sorry for not crediting you with the tip in the post. Completely slipped my mind. Correcting that now.
This may explain why the pens would be switching third jerseys.
Maybe they will wear their current thirds again on Jan 1 in the scenario they host the classic?
I dunno. I get that the league wants to piggy back off of the Crosby thing, but the Penguins were just in a winter classic game and it's not like Crosby is going anywhere. They will still be a contender for years to come so why do we need to see them in another winter classic now?
I'd much rather see the league market Alex Ovechkin and have the Capitals play against an unused northern team in an historic venue. They've got to spread this out a bit if they want the game to last. We don't need to see Crosby in every Classic.
Then again maybe not. The winter classic to me is all about the heritage aspect and upcoming teams. I'm not sure you can just throw any team out there and sell me the product. I'm also a little disillusioned at the prospect of seeing the Flames play the Canucks next year at McMahon so I might skip this altogether.
Buffalo vs Pittsburgh worked because it was novel and you had one of the best players in the game.
Detroit vs Chicago worked because you had a perennial Stanley Cup winner, one of the youngest and most exciting teams in hockey, and a landmark venue. This is probably the best Winter Classic ever for these reasons.
Boston vs Philly worked because you had an original six team in an historic venue.
Future match ups are going to be a lot harder for casual US fans to digest. We have one American original six team to work with (Rangers) and they kind of suck lately. There are no real up and coming teams like Chicago. We're basically down to Washington for exciting young teams that are really marketable.
I think the Winter Classic is gonna be dead in a couple more years unless the league gets really creative with their marketing. I think they're gonna have to start staging games in the rockies or something to keep casual fans interested. Perhaps LA ad Colorado can play a game in Aspen or the NHL can look at neutral sites like Lambeau field.
Typical Bettman, trying to marketing his wet-dream boy to death. Sidney Crosby is like dry toast-boring and flakey. Bettman has to be taking his cues from NBC and anyone who doubts this doesn't have their collective heads screwed on straight. NBC wants ratings, hence the Pens (again) vs. Capitals. Bettman won't do it because NBC wouldn't televise it, but how about an outdoor in Montreal between the Canadiens and Avalanche with the Av's wearing the old Nordique jerseys!!!!!
Should have been Caps/Rangers at Nationals Park in DC. Still holding out hope. The markets are distinct but not that far from each other and besides the rabid Caps fans there are a lot of NYers living in DC that would get a kick out of it. Seemed like the best option to me.
If it went out west, I was hoping for Dallas/Minnesota (battle of the Stars) or Kings/Ducks in Vegas.
dont mind those prancers jerseys, except for the fact that the team name belongs to a 10 year old girls softball team.
Dave - I like that idea of the Av's wearing the old Nordiques jersey. As a Caps fan, I'd love to see them in the WC, but I think they should play a Canadian team - like, well, the Canadians. The NHL is making a mistake if they try to make it just an American thing. You can't forget the boys up North.
@ CHIP
The Heat drew an extra 3000 not because of Playfair, but because the visiting team was my Manitoba Moose.
Abbotsford is located very near Vancouver, the NHL Affiliate of the Moose. If you look at the Heats attendance records, you'll notice they've sold out every Moose game weeks in advance, and they're just like a home game for Manitoba.
thats bull of they give it to pittsburgh again!
enoough with corsby/ovie thing. i understand why they do it, but to favour the two teams bc of it.
i would love a toronto one but doubt seeing soon.
avs would be my first choice to host it. and then the wild.
and then i would go to a "neutral" site.
perhaps Seattle, Winnipeg or Halifax
Chris: Speaking of crediting... I totally sent you that Winter Classic tip!
The National Post got their info from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the first people to break the story. I tried to find you that link, but I could only find the one from the National Post.
To be fair, Glen, while I am grateful for your email on that subject, I actually got that link from a lot of people. When that happens, I just tend to leave the "credit" out since it feels more like common knowledge as opposed to some obscure thing like the Rivermen jersey. Does that make any sense? Sorry if you felt stiffed. I do appreciate the help!
Not a fan of this move. Theres plenty of other teams in the NHL other than the Pittsburgh Penguins. I just hope they stay away from baseball parks and put them in a proper stadium. Put them in a football or soccer stadium and you will have more people attending and more that can actually see the game from their seats without binoculars.
So the Penguins might face off against the Caps. This scenario is played out like every sunday on NBC... a little more originality please?
Hey, thanks for the shout-out to my photo album from the game.
I keep seeing people suggesting Colorado in the Winter Classic wearing the Nordiques jersey...why in the world would they promote another city? The same is true of the Stars wearing North Stars throwbacks or the Coyotes wearing Jets. That just doesn't make sense at all.
Lets face it, other than a New York City based team (Devils/Rangers), every other team would not be a big draw. The Pens-Caps makes total sense as much as the Crosby haters despise it.
Chris: Good enough, thanks for clearing that up.
i love how NO ONE in this thread likes or even tolerates this idea. The NHL markets the hell outta the penguins while there's 29 other teams in the league! I wish for once they would get the clue.... i for one would like to see the capitals and rangers
I LOVE the Penguins (was at the game against the Flyers on Saturday), and I LOVE the Winter Classic, and I would LOVE to see a Pens - CAPS Winter Classic, but I don't want it now. As a fan of the NHL first, I feel that they need to look at giving the Winter Classic to other markets. My vote would have been for Rangers - Islanders at new Meadowlands Stadium. The thing seats 82,000 and I'm sure that would help the Islanders out immensely. Not the mention the rivalry.
Pittsburgh back in it is a total slap to the rest of the league. Have Nashville vs. Atlanta in Antarctica for all I care but all other teams should have a chance for the exposure before the same teams repeat. If I was Toronto or the Rangers I'd really be losing my shiz.
I agree with Portugal, I get so tired of seeing the Capitals versus the Penguins on NBC or one of those teams playing either Boston, NY or Philadelphia. The league has 30 teams and if the NHL is ever going to be more mainstream, they have to do a better job of marketing all of their teams. That or decide to downsize. If NBC would ever move out of their traditional 12 eastern time slot on Sunday they could open up their options significantly. Until then they are limited in who they choose to televise and won't move outside of televising Washington, Detroit, Chicago, Pittsburgh, New York and Philadelphia.
What does it take to get my Leafs in the Winter Classic? They may not be the best team out there, but they are definitely in the best market. LEAFS vs. SENS in HAMILTON, FTW!!!!
Dave N because Colorado owes us a Stanley cup or two. Seriously, learn a little history, you know the Av's started as the Quebec Nordiques in the WHA, which merged in the NHL along with the Jets, Oilers and Whalers.
I got an idea for 2012, a WHA special, two games, Oilers, Phoenix wth Jets uniforms, at Commonwealth Stadium, and Av's in the Nordiques uniforms against the Canes in the Whalers uniforms at Uconn.
"Former Chiefs minority owner Ned Nakles is retaining the name and logo which means the ECHL will add a new team name and logo next season." that's not what retaining means... or did I miss something and just don't understand?
FlyersK27, notice Nakles is the FORMER minority owner. According to ESPN, he's creating a nonprofit in order to keep the Chiefs name, logo and other records — in Johnstown. In the event that hockey returns to Johnstown someday, the new team could still use that identity. The Chiefs' existing majority owner Neil Smith is staying with the team as it moves to Greenville.
Oh I understand now, thanks for clearing that up I was confused by the wording.
Yes that is what retaining means. The town is keeping the name and likeness.
I like the idea of LA vs NY for next season. LA is an up and coming team in a big market and NY is just NY. Find an interesting neutral site and be done with it.
Alot of people are saying to use 2 teams and put them in their old jerseys (Phoenix and Colorado wearing winnipeg and Quebec jerseys) thats the example im using cuz i saw it posted in here. The fact is, that will almost NEVER happen. The teams there don't want to use another teams history. The Colorado Avalanche are not the Quebec Nordiques. Colorado franchise don't see their history and Quebecs history as the same thing. That is the same as every other relocated team. Ya, it might be cool to see that happen but teams want to have their own history. That is why the Dallas Stars and Minnesota Wild will never wear North Stars jerseys.
Washington would be a great team to have in the winter classic, very marketable, exciting, and have their own team history to base off of. Both NY teams would be good, except they both suck. Penguins would probably be the next best matchup in terms of an exciting game, markatable, history, and location, but we were just there and it would be cool to see another team play.
As much as I'd love for Calgary to host (as rumoured last year) - it just wouldn't sell to the American market.
Hard nosed fact: Americans don't care about Canada. Plain and simple.
Going to echo previous statements; best place to capitalize would be New York.
Yeah, why does Pittsburgh get to play in another winter classic? Time to give some other teams a change, enough of the Penguins.
Punzak I don't know about Phoenix, but I know for sure that Dencver claims Quebec's records as their own. If they don't want to associate with their history as the Quebec Nordiques they should say so. Even more if they didn't want the Quebec Franchise the league should have held a dispersal draft then an expansion draft for all those franchises. That's the way it works, live with it. Quebec suffered trough some pretty bad editions of the Nordiques to give Denver a dynasty, the least they could do is to show a little gratitude.
That Prancers logo looks a little bit like the logo of the WHA's short-lived Michigan Stags
Leafs vs. Rangers?
"which means the ECHL will add a new team name and logo next season." this part confused me... thought he meant echl would give Johnstown a replacement franchise.
Wierd, no one has suggested Panthers vs. Lightning yet. ;)
@ Shawa,
Sorry, I did not take the records ect. into consideration. I guess I was thinking more in terms of logos/jerseys. How none of the newer teams jerseys or logos play any sort of role in their new sets. Personally, I feel that Colorado wearing a Quebec jersey would seem wrong. ( same for any other team in that situation ) If its the same city then I would be more for it, like if NYR wore NY American jerseys or something like that.
The red wings wore a Detroit cougars jersey at the winter classic last year, why wouldn't other teams use previous teams jersey's? Personally I would like to see the wild play the avs in denver, or canucks vs leafs
OH MY FREAKIN GOD... Haven't we had enough of the Ovechkin vs Crosby saga?!
Why can't the league get something new to talk about??!?!
To Dan @ 1:12 PM: As a current resident of St. Petersburg, Florida (Buffalo native) ... your timing was perfect. LOL. I nearly choked on my popcorn!
As much as I dislike sport franchises from New York City and although the Winter Classic is getting heavy on northeast teams, I like the suggestion for Maple Leafs v. Rangers in Hamilton. Hamilton has been kicked around the rumor mill for years now and given the incredible attendance at the "second" Winter Classic in Buffalo, New York, the geographic region has proven it can support such an endeavor. The figure skating pair team of Crosby-Ovechkin can perform in the pre-game ceremonies alongside specially trained penguins that were raised from hatch-lings by Gary Bettman.
Following that I suggest going west to pick-up Minnesota v. Calgary or Vancouver.