# FHL on the move



## GFHL

The FHL will be expanding into St. Clair Shores Michigan for the 2016-2017 season. Busy area, lot of money, will probably do well.


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## GFHL

http://www.freep.com/story/sports/2016/05/10/federal-hockey-league-st-clair-shores/84169420/


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## ADKthunderFan34

Any other expansion team news for the FHL?


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## jason2020

Bthatch34 said:


> Any other expansion team news for the FHL?




Watertown is expected to return.


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## ForsbergForever

I imagine Brewster will be folding given their average attendance of 243 for the season...


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## Sports Enthusiast

The league that won't die just keeps on giving!


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## Dingo44

St. Clair Shores just signed their first player:

http://scsfightingsaints.com/view/Fighting Saints/news/news_448304

My girlfriend (from Detroit) and I plan on checking out a Fighting Saints game or two. Should be interesting. Hopefully they get a rivalry going with Port Huron.


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## JDogindy

This league keeps multiplying!


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## PH Hockey Fan

The Port Huron Prowlers and the new St. Clair Shores team should develop a good regional rivalry. I was hoping for a better venue than what that arena has to offer. When I coached my son, we played there. It is a nice arena for Bantam and High School hockey but bleacher seating for "pro" hockey just doesn't seem to fit. I still hold out hope that some better midwest opportunities for the FHL will materialize.


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## JDogindy

Sports Enthusiast said:


> The league that won't die just keeps on giving!




I just realized something. This starving artist league now has 8 teams. The better laid out SPHL has 10 teams this season.


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## jason2020

JDogindy said:


> I just realized something. This starving artist league now has 8 teams. The better laid out SPHL has 10 teams this season.




I would not say 8 teams makes a league starving besides things can change very fast the Southern league could have 6 teams next year.


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## JDogindy

jason2020 said:


> I would not say 8 teams makes a league starving besides things can change very fast the Southern league could have 6 teams next year.




And the FHL could have 16 next year, as well.

The nature of minor league hockey fluctuates. Sorry I come off as a FHL hater, but I still find the model of the league's overall system to be very faulty while I consider the SPHL to be more organized.

I said this on another thread, but the FHL has had far more turnover in their entire run than the SPHL has, and the FHL is younger.


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## TcNorth

Comparing the Single A SPHL to the FHL is not comparing apples to apples. St. Claire Shores may have 1,ooo seats. The FHL needs to add more teams/arena's like Port Huron, Dayton (at least their arena), and Danbury before being spoken on a par with the SPHL IMO.


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## Captain Crash

TcFlint said:


> Comparing the Single A SPHL to the FHL is not comparing apples to apples. St. Claire Shores may have 1,ooo seats. The FHL needs to add more teams/arena's like Port Huron, Dayton (at least their arena), and Danbury before being spoken on a par with the SPHL IMO.




Very, very true. If we adopt more terminology from the minor league baseball system, at best the FHL is Low A compared to the SPHL at High A. And the gap is wide.


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## Captain Crash

And just like that the league announces that Dayton is "dormant" for 16-17 with a hopeful return the following season. That said, those were the last words of a whole slew of FHL teams to never return.



> To the best fans in hockey,
> 
> I would like to take this opportunity to thank the players, corporate sponsors, booster club, season ticket holders and fans for making my arrival in Dayton a memorable one.
> 
> We turned a bad season into a great season with the help of Brett Wall, Teresa
> Woodhouse, Sandy Shiverdecker, Dylan Kuhn, Tim King and Leah Cowgill. From everyone in the front office to the off*ice officials and Hara Arena staff everything was first class.
> 
> Dayton hockey has been an ongoing project of mine since the spring of 2015, I planned on being in Dayton last summer to create a winning atmosphere between Hara Arena, the team, fans, local communities and businesses. Unfortunately for reasons out of my control the membership was awarded to an ownership group from East Coast United States. This started what turned out to be a bad experience for the players, fans, corporate sponsors and our home Hara Arena.
> 
> As soon as the franchise became available I jumped at the opportunity to purchase the team. I purchased the team from the league for the love of the game. I couldn't have been happier that it was in Dayton where I feel they had the best fans and arena in the league where the opportunity to get involved was a dream come true.
> 
> My role as the Owner and Head Coach was to turn the organization, players and atmosphere around as fast as possible. I had no idea how bad things were until I arrived in Dayton and began to field phone calls on an hourly and daily basis from unhappy corporate sponsors, season ticket holders and purveyors.
> 
> I never diverted from my goal of turning this organization around and running a first class team from top to bottom. I want to personally thank everyone that supported the team and myself through the ups and downs of the transition period and the dream of making the playoffs, which the boys did.
> 
> I came to Dayton to run a professional hockey team for not only this year but for years to come. Unfortunately due to circumstances out of my control Hara Arena is unable to sign leases not only to myself but to other tenants.
> 
> At this time I regret to announce that Dayton Professional Hockey will be going dormant for the 2016-2017 season due to arena availability and lack of lead up time.
> 
> Like I told my players we never say never, I will be eagerly pursuing to find a location to house our professional hockey team in the Dayton area if Hara Arena is not available for the 2017 * 2018 season.
> 
> Yours in Hockey,
> 
> Coach Joe Pace Sr.
> 
> For any questions please contact Joe Pace Sr. at info@daytonprohockey.com or 708-205-000.




http://federalhockey.com/view/thefederalhockeyleague/news-739/news_456058


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## TcNorth

The Dayton owner also owns Port Huron and Danvilie, arguably two of the leagues most stable teams while Dayton is not. The owner robbed the Dayton franchise to stock his Port Huron team.


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## SemireliableSource

Pace is not Soskin. Barry Soskin owned the Dayton team that moved to Port Huron.


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## TcNorth

Thank you. I stand corrected. Not sure if either is/was a great owner.


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## wildcat48

FrancoRussianAlaskan said:


> Pace is not Soskin. *Barry Soskin *owned the Dayton team that moved to Port Huron.




And, he's a crook.


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## Captain Crash

Dayton being freed up from the FHL really opens the door to some leagues to snatch up the market. I doubt that the ECHL will take another stab, but the SPHL was rumored to have interest there as they slowly push their footprint north. And if the fans there would accept a junior league, it falls nicely into the footprint of both the USHL and NAHL.


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## JDogindy

Captain Crash said:


> Dayton being freed up from the FHL really opens the door to some leagues to snatch up the market. I doubt that the ECHL will take another stab, but the SPHL was rumored to have interest there as they slowly push their footprint north. And if the fans there would accept a junior league, it falls nicely into the footprint of both the USHL and NAHL.




The USHL has a midwest setting, which would work perfectly for Dayton, but the NAHL has a good portion of teams in the Northeast and Midwest, as well. And, with the SPHL having teams in Peoria & Evansville, they might take interest in Dayton now that it's open.


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## AHLFAN

*Fhl back to 5 teams*

With Dayton Suspending operations for the 16-17 season now this:

Brewster Bulldogs Pro Hockey Suspends Operations 2016-17 Season
July 14, 2016	10:15 PM EDT

Brewster, NY - 

To the Bulldog Community,

It is with deep regret that I will be halting the Brewster Bulldog operation at the Brewster Ice Arena for the 2016-17 season.

Unfortunately, it was too much for myself to operate two professional sports teams at this level. The owners and employees of the Brewster Arena have been wonderful. I could not have asked for a better group to work with.

The effort put forth by David Lun and his team was outstanding. It was truly a group of dedicated hard working players. So with all that being said, here are my thoughts for the future. I have had multiple conversations with Steve Santini, owner of the Brewster Ice Arena, as well as a gentleman that has shown interest in partnering with Steve and I to bring the team back for the 2017-18 season.

I have been looking for someone that would partner and manage the Brewster Bulldogs organization. I would remain as a partner. I am sorry to leave Brewster ...hopefully we will return.

Thank you for your support in our inaugural season.

The Bulldogs players truly felt the support of the fans and community throughout the season.

Sincerely,
Bruce Bennett

CATEGORIES: BREWSTER BULLDOGS HEADLINE NEWS NEWS
Â« Return to


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## royals119

I saw a Facebook post that said the owners of Hara Arena are facing a huge overdue tax bill and won't sign a lease with anyone. The arena might even be sold to a developer to be torn down and replaced with shopping or housing. 

If anyone is interested in trying again in Dayton it will likely have to be at another rink, and they all have issues. There is likely a market for hockey there, just no good rink.


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## royals119

ForsbergForever said:


> I imagine Brewster will be folding given their average attendance of 243 for the season...




You called it - Brewster has "suspended for 2016-2017"



JDogindy said:


> This league keeps multiplying!




At least they are following the proper order of math functions. Get the multiplication out of the way before you subtract.


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## 210

royals119 said:


> At least they are following the proper order of math functions. Get the multiplication out of the way before you subtract.




PBMDAS, FTW!


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## Falconone

*Watertown*

Watertown Wolves announce the hiring of former Danbury coach Phil Esposito (whatta hockey name eh?) and if you look at the roster, outside of the goalies it's pretty much a bunch of former Danbury players......

Something about the more things change the more they stay the same.......


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## Cornwall OHL

Rumour has it that a certain area of Canada, previously served by a former FHL Championship team may be getting a team.


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## AHLFAN

*FHL approves Winston Salem*

The FHL has approved a franchise in Winston Salem. Barry Soskin will be the owner. They took the name Winston Salem Thunderbirds. The Birds begin play in the 17-18 season.


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## Duke Guy

Could Pierre Dagenais be making a comeback?


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## wildcat48

AHLFAN said:


> The FHL has approved a franchise in Winston Salem. Barry Soskin will be the owner. They took the name Winston Salem Thunderbirds. The Birds begin play in the 17-18 season.




Barry Soskin..... How many teams does that make now that he's owned?


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## Cornwall OHL

wildcat48 said:


> Barry Soskin..... How many teams does that make now that he's owned?




By my count 5. He's owned Danville Dashers, Port Huron Prowlers, Dayton Demonz, Stateline Whalers, and Carolina Thunderbirds.


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## Cornwall OHL

Cornwall, Ontario getting potential FHL team: http://www.cornwallnewswatch.com/2016/09/13/details-coming-on-possible-semi-pro-hockey-team/


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## Canucks21

Cornwall OHL said:


> By my count 5. He's owned Danville Dashers, Port Huron Prowlers, Dayton Demonz, Stateline Whalers, and Carolina Thunderbirds.




This is the kind of things that make people see this league as a complete joke and nothing more.


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## royals119

Cornwall OHL said:


> By my count 5. He's owned Danville Dashers, Port Huron Prowlers, Dayton Demonz, Stateline Whalers, and Carolina Thunderbirds.



Oh, it's a lot more than that. A quick google search also reveals the Brewster Bulldogs of the FHL, plus three teams in the NJHL, the Pelham Prowlers of the SEHL, the NAHL Thunder, the Traverse City Enforcers of the CEHL, and the Toledo Storm of the ECHL. That is just on the first two pages. I'm sure there are others


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## Cacciaguida

Carolina Thunderbirds comeback


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## Cornwall OHL

royals119 said:


> Oh, it's a lot more than that. A quick google search also reveals the Brewster Bulldogs of the FHL, plus three teams in the NJHL, the Pelham Prowlers of the SEHL, the NAHL Thunder, the Traverse City Enforcers of the CEHL, and the Toledo Storm of the ECHL. That is just on the first two pages. I'm sure there are others




You would think a hockey maven like Barry Soskin would consolidate all of his hockey holdings into one or two teams at a higher more desirable level.


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## jason2020

Cornwall OHL said:


> You would think a hockey maven like Barry Soskin would consolidate all of his hockey holdings into one or two teams at a higher more desirable level.




Just take soccer some of the well known and richest people choose to own a couple minor league soccer teams vs owning a Mls team.


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## Dingo44

http://www.federalhockey.com/news/fhl-formally-approved-membership-to-cornwall-ontar



> *FHL FORMALLY APPROVES MEMBERSHIP TO CORNWALL, ONTARIO FOR 2016-17 SEASON*
> 
> Syracuse, NY â€“ The Federal Hockey League (FHL) has formally approved an expansion FHL Member Club to Cornwall, Ontario, Canada that will begin play during the 2016-17 season.
> 
> The new Cornwall expansion membership will play its home games at the Ed Lumley Arena at the Cornwall Civic Complex in Cornwall, a venue that was opened in 1976 and has a seating capacity of up to 5,000 fans for hockey.


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## GFHL

Is this team going to be made up of the former Cornwall River Kings players? How else would they get a team together?


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## JDogindy

GFHL said:


> Is this team going to be made up of the former Cornwall River Kings players? How else would they get a team together?




I think this is more than likely.

If people didn't like the league the River Kings were in, wait until they see the quality of FHL hockey.


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## GFHL

A salary cap of 7k a game LNAH to 5k a week FHL will for sure effect player quality.


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## Cyclones Rock

Cornwall OHL said:


> You would think a hockey maven like Barry Soskin would consolidate all of his hockey holdings into one or two teams at a higher more desirable level.




He's owned pay-to-play teams in lower tier junior leagues as well. Nothing ever is successful, but he keeps buying teams.

I'd love to see Soskin's full portfolio of assets. I'm sure it would be an interesting experience


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## Jackets Woodchuck

GFHL said:


> Is this team going to be made up of the former Cornwall River Kings players? How else would they get a team together?




I'm not sure the FHL is ready for a team full of LNAH players.


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## GFHL

Jackets Woodchuck said:


> I'm not sure the FHL is ready for a team full of LNAH players.






Lou Dickinson, Jeff Legue, Jason Lepine to play with them in the FHL. From Ashley March, she says the team will be mainly ex LNAHers. Should be a tough team to say the least.


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## sabremike

Honest to God I wish Danbury could move to the LNAH. That would be a match made in heaven for us!!! Bring back the Trashers name and unis and it would be perfect.


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## JDogindy

Cornwall Nationals is their name.


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## Jackets Woodchuck

GFHL said:


> Lou Dickinson, Jeff Legue, Jason Lepine to play with them in the FHL. From Ashley March, she says the team will be mainly ex LNAHers. Should be a tough team to say the least.




The PIM portion of the FHL record book will be re-written by the Nationals.


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## LadyStanley

http://www.candgnews.com/sports/ina...ased-pro-hockey-team-begins-later-month-96686

FHL St Clair Shores Fighting Saints begin 56-game season 10/29.


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## takehisheadoff

This is like junior Z hockey this is a joke. Do you even have to pay to go to the games


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## Dingo44

takehisheadoff said:


> This is like junior Z hockey this is a joke. Do you even have to pay to go to the games




That's a very helpful comment. It will definitely help me decide if I shall attend a game or not.


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## sabremike

takehisheadoff said:


> This is like junior Z hockey this is a joke. Do you even have to pay to go to the games



Frankly the FHL games are way more fun than the NHL or AHL games that are like No-Doze on ice.


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## Dingo44

Went to the St. Clair Shores Fighting Saints vs the Danbury Titans FHL game in St. Clair Shores today. Rink is more like a local rink than even a junior hockey one. Also, they're still working on their license so they couldn't sell beer yet. The sweaters the players wear are almost beer league standard. That being said, the hockey pretty darn good and we were entertained. The crowd was into it and the people working were very nice. I might wait until they sell beer but I'd go back and I'll check out the Winston-Salem Thunderbirds next year.


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## GFHL

Goalie fights is why we love the FHL, both the Prowlers Josselin St. Pierre and the Saints Jan Pechek recieved game ejections for settling their differences with their fists.


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## ckg927

sabremike said:


> Frankly the FHL games are way more fun than the NHL or AHL games that are like No-Doze on ice.




Yeah, well....that's likely because it's a pathetic attempt at hockey.

Which is SOP for a league like the FHL.


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## sabremike

ckg927 said:


> Yeah, well....that's likely because it's a pathetic attempt at hockey.
> 
> Which is SOP for a league like the FHL.



If a pathetic attempt at hockey is actually entertaining while the "good stuff" is like watching paint dry I'll take the pathetic attempt thank you very much.


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## Dingo44

ckg927 said:


> Yeah, well....that's likely because it's a pathetic attempt at hockey.
> 
> Which is SOP for a league like the FHL.




Interesting - so, which FHL team did you go to see and come up with his conclusion? I'm planning on going to another Fighting Saints game the next time I'm in the Detroit area at the end of the month.


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## ckg927

Dingo44 said:


> Interesting - so, which FHL team did you go to see and come up with his conclusion? I'm planning on going to another Fighting Saints game the next time I'm in the Detroit area at the end of the month.




None, because A. I live a LONG way from any FHL team and B. even if I was able to do so, money for me is kinda tight. Priorities.


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## Dingo44

ckg927 said:


> None, because A. I live a LONG way from any FHL team and B. even if I was able to do so, money for me is kinda tight. Priorities.




I'm surprised, because you have such definitive opinions about the quality of play in a league you've never seen.


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## rlebrun197

*hey*

would you happen to have very old files from when you first got the software


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## jason2020

Any other possible expansion teams for next year.


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## GFHL

Syracuse, NY - The Federal Hockey League (FHL) is pleased to announce a neutral site game on Sunday, March 12th, 2017 in Battle Creek, MI. The St. Clair Shores Fighting Saints will play home to the Berlin River Drivers at The Rink located at 75 Houston St in downtown Battle Creek. Warm up is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. with puck drop set for 5:00 p.m.

"Battle Creek and Western Michigan has always been on the radar for the Federal Hockey League" stated FHL Commissioner Don Kirnan. "We hope with great support of this game we can explore placing a franchise there in the near future."


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## Dingo44

I wonder if something is brewing for the FHL in Kingsville, ON. The Fighting Saints and Danville played there last night, and this was just posted on the Kingsville Kings Tier II Junior A page:

https://www.facebook.com/permalink....147084879&id=1670962373132326&hc_location=ufi



> Well Kingsville, you've done an amazing job welcoming the Saints as they played their first FHL game in the Castle!
> 
> We can't thank you, the fans, enough for being so supportive and showing the love you have for hometown hockey!
> 
> Thank you to everyone who was able to make this game happen:
> 
> The Town of Kingsville, Mayor NNelson Santos and Recreation Manager, MMaggie Durocher
> 
> You, the fans, for coming to support our affiliate professional team.
> 
> Our game day staff who went above and beyond; Kings President, TTom. Schinkelshoek Miss Kay, the Kings bench support staff, Erica, Hunter, the volunteers from the Windsor Lancers Women's team, the Fighting Saints support staff, players from the Seguin Huskies and Parry Sound Islanders, our national anthem singer, Janice DiLaudo, Roary, for always being a fan favourite, our multiple photographers, the Kingsville Timbits for putting on an awesome game at 1st intermission, Lally Southpoint Ford, Scotty's BBQ for the tailgate special and our game night sponsor, Fogz Logistics.
> 
> We couldn't have done it without all of you.
> 
> Hockey season is officially over for your Kings and the Fighting Saints.
> 
> We can't wait to see what's in store for the 2017/2018 season!
> 
> We see many surprises coming your way! Stay tuned to our Facebook page over the summer to see announcements of new and upcoming players and returnees!
> 
> Here's to the future of hockey in the best town, that has the best fans, Kingsville, Ontario!


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## pled

Dingo44 said:


> I wonder if something is brewing for the FHL in Kingsville, ON. The Fighting Saints and Danville played there last night, and this was just posted on the Kingsville Kings Tier II Junior A page:
> 
> https://www.facebook.com/permalink....147084879&id=1670962373132326&hc_location=ufi




cornwall isn't working super well so I don't know if more ontario team is the way


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## jason2020

pled said:


> cornwall isn't working super well so I don't know if more ontario team is the way




Why do you say that?


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## pled

jason2020 said:


> Why do you say that?




they said it themself that it wasn't a good year but it was the first and they hope to do better next year because they will be more prepared but if they don't I think they are just out. if they don't reach 1k attendance next year they would probably fold.


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## SemireliableSource

"More prepared" ... translation: more than a month and a half to get everything set up.


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## pled

FrancoRussianAlaskan said:


> "More prepared" ... translation: more than a month and a half to get everything set up.




is there anything in the fhl prepared more than a month and half before it happens?


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## SemireliableSource

idk ... The schedule? Maybe?


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## Dingo44

The FHL schedule is out and apparently the "Saint Clair Shores Fighting Saints" are playing EVERYWHERE other than St. Clair Shores. Odd. Am I really seeing travel from Quebec to Southern Ontario near Windsor in one day?

http://www.scsfightingsaints.com/stats#/team-schedule?team_id=18921


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## Francis10

Lots of games in Kingsville. Testing the waters? Why keep the Saint Clair name if you aren't playing any games there?


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## JDogindy

Travel teams are always a bad idea.


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## royals119

If you check the schedule closely it does say "vs." for their "home" games and "at" for away games. The "home" games are at Gravenhurst, South River, Kingsville, and Temiscaming. They should be called the Ontario Saints.


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## Cyclones Rock

I would love to have access to the full financials of the owners of each of the teams in this league.

Nothing about this ridiculous league makes sense from a financial angle. Unless I'm really missing something.


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## Sports Enthusiast

I love how Robbie Nichols is trying to sell this to the people of Elmira as like the equivalent to the old UHL. I know he's not a bad dude but like mentioned above how the ****ing hell is this league operating? Nobody can possibly be making money.


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## CMUBrent

*Uhl > fhl*



Sports Enthusiast said:


> I love how Robbie Nichols is trying to sell this to the people of Elmira as like the equivalent to the old UHL. I know he's not a bad dude but like mentioned above how the ****ing hell is this league operating? Nobody can possibly be making money.




Robbie Nichols had a great run in the UHL, and was the coach for most of the Generals' glory days. I understand what he's trying to do, but I have watched both the UHL and FHL over the years. There is no comparison, IMO, to the talent levels of both leagues. The UHL was much better hockey than the FHL. And while the UHL did have it's issues off the ice (Columbus Stars folding at midseason, Saginaw's time in the league, Motor City's coach placing a bounty on a player's head, etc), the Feds make that league look like the NHL in terms of overall stability.

If Elmira does join the FHL, hopefully Barry Soskin isn't involved.


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## CMUBrent

*Wandering Saints*



Francis10 said:


> Lots of games in Kingsville. Testing the waters? Why keep the Saint Clair name if you aren't playing any games there?






This could get ugly quickly. Bouncing around like that, the Wandering Saints will be lucky to get to 10 wins next year.


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## pled

CMUBrent said:


> This could get ugly quickly. Bouncing around like that, the Wandering Saints will be lucky to get to 10 wins next year.




FHL did have wandering team before nothing new


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## Dingo44

I called it.

http://www.federalhockey.com/news/fighting-saints-relocate-to-kingsville-on-become-n



> *FIGHTING SAINTS RELOCATE TO KINGSVILLE, ON; BECOME NORTH SHORE KNIGHTS*
> 
> July 19, 2017
> 
> Kingsville, ON - Jack Sports Group is happy to announce that professional hockey is coming to the Kingsville Arena Complex. The new team is part of the Federal Hockey League, and this addition gives us both a pro hockey and junior program under one roof! In total, we expect to play 24 home games. 15 home games in Kingsville and 9 additional Neutral Site Games will be played in some of our northern communities such as Gravenhurst, ON; South River, ON; and TÃ©miscaming, QC.
> The Federal Hockey League is a professional hockey league with teams in the Midwestern and Northeastern United States and Cornwall, ON. Kingsville is now the second team in Canada. The FHL has advanced more than 160 players to to various 'AA' (or higher) leagues including the ECHL, CHL, and AHL. The Federal Hockey League will also provide an opportunity for local junior hockey players that have aged out and want to continue playing competitive hockey.
> Kingsville Kings President Tom Schinkelshoek says, “With the addition of the FHL team to the area, it will attract better talent to the Kingsville Kings. Scouting and signing of players will be much easier with the FHL hockey team in town.”
> It is with our pleasure to give the Kingsville community even more hockey than previous seasons. Kingsville is known to have the best fans in the GMHL and with that being said, please help us welcome your North Shore Knights to the Castle!
> 
> Jack Sports Group wishes to thank all of our fans in St. Clair Shores, MI and the St. Clair Shores Civic Arena where we were located last season as the St. Clair Shores Fighting Saints. The North Shore Knights official logo, website, and social media channels will be unveiled/updated in the near future


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## sabremike

Danbury Titans RIP. Team just announced they are ceasing operations. Bennet cited trouble getting adequate insurance. I think it had more to do with the team losing money (attendance was down significantly from the Whalers heyday). Those of you who've been wishing for the FHL to die are likely to get your wish because there's no way I can see the league surviving this.


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## CHRDANHUTCH

sabremike said:


> Danbury Titans RIP. Team just announced they are ceasing operations. Bennet cited trouble getting adequate insurance. I think it had more to do with the team losing money (attendance was down significantly from the Whalers heyday). Those of you who've been wishing for the FHL to die are likely to get your wish because there's no way I can see the league surviving this.




no, that's facing all teams in Connecticut, not just Danbury, same thing can be applied to any pro team in Connecticut, sabre....

the FHL isn't dying off, that's a business decision, you may not agree with it, but it's not your team, how would you feel if it was


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## royals119

CHRDANHUTCH said:


> no, that's facing all teams in Connecticut, not just Danbury, same thing can be applied to any pro team in Connecticut, sabre....



So the Wolfpack and Sound Tigers are also having trouble getting insurance? Wow that is really surprising. 



> the FHL isn't dying off, that's a business decision, you may not agree with it, but it's not your team, how would you feel if it was



It seems pretty obvious that Danbury was the strongest organization in the FHL. With them announcing they won't continue it isn't far fetched to suspect the league would have trouble continuing. I find it amazing they have kept on this long with as much instability as they have had, but this is a major blow.


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## CHRDANHUTCH

royals119 said:


> So the Wolfpack and Sound Tigers are also having trouble getting insurance? Wow that is really surprising.
> 
> 
> It seems pretty obvious that Danbury was the strongest organization in the FHL. With them announcing they won't continue it isn't far fetched to suspect the league would have trouble continuing. I find it amazing they have kept on this long with as much instability as they have had, but this is a major blow.




considering Hartford's issues, yes, royals, never rule anything in or out in state politics, why is Connecticut spending money they don't really have on upgrading/maintaining XL, and then you hear the city's struggles a la Springfield about being financially instable of operating without bailout....

Massachusetts had to essentially pay to upgrade Mass Mutual Center because Springfield couldn't, and it has zero to do with MGM arriving there....


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## royals119

CHRDANHUTCH said:


> considering Hartford's issues, yes, royals, never rule anything in or out in state politics, why is Connecticut spending money they don't really have on upgrading/maintaining XL, and then you hear the city's struggles a la Springfield about being financially instable of operating without bailout....



I would guess because they want keep the team there. There have been quotes in the paper about trying to get back to the NHL, but I think even they realize that isn't going to happen. Most teams operate on pretty slim margins - no surprise to hear them looking for help. 



> Massachusetts had to essentially pay to upgrade Mass Mutual Center because Springfield couldn't, and it has zero to do with MGM arriving there....



I don't remember ever hearing about a minor league team paying to upgrade their arena. That is pretty much always done by the local government. Maybe some minor upgrades like a scoreboard or new glass, or in a rare case where the hockey team owner also owns the building such as Kalamazoo in the ECHL.


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## GarbageGoal

No getting around this, Danbury was the stalwart of these Single A leagues for awhile now. Big loss.


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## CHRDANHUTCH

royals119 said:


> I would guess because they want keep the team there. There have been quotes in the paper about trying to get back to the NHL, but I think even they realize that isn't going to happen. Most teams operate on pretty slim margins - no surprise to hear them looking for help.
> 
> 
> I don't remember ever hearing about a minor league team paying to upgrade their arena. That is pretty much always done by the local government. Maybe some minor upgrades like a scoreboard or new glass, or in a rare case where the hockey team owner also owns the building such as Kalamazoo in the ECHL.




IT WAS A MAJOR renovation of the arena itself, much like Cross here, royals, it took 3 years to renovate our facility, there it took longer, MGM manages the arena today, but it took 5 years to do the SCC and flip that into Mass Mutual.... Springfield then went insolvent locally and the Commonwealth had to bail them out, much as potentially what Hartford itself is facing/been reported now.

it may depend on who manages the arena, and that's Spectra, more often than not around most arenas. in Fact, the weird thing was Spectra also builds these arenas, not just manages them, and Cross, as weird as the building looks visually outside, was modeled after the Spectrum.


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## Captain Crash

GarbageGoal said:


> No getting around this, Danbury was the stalwart of these Single A leagues for awhile now. Big loss.




Honestly I think this is the best thing for Danbury and hockey in the Northeast. This opens the door for Danbury and Elmira to get into the same league-- either joining Johnstown in juniors (NAHL) or through the formation of a more legitimate Single A league for the region.


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## royals119

CHRDANHUTCH said:


> it may depend on who manages the arena, and that's Spectra, more often than not around most arenas.




I just checked. Spectra manages 44 US arenas, SMG has 70 and AEG has 20, so no, Spectra doesn't manage most arenas. Of the big three they have just under a third, and I'm sure there are some arenas out there that are managed by someone other than those three companies.


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## 210

CHRDANHUTCH said:


> *Massachusetts had to essentially pay to upgrade Mass Mutual Center because Springfield couldn't,* and it has zero to do with MGM arriving there....




This is absolutely untrue. It was a mixture of city and state money that paid for the 2003 rehab of the Springfield Civic Center.


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## JDogindy

sabremike said:


> Danbury Titans RIP. Team just announced they are ceasing operations. Bennet cited trouble getting adequate insurance. I think it had more to do with the team losing money (attendance was down significantly from the Whalers heyday). Those of you who've been wishing for the FHL to die are likely to get your wish because there's no way I can see the league surviving this.




https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=roRQ2mNwMMQ


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## wildcat48

> "Despite all of this, tough decisions had to be made. *After reassessing the cost of workers' compensation insurance in the State of Connecticut I decided this was not financially feasible for an organization like mine.* Last season's injury list was long. Because of this, I refuse to allow my staff and players on the ice without proper medical coverage. I have been working hard over the last few months to find a solution. Despite working up to the last possible second a solution could not be found. I do not feel comfortable jeopardizing the safety of my players and staff with improper or no insurance."




[MOD]

Read the quote from the press release... Bennett explicitly says he's folding the team because of insurance reasons.

http://www.danburytitans.com/news/danbury-titans-cease-operations


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## sabremike

I'll just put it this way: The fact that people were no longer coming to the games and Bruce had to be losing significant money didn't help.


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## Dale Best Goalie

Sort of fell in love with the old Danbury Whalers back when they played... will surely miss the titans, I was planning on going to a bunch of their games.  Hopefully hockey returns to Danbury!


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## Dingo44

From all reports they had over 1,100 for the first FHL game in Mentor, OH last night and the reviews from the fans are great! And my friends who went to the Thunderbirds games over the weekend reported full stands and had a blast as well. I also suspect Elmira will do very well. Just have to hope Mentor and Elmira have strong teams this year to keep the interest high.


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## JMCx4

I attended Elmira's first two games in Danville this past weekend. Coach Clarke has a few big boys on his roster who have clearly taken their "Enforcers" team name to heart. They seemed more organized & displayed good flow and set-up offensive plays more crisply than the Dashers in Game 1. Game 2 became a blow out for the home team, but Elmira still looked like a formidable squad - as long as team defense wasn't essential. Now if they can just dump those lime green-accented jerseys, they might have something ...


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## Sports Enthusiast

Elmira's team is a dumpster fire. It could be because theyve taken the goon name to heart.


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## Dingo44

Sports Enthusiast said:


> Elmira's team is a dumpster fire. It could be because theyve taken the goon name to heart.




Saw them in person a couple of games against the Thunderbirds this weekend. They lost 1 - 0 and 2 - 0. Both were really fun games - got a couple of first timers including one who had never been to a hockey game before hooked on the Birds, including buying future tickets and a bunch of merch - but the Birds outshot them both games almost 2 - 1. The goalie on Elmira is great though.


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## Sports Enthusiast

Dingo44 said:


> Saw them in person a couple of games against the Thunderbirds this weekend. They lost 1 - 0 and 2 - 0. Both were really fun games - got a couple of first timers including one who had never been to a hockey game before hooked on the Birds, including buying future tickets and a bunch of merch - but the Birds outshot them both games almost 2 - 1. The goalie on Elmira is great though.




Yeah, I lisytened, the games were definitely not that close, Carolina is definitely the class of the league and I don't think theres a close second. One of the goals went in off the goalies head lol. 

I didnt realize they had a 3 point system for regulation wins.


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## Aero 75

Lot of hypothetical situations in this report on BLH, but does the FHL have a massive southern expansion in mind,
setting up a territorial war with the SPHL?

Trying to make sense of the Columbus to FHL rumors


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## Sports Enthusiast

Aero 75 said:


> Lot of hypothetical situations in this report on BLH, but does the FHL have a massive southern expansion in mind,
> setting up a territorial war with the SPHL?
> 
> Trying to make sense of the Columbus to FHL rumors




If the FHL were stable I would argue maybe a merger but with the league footprints that could smell like a mistake.


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## Dingo44

If they can put three more teams in the South then two divisions maybe sense and the FHL can fill gaps the SPHL can't. Plus a bunch of Thunderbirds have gotten call ups to the SPHL lately so that's something that works for both leagues as well.


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## JMCx4

Sports Enthusiast said:


> If the FHL were stable I would argue maybe a merger but with the league footprints that could smell like a mistake.



Problems with "stable" stretch beyond finances & reach deep into the psyches of the FHL leadership. The current SPHL owners would be foolish to hook up with those guys.


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## Sports Enthusiast

Dingo44 said:


> If they can put three more teams in the South then two divisions maybe sense and the FHL can fill gaps the SPHL can't. Plus a bunch of Thunderbirds have gotten call ups to the SPHL lately so that's something that works for both leagues as well.




The Thunderbirds are the class of the league easily. They are on like a 15 game winning streak. They'll get 100 points.


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