New look, new league

The area's Junior A ice hockey team joins the North American League.
By TOM WILLIAMS
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
BOARDMAN -- A new logo, a better league and more talented players have Youngstown's Junior A ice hockey promoters' hopes skyrocketing at the Ice Zone.
The Youngstown Phantom Rockets, who last winter played in the Continental Elite Hockey League, have evolved into the Youngstown Phantoms, members of the North American League. Team officials hope the music of the night the revamped team generates sounds like a full house of rabid ice hockey fans.
"If you liked the type of hockey we put on the ice last year, you're going to love what you see this year," Phantoms owner/president Bruce J. Zoldan said Monday at a press conference to unveil a new logo and introduce the team's staff and players for the 2003-04 season that begins Sept. 27.
Junior A hockey showcases players who have hopes of receiving college scholarships.
"Our league was developed to allow a young man to develop towards [a career in] professional hockey while stll maintaining his eligibility for college," coach Bob Mainhardt said.
More skilled players
The main difference between last year's CEHL teams and this year's NAHL games will be more skilled players.
"Hockey is a very physical, rough sport, but the Continental League, at times, was a little more physical than it needed to be," Mainhardt said.
The league, which begins its 28th season, is designed for athletes ages 16-20.
Of the 20 players introduced Monday, none hail from the Valley. This year's team will feature players from as far away as Alaska and California as well as nearby Pennsylvania and Michgan.
"The talent pool in the area currently doesn't [produce] players for this level," Mainhardt said. "Our goal is to someday have a majority of players who can say they are from the Mahoning Valley area."
Mainhardt said a dozen host families are needed to house the players, eight of whom will be enrolled in area high schools."The average [grade-point average] for our team would be at least 3.6," Mainhardt said. "We've gone out of our way to not only get great hockey players, but good students."
The Phantoms are one of 21 teams in this year's NAHL and will play in the Northern Division against the Cleveland Barons, Dayton Gems, Sault St. Marie Indians, Springfield (Ill.) Blues, the Toledo Ice Diggers and the USA National Team based in Ann Arbor, Mich. Four teams will qualify for the playoffs, with the league winner advancing to the national tournament.
Play 24 games at Ice Zone
Although the team will have a few Wednesday games, most of the 56-game schedule has games from Thursday-Sunday. There will be 24 games at the Ice Zone.
"There will be a lot of long bus trips, so these young men will get to know each other pretty well," Mainhardt said. "This is pretty much their new family away from home now."
Because the Phantoms were admitted to the NAHL in May, Zoldan said the franchise has a one-year waiver on the league requirement for 1,500 seats. Currently, the Ice Zone has 682 seats and another 820 will be added within the year.
Zoldan said that should the team someday meet the requirements for a tier-one Junior A team, an arena seating 3,000 would be needed.
For information on host families, call (330) 965-7500. The team's new website is www.youngstownphantoms.com.
williams@vindy.com