ECHL absorbs 7 CHL teams

Staff report

Six years after booting the Youngstown SteelHounds into hockey history, the Central Hockey League is no more.

Tuesday, the ECHL absorbed seven CHL teams as expansion teams. The teams are Allen Americans, Brampton Beast, Missouri Mavericks, Quad City Mallards, Rapid City Rush, Tulsa Oilers and Wichita Thunder. The rest of the league is expected to fold.

The ECHL, which was created in 1998, will have 28 teams.

“The ECHL is very pleased to welcome these new members to the league,” ECHL Commissioner Brian McKenna said. “These additions strengthen our base in the center of the country and give the ECHL, for the first time, a true national presence.

“It expands our ability to act as a development league and more closely aligns our number of teams with both the American Hockey League and the National Hockey League.

Only the Oilers and Thunder were CHL teams when the SteelHounds (Youngstown’s only professional hockey team) existed for three seasons from 2005-08.

On Nov. 4, 2005, the SteelHounds, owned by Herb Washington, made their debut at the Chevrolet Centre, Youngstown’s brand-new 5,700-seat arena.

Travel expenses were a major problem for the SteelHounds — most of the CHL teams were based in central and desert southwest states (Texas, Colorado, Louisiana, Mississippi).

In their second and third seasons, the SteelHounds qualified for the playoffs under the guidance of head coach Kevin Kaminski.

On June 2, 2008, the CHL kicked the SteelHounds out because of unpaid financial obligations.

One year later, the Youngstown Phantoms, a junior hockey league, became the main sports tenant at the arena which is now the Covelli Centre.