Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, September 16, 1993 TAG: 9309160094
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RANDY KING STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Brabham confirmed he has received an insurance settlement on the building, but he estimated the payment is some $200,000 short of the price it would take to rebuild to current codes.
"I'm not going to go borrow money at my age to rebuild the thing," said Brabham, 64. "It's just not worth my time.
"The only way I would consider rebuilding is if somebody wants to lease it."
Brabham said he has made a lease proposal to Roanoke Valley Youth Hockey officials.
"I have given youth hockey the figures of the income from the ice arena, period, and what I basically felt were expenses for operating that part of the building," Brabham said.
"It's been over a week now, but I haven't heard an answer from them. They seemed very interested. There's enough income where somebody could make a go of it. Public-skating income last year averaged $12,000 a month."
Roanoke's new East Coast Hockey League franchise, the Roanoke Express, originally had planned to use the LancerLot as its main practice facility. Now, the Express is scrambling for a practice site for occasions when ice is not available at its new home, the Roanoke Civic Center.
"There appears to be about 11 times during the season we're going to need another place to practice," said Frank Anzalone, the Express' coach. "We're trying to make arrangements to practice in Winston-Salem [N.C.]. There's also the possibility we may do some practicing in Cary, N.C.
"Obviously, busing the players out of town to practice is not the ideal situation, but there's not much else we can do. We certainly don't want to jeopardize practice time for the players."
\ FRANK AT SHARK TANK: Anzalone is spending the week in Daly City, Calif., at the preseason camp of the San Jose Sharks, the Express' NHL affiliate.
"It should give me some idea what kind of help we can expect from San Jose in regards to players," Anzalone said before leaving Monday. "They're supposed to have 73 players in camp, and obviously, not all are going to end up in San Jose or Kansas City [the Sharks' International Hockey League affiliate]. I also should get a line on some free agents who will be free to go wherever they want."
Anzalone said the Express' preseason camp, which opens Oct. 9 at the Roanoke Civic Center, likely will include 25 to 35 players.
"There's no use in bringing in 50 guys because, in reality, I can't go through 50 guys in 10 days," Anzalone said. "Inviting a bunch of kids and having to cut them after two days brings a bad name to Roanoke and the franchise. Quality is much more important than quantity."
\ EXPRESSIONS: As of Wednesday morning, the Express had sold 1,105 season tickets. No other Roanoke ECHL franchise ever sold more than 300 season passes.
Tim Woodburn, assistant marketing director for the Express, said the club's game program will be double the size of the publication in past seasons. Tentative plans call for a 72-page program, half of which will be advertisements.
The Express' Oct. 16 preseason game against Knoxville and the Oct. 19 regular-season home opener against South Carolina will go head to head with baseball's World Series.
\ ICE CHIPS: ECHL Commissioner Pat Kelly has received an extention of his contract through the 1995-96 season. Kelly has been the league's commissioner since it started with five teams in 1988.
Kelly said the Hampton Roads Admirals have sold 6,000 season tickets and the expansion Charlotte Checkers are nearing the 4,000 mark.
The Greensboro Monarchs have announced a working agreement with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, who will enter the NHL as an expansion club this season. The Monarchs also will maintain their tie with the Quebec Nordiques, who have been affiliated with Greensboro since 1989.
Jim Playfair has been chosen to succeed Claude Noel as coach of the Dayton Bombers. Playfair, 29, played briefly in the NHL with Chicago before becoming a player-assistant coach for the IHL's Indianapolis Ice. Noel, who coached in Roanoke in 1990-91, left Dayton to take an assistant's job with Kalamazoo of the IHL.
Bob "Battleship" Kelly, who played for seven years in the NHL, is the new coach and director of operations for the expansion Huntington Blizzard.
by CNB