ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, February 28, 1997 hockey TAG: 9702280071
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RALPH BERRIER JR. STAFF WRITER
THE LEAGUE WILL ADOPT a new divisional alignment to accommodate teams in Southern Maryland and New Orleans.
The East Coast Hockey League has awarded an expansion franchise to Southern Maryland that will begin play next season and force the league to change its divisional alignment.
The team, unnamed as of yet, will play in the 6,000-seat Show Place Arena in Upper Marlboro, Md., a suburb of Washington, D.C. The team will be owned by Michael A. Caggiano, who also owns the American Hockey League's Baltimore Bandits.
The addition of the Upper Marlboro club continues the growth of the largest minor league in professional sports. The ECHL, which also launches a New Orleans franchise next season, will be composed of 25 teams in 1997-98. The league, which includes the Roanoke Express, began with five teams in 1988-89.
``We are excited to welcome the Chesapeake-Southern Maryland region to the East Coast Hockey League,'' said ECHL president Rick Adams. ``The franchise's strong ownership, the thriving Southern Maryland-suburban Washington, D.C. market and a tremendous facility in the Show Place Arena will prove to be a winning combination for this franchise and the ECHL. This franchise will be an integral part of the league's further expansion into the Northeast corridor.''
The Upper Marlboro team will be part of the ECHL's realignment, which will be announced today. The league will be divided into two conferences, with each conference split into two divisions. Upper Marlboro will be in the ``Northern Conference'' in a division with Roanoke, Richmond, Hampton Roads, Johnstown, Pa., and Wheeling, W.Va.
``The ECHL is an exciting league and I think the fans will enjoy the brand of hockey,'' said Caggiano. ``I expect that the Show Place Arena will end up being the social focal point of the winter for the entire Southern Maryland region.''
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