THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, November 5, 1996 TAG: 9611050436
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY HARRY MINIUM, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 65 lines
What happens to the Hampton Roads Admirals if the NHL comes to town?
Simply put, the ECHL team probably will have to pack its sticks and find another place to play.
That will be difficult for Admirals co-owners Mark Garcea and Page Johnson, who bought the team only last spring and are Hampton Roads natives.
``We don't want to leave,'' Garcea said. ``But we don't have a lot of options.''
That's because professional hockey, unlike professional baseball, doesn't have a true minor league-major league marriage. In baseball, when a major league team dislocates a minor league team, as the Colorado Rockies did to the Triple-A Denver Zephyrs, the minor league team receives compensation.
But when the Colorado Avalanche moved to Denver last season, the Grizzlies of the International Hockey League were simply out of luck. In spite of winning the IHL title and drawing more than 10,000 fans per game they were forced to move to Salt Lake City and received no compensation from the NHL.
Much the same would happen to the Admirals, one of the ECHL's top draws, if the NHL Rhinos come to Hampton Roads.
``We probably would have to move the team or sell it,'' Johnson said. ``We might be able to play at the Hampton Coliseum. I just don't know.''
There's precedent for that. When the Winnipeg Jets of the NHL moved to Phoenix, the Phoenix Roadrunners of the IHL decided to stay put. Chicago, Detroit and the Los Angeles area have NHL and IHL teams, most of which draw well.
But there is no precedent, at least in Hampton Roads, for the position Johnson and Garcea have been placed in as members of the Hampton Roads Sports Facilities Authority. The 15-member authority is expected to issue bonds to pay for the arena.
In other words, Garcea and Johnson might be asked to vote to approve bonds that would, in essence, put them out of business.
``We've taken an oath to do what's best for the community,'' Garcea said.
``Until all the numbers are laid out, I don't know what we'll do. But if it's the right thing for Hampton Roads, then we'll take off our Admirals hat and do the right thing.''
Nonetheless, Garcea isn't convinced the NHL is the right league at the right time for the region. He says a feasibility study the region had planned to do last winter to see if there is enough corporate support for a major sports team is needed before Hampton Roads takes the plunge into any league.
``Personally, I think the NBA would be a better fit for the region,'' Garcea said. ``That has a much better chance of succeeding.
``But the feasibility study should be finished before we do anything. We should walk before we run. That would take some time, but this is something we're doing for a lifetime for our community, and whatever we do, we want it to be right. If it fails, the repercussions are great.''
Garcea acknowledges that if the Admirals must move, his franchise could plummet in value.
ECHL expansion franchises cost $1.5 million, but Garcea and Johnson paid more for the Admirals, whose market of 1.6 million people, winning tradition and strong fan following make the franchise worth more.
Blake Cullen's asking price for the team was $2.8 million. It isn't known how much they paid.
The good news for the Admirals is that moving day, if it comes at all, is years away. An NHL team wouldn't begin play until the 1999-2000 season at the earliest.
``All the talk about the NHL might help ticket sales in the short-term,'' Johnson said.
``It could create a greater interest in hockey.'' by CNB