DATE: Sunday, September 14, 1997            TAG: 9709140212

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C13  EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: HARRY MINIUM

                                            LENGTH:   60 lines

ADMIRALS REPORT [BRIEFS]

Still looking south, league sets up shop in Ga., Fla., cities

NORFOLK - Augusta, Ga., and Fort Myers, Fla., will join the East Coast Hockey League in 1998.

Meeting in Charleston, S.C. last week, the ECHL's board of governors accepted an expansion application from Fort Myers and agreed to allow the Raleigh IceCaps to move to Augusta.

The ECHL can thank Detroit computer magnate Peter Karmanos for both franchise moves.

Karmanos transplanted his Hartford Whalers NHL team to North Carolina this season. The Carolina Hurricanes, as the Whalers are now known, will play in Greensboro for two seasons, then move to a new arena in Raleigh.

With the NHL coming to town, the IceCaps had to find a new home - in this case, a 6,500-seat arena in Augusta, which the city is renovating.

A group led by Karmanos also purchased the expansion franchise for the Fort Myers area. Lee County is building a 7,350-seat arena that is expected to open next year.

Hampton Roads Admirals co-owner Page Johnson said the team voted yes on both franchise decisions.

The moves continue the ECHL's transformation into a Southern league. New Orleans, Pee Dee (Florence, S.C.) and Chesapeake (Upper Marlboro, Md.) begin play this season. This season, 17 of 25 ECHL teams will be based in the South.

Johnson said that little else of import happened at the meetings, though the league expanded rosters to 18 players from 17. However, it did not raise the salary cap beyond the token raise from $7,750 to $8,000 enacted months ago. That means players will be paid an average of $444 per week, down about $11 per player per week from last season.

Alexeev to return

Defenseman Alex Alexeev has been jointly signed by the Admirals and the Portland Pirates, meaning the bulk of the team's powerful defense last season likely will be back at Scope.

Alexeev and All-ECHL defenseman Chris Phelps have been signed by Portland and Hampton Roads. Though both will be in tryout camp in Portland, the Admirals' AHL affiliate, they likely will play in Norfolk. So will Chad Ackerman, a rookie defenseman last season who has signed with the Admirals and will also try out in Portland.

Admirals head coach John Brophy and assistant coach/general manager Al MacIsaac left Tuesday for the Washington Capitals' camp. They won't return to Norfolk for three weeks as they attend various camps looking for players. The Admirals open camp Sunday, Oct. 5, at the Ice Palace in York County.

New playoff format set

There will be no repeat of last year's second-round playoff matchup between the league's two best teams. The Admirals and South Carolina, who had the league's highest point totals last season, met in the second round in a series won by the Stingrays, who went on to win the ECHL title.

That wouldn't happen this season until the playoff finals. The league has adopted the NHL's playoff formula, in which the top eight teams in each division will be seeded one through eight based on points. Then, in each succeeding round, the teams will be re-seeded regardless of division based on regular-season points.

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