Supporters 'cautiously optimistic' about Chicago Express inaugural season
Hockey is back in Hoffman Estates, and supporters ranging from league leaders to village officials are confident the new team will have a successful inaugural season, despite the short life of a hockey franchise at the same location a few years ago.
The Chicago Express, which is part of the 20-team midlevel professional ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League), played its first home game Saturday night to a crowd of about 5,400 at the Sears Centre Arena.
The facility hosted hockey once before, in 2007, when the Chicago Hounds, a team that belonged to the now-defunct United Hockey League, played for a season before folding.
In their final months, the Hounds were purchased by Craig Drecktrah, who is now the owner of the Express. He says his new team is on the right path.
“I believe that we can make it,” he said. “We're marketing ourselves as nice, family fun, and that's the way we want it to be.”
Hoffman Estates residents Al Bosslet and his wife, Anne, along with their friends Phil and Megan Filosa were pleasantly surprised by Saturday's game.
“It's way better than I expected, to be honest. I didn't really know what to expect, but they look really good.”
Hoffman Estates Mayor William McLeod is confident the team will get off to a better start than the Hounds because the ECHL is a more established league.
“They've got a great track record of success; their teams do well, and I'm quite confident this team will do well,” McLeod said. “They have an association with the Columbus Blue Jackets, an NHL affiliate, and I think that's very important.”
Founded in 1988, the ECHL is considered a steppingstone to the American Hockey League — with which the Chicago Wolves are affiliated — and even the NHL.
Each ECHL team plays 76 games a year, and 2010-11 was the 14th consecutive season the ECHL had affiliations with at least 20 teams in the NHL.
The league requires the arenas where their teams play to have seating capacities of at least 6,000, as attendance average for the league is more than 4,000 per game. Benchmark goals, such as getting at least 1,000 season ticket holders annually, are set for each team, said Ryan Crelin, ECHL vice president of business.
ECHL Commissioner Brian McKenna said he understands the challenges the Express face after a hockey franchise folded in the same facility, but he believes the team can follow in the footsteps of other ECHL teams successfully established outside big cities such as Los Angeles and Atlanta.
“I think they understand, as do we from a league point of view, that it's a crowded sports market, that they're going to have to carve out their niche in terms of having a fan base,” he said, adding he hopes fans will come from a 15- to 20-mile radius.
“But I think our league, and minor league hockey in general, is about affordable family entertainment.”
Ben Gibbs, general manager of the Sears Centre, said besides featuring exciting hockey, the facility will provide families with other entertainment, including a graffiti wall to write messages to players, a pro shop, a train on the concourse that gives rides and a 5,000-square-foot arcade area at ice level.
Gibbs said he is also hopeful the team will encourage people who have never visited the Sears Centre to come in.
“Mid-size facilities need what they call an ‘anchor tenant' to be successful — not just financially, but to build an identity for the building,” he said.
“It kind of gives us a brand we can wrap our arms around. We do over 100 events a year, but it doesn't paint a picture in the community's mind of what we are.
“In the end, (the Express) will help sell tickets for other events too because people will have their radar up to see other things we're doing,” he added.
McKenna and Gibbs say getting the team and a fan base established will take two to three years, but both believe the Express have an advantage because team officials began preparing a year in advance.
“As far as I'm concerned, (my staff hasn't) made a wrong move yet,” Gibbs said. “They've done everything to ensure their success. Obviously success is never guaranteed in any field ... but just from my background, I think they have all the skill sets to make this work.”
Having a winning record doesn't hurt, either. Express Coach Steven Martinson has won six championships and in 15 years his team never missed a postseason, McKenna said.
“Every team has to be competitive and win their share of home games, and Steve certainly has a track record of doing that, so that will help,” he said.
“We're cautiously optimistic,” he added. “We and they understand that there's still a lot of work to do. We also understand that the fans have to be persuaded that it is a good entertainment option — one fan at a time.”
Ÿ Correspondent Ryan O'Gara contributed to this report.