DCarp1231 Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 There’s a business group which has been working diligently in an effort to bring hockey back to the state of Maryland and they’ve evidently secured talks with the ECHL and local officials https://www.instagram.com/p/C3_kh3kAdGK/?igsh=cnI5Z3g1NjFlYzVi https://m.facebook.com/ProHockeyMD?mibextid=PtKPJ9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigerslionspistonshabs Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 Like as in Baltimore? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCarp1231 Posted March 2 Author Share Posted March 2 1 minute ago, tigerslionspistonshabs said: Like as in Baltimore? They’re testing out locations. Based on their facebook page, they attempted Annapolis, but now seem to be focused on Frederick. They have a graphic explaining why Baltimore won’t work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4_tattoos Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 I remember when there was an ECHL team that played at the Show Place Arena in Upper Marlboro called the Chesapeake Icebreakers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chesapeake_Icebreakers Quote Hotter Than July > Thriller Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GDAWG Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 Maybe they become the Caps ECHL affiliate as it's closer to DC than South Carolina. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBGKon Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 Based on current and future teams, to match the NHL and AHL the ECHL has room for 2 more expansion teams. This would be a good add to the league for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leopard88 Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 On 3/2/2024 at 9:22 AM, DCarp1231 said: They’re testing out locations. Based on their facebook page, they attempted Annapolis, but now seem to be focused on Frederick. They have a graphic explaining why Baltimore won’t work I didn't click through to view the graphic. However, my understanding is that CFG Bank Arena management specifically prioritizes concerts over minor league sports, so there would be limited weekend dates available there. Quote Most Liked Content of the Day -- February 15, 2017, August 21, 2017, August 22, 2017 ///// Proud Winner of the CCSLC Post of the Day Award -- April 8, 2008 Originator of the Upside Down Sarcasm Smilie -- November 1, 2005 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4_tattoos Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 IIRC Bowie, Maryland was going to build an ice rink pre COVID. The pandemic may have played a part in axing those plans. Bowie is already home to an Orioles minor league club. Perhaps this could bring the project back to life 1 Quote Hotter Than July > Thriller Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCarp1231 Posted March 6 Author Share Posted March 6 The group is claiming that Frederick would be the 5th highest population market in the ECHL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pmoehrin Posted March 6 Share Posted March 6 1 hour ago, DCarp1231 said: The group is claiming that Frederick would be the 5th highest population market in the ECHL For “market data” they’re clearly using city population data for the top four. And by that metric El Paso is just as good of a market as Boston. However, Worcester’s population is around 200k, and they have an ECHL team, so I don’t know why they’re not listed. But for Frederick, they’re using their county population, so it’s not even an apples-to-apples comparison. Just blatantly using different metrics here. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBGKon Posted March 6 Share Posted March 6 1 minute ago, pmoehrin said: For “market data” they’re clearly using city population data for the top four. And by that metric El Paso is just as good of a market as Boston. But Worcester’s population is around 200k, and they have an ECHL team, so I don’t know why they’re not listed. But for Frederick, they’re using their county population, so it’s not even an apples-to-apples comparison. Just blatantly using different metrics here. Yeah, they really need to use that "market" term correctly. Orlando's market population should be 2mil+. Jacksonville is at least 1.5mil. Atlanta was clearly ignored. They must've used Duluth, GA as the city "market" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Admiral Posted March 6 Share Posted March 6 Population doesn't really matter for the third-tier hockey league. Do you have an arena that you can get a good lease on? Were you unable to get into the AHL? Okay sure fine. 1 Quote ♫ oh yeah, board goes on, long after the thrill of postin' is gone ♫ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pmoehrin Posted March 6 Share Posted March 6 52 minutes ago, TBGKon said: Yeah, they really need to use that "market" term correctly. Orlando's market population should be 2mil+. Jacksonville is at least 1.5mil. Atlanta was clearly ignored. They must've used Duluth, GA as the city "market" The odd thing is I would actually agree with viewing potential market data for a low-level minor league team on a local level because you're not going to get more than a few dozen people a night traveling an hour to see ECHL hockey. But if you want to know why nobody up until now has had the bright idea to build a 6-8k arena outside of the capital district in suburban Maryland, these figures start getting into why. There's a reason why arenas outside of college venues tend to be built almost exclusively in population centers. People generally don't like getting in a car and driving 45 minutes at night to get to or from wherever they're going. And that's about how far you have to drive from Frederick to reach another significant population base. Frederick County ranks around 260th among the most populated counties in the US, and it ranks about the same by population density. What other areas are like that? Asheville, Poughkeepsie, Green Bay, Southeastern Connecticut, Tallahassee. And it's a mixed bag when it comes to arena quality or even existence in those areas. But you don't preach caution when you want something. If it were me, I would be looking to go in and around Rockville before Frederick, but that would also be a lot more expensive, and maybe outside the budget range of whoever these people are. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCarp1231 Posted March 7 Author Share Posted March 7 2 hours ago, pmoehrin said: The odd thing is I would actually agree with viewing potential market data for a low-level minor league team on a local level because you're not going to get more than a few dozen people a night traveling an hour to see ECHL hockey. But if you want to know why nobody up until now has had the bright idea to build a 6-8k arena outside of the capital district in suburban Maryland, these figures start getting into why. There's a reason why arenas outside of college venues tend to be built almost exclusively in population centers. People generally don't like getting in a car and driving 45 minutes at night to get to or from wherever they're going. And that's about how far you have to drive from Frederick to reach another significant population base. Frederick County ranks around 260th among the most populated counties in the US, and it ranks about the same by population density. What other areas are like that? Asheville, Poughkeepsie, Green Bay, Southeastern Connecticut, Tallahassee. And it's a mixed bag when it comes to arena quality or even existence in those areas. But you don't preach caution when you want something. If it were me, I would be looking to go in and around Rockville before Frederick, but that would also be a lot more expensive, and maybe outside the budget range of whoever these people are. One of the first points the group brought up was comparing Frederick’s population to current expansion ECHL cities, Lake Tahoe and Savannah. They did clump together the entire county population compared to just utilizing city population for the other two. Frederick County, MD - 287,049 Savannah, Georgia - 147,088 Lake Tahoe - 21, 748 Now, the ECHL officially added another expansion team in Bloomington, Illinois which has a population of 78,896 It’s very obvious they wouldn’t single out the city of Frederick which sits at roughly 85-86k, which even then still places it above Lake Tahoe. I believe they’re counting the county as a whole to ensure that an arena wouldn’t explicitly be placed in the city (which is nearly impossible, I live here). They’d have to look at open land surrounding the area. Places like along Route 15 somewhere between Frederick and the PA border or just outside the city in Walkersville or Urbana. The latter of the two is becoming increasingly crowded due to its close proximity to Montgomery County. This is semi-related, but there is a tentative proposal to build a sports complex in Frederick County to accommodate athletics such as swimming, volleyball, basketball, track and field, and pickleball. Mount St. Mary’s University is even involved in the proposal. Surely this group has looked into this. https://www.fredericknewspost.com/news/economy_and_business/tourism/group-recommends-indoor-track-pools-for-potential-frederick-county-sports-facility/article_04e14b60-a21f-5015-bb8c-af10726b5972.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kmccarthy27 Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 On 3/2/2024 at 10:24 AM, 4_tattoos said: I remember when there was an ECHL team that played at the Show Place Arena in Upper Marlboro called the Chesapeake Icebreakers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chesapeake_Icebreakers I loved going to those games, Showplace was perfect for that level of hockey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCarp1231 Posted March 8 Author Share Posted March 8 They now have a website with zero information! https://www.prohockeymd.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pmoehrin Posted March 8 Share Posted March 8 2 hours ago, DCarp1231 said: They now have a website with zero information! https://www.prohockeymd.com I'd just like to know the names of the people behind the group. I want to call amateur hour on some of the data and wording they've used, but I've seen well that stuff plays when you're telling people what they want to hear. But I would have zero faith in any nameless group. There's a reason they don't want you to know who they are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCarp1231 Posted March 8 Author Share Posted March 8 1 hour ago, pmoehrin said: I'd just like to know the names of the people behind the group. I want to call amateur hour on some of the data and wording they've used, but I've seen well that stuff plays when you're telling people what they want to hear. But I would have zero faith in any nameless group. There's a reason they don't want you to know who they are. You’d think a group that has supposedly secured “talks” with the ECHL and local officials, they’d have at least some business background and attempt to be more publicly known. Instead, we’re being given nothing but oohhs and aahhs like a bunch of meaningless numbers and a supposed “merch shop coming soon”. Oh, and that website that I posted? Yeah that’s not the real site. The “official site” launches in April. Yeah okay. For a “business” group pushing for pro hockey in Maryland, I’d like to know the faces behind the movement on top of a concrete potential identity package before any merchandise is being sold. It feels very much like a failure before launch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCarp1231 Posted March 13 Author Share Posted March 13 The group is looking for submissions for team identities. From their Facebook page: Quote “ One of the most commonly asked questions around this campaign is what the team name would be. Would it be 'Frederick' or 'Maryland'? That will ultimately be up to ownership and the league, but let's have some fun! Any graphic designers out there want to take a shot at submitting a team name and logo, and have the chance to be featured!? Send your designs to prohockeymd@gmail.com! ” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCarp1231 Posted March 13 Author Share Posted March 13 Yeah just as I thought.. per the comment section on their post, they’re attempting to get residents/fans to submit designs for virtually no reason or gain. None of the submitted designs will ever be considered for the official identity. I could potentially eat my words, but I’m calling bulls*** on this whole operation until we see the faces behind the push Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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