The Mahoning Valley Phantoms will make their Chevrolet Centre debut Friday night, as owner Bruce Zoldan decides whether NAHL hockey will work in a former CHL venue.The Mahoning Valley Phantoms will make their Chevrolet Centre debut Friday night, as owner Bruce Zoldan decides whether hockey will work in a former CHL venue — one where the former team and former manager exited under some cloudy circumstances.
The Phantoms normally play at the Ice Zone in Boardman and is one of the most successful NAHL franchises in terms of on-ice and box-office performance. If the Phantoms can draw decent crowds at Chevrolet Centre, Zoldan says he’s consider bringing in another minor-league hockey team.
One big question, of course, is what league another team would join. Huge travel expenses helped kill the Youngstown CHL franchise. The ECHL would be a possibility, but the most likely target would be the IHL, the former UHL that’s morphed into a nice regional circuit that could easily encompass Youngstown. IHL officials say they’re interested in Youngstown.
