Despite a push to attract investors, it is unlikely that a group will bring an ECHL franchise to Portland, ME by the 2017-18 season.
Following the relocation of the AHL’s Portland Pirates, a group that included former Pirates executives Godfrey Wood and Brad Church sought to secure investment in a new franchise for the city. The group talked about pursuing either an expansion or relocating franchise, with the goal being to land a replacement for the Pirates at Cross Insurance Arena by next fall.
Efforts to attract investors, however, have not developed quickly enough to meet the ECHL’s timeline. The league is set to consider proposals for both moves and expansions for the 2017-18 season in January. More from WCSH 6:
NEWS CENTER has learned that there have been multiple people showing interest in what it would take financially to bring an ECHL team to Maine but that none of those people have committed to the project.
The Cross Insurance Arena Board Of Trustees is still actively discussing and evaluating options to putting a hockey team in Portland by next season.
The Pirates had been in Portland since the 1993-94 season, before moving to Springfield, MA after the 2015-16 campaign.
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