JMCx4
#HopeForHUTCH
"President Killer"? They should've named the team the "Niagara Falls Booths."
Another semi-pro league coming?
- Thread starter Barclay Donaldson
- Start date
Barclay Donaldson
Registered User
Drake MacKenzie has been secretly running the league using someone else's identity. Sounds illegal. League has been reformed into the American Premier Hockey League per every team source except Flint Apollos who it appears have gone dark...
CANADIENSFAN90
Registered User
JMCx4
#HopeForHUTCH
Well, at least they have an eye-catching logo ... 
GindyDraws
#HutchOut
Wouldn't be an American map if it didn't leave out the upper peninsula.
JMCx4
#HopeForHUTCH
Rumor has it the UP seceded from the U.S. to distance itself from the APHL. I expect more such actions once the word gets out.
Barclay Donaldson
Registered User
I finally got around to catching a UHL/APHL/? game last weekend. The Pittsburgh River Monsters hosted the Soo Nordiques, in a game that would best be described as quite bad. Both rosters had a handful of guys with experience in tier 3 juniors, junior C, and ACHA, and when they were on the ice, it passed as fairly watchable. The rest of the lineups were no-name beer leaguers that completed more turnovers than passes. The difference from shift to shift was pretty jarring.
That said, credit where it's due: the Monsters actually had some real effort at the game day presentation, with player intros, music, scoring announcements, raffles, and their own spin on a minor league classic: chuck-a-fish. They used online ticket sales, and at the rink they had a well-stocked merch table alongside a beer vendor. We also noticed that while Soo used some mismatched gear (helmets, socks, etc), Pittsburgh had a consistent kit, save for a few jerseys that didn't have nameplates.
They didn't announce the attendance, but I'd ballpark it (ice rink it?) at probably around 250-400, and it seemed like there were a lot of repeat customers and a lot of fans who were really into the game. So there's something of a fanbase.
For me, it isn't quite worth it. I live in the city of Pittsburgh, but the Monsters' home rink in Beaver Falls is about a 45 minute drive from the city proper. I can watch better college hockey (D1, D3, and club) much closer to home, and within an hour drive I can watch ECHL or USHL for just a few bucks more. But I can see how if I lived in that area, it could be worth it. For that reason, I think this team should have just leaned into being local rather than trying to be a 'Pittsburgh' team, especially since that part of the metro has a sort of small town pride persona rather than nondescript suburban sprawl. The Beaver Falls Beavers, anyone?
That said, credit where it's due: the Monsters actually had some real effort at the game day presentation, with player intros, music, scoring announcements, raffles, and their own spin on a minor league classic: chuck-a-fish. They used online ticket sales, and at the rink they had a well-stocked merch table alongside a beer vendor. We also noticed that while Soo used some mismatched gear (helmets, socks, etc), Pittsburgh had a consistent kit, save for a few jerseys that didn't have nameplates.
They didn't announce the attendance, but I'd ballpark it (ice rink it?) at probably around 250-400, and it seemed like there were a lot of repeat customers and a lot of fans who were really into the game. So there's something of a fanbase.
For me, it isn't quite worth it. I live in the city of Pittsburgh, but the Monsters' home rink in Beaver Falls is about a 45 minute drive from the city proper. I can watch better college hockey (D1, D3, and club) much closer to home, and within an hour drive I can watch ECHL or USHL for just a few bucks more. But I can see how if I lived in that area, it could be worth it. For that reason, I think this team should have just leaned into being local rather than trying to be a 'Pittsburgh' team, especially since that part of the metro has a sort of small town pride persona rather than nondescript suburban sprawl. The Beaver Falls Beavers, anyone?
