Tuesday Feb. 9, 2010

The wait is over hockey fans, hockey is returning to Augusta in October. The owners and the fans think it'll work this time around

When it comes to hockey in Augusta, what a difference 14 months can make.

"I've made a lot of great friends here at the hockey games. I feel like part of me has been amputated," said former Lynx season-ticket holder Adam Kleba back in December.

But on this day, "A big turnaround since we were last at a press conference regarding hockey in Augusta. You probably rememeber, I was pretty depressed that night but now, I'm like a little kid in a candy store."

That's because hockey is coming back, with a new ownership group led by Bob Kerzner and a new league in the Southern Professional Hockey League. But after the Lynx folded just 14 months ago, why come to Augusta?

"You know, I have a passion for this game and we tried to find an arena where a management team in the arena also had a passion to bring hockey into the arena," said Kerzner.

"The team obviously fits into our footprint of the SPHL of what we're trying to create so there wasn't really any hesitation," said SPHL commissioner Jim Combs. "We knew the fans were here and we knew we coudl make it successful here."

The first task for the new front office, building a solid fan base, something the Augusta Lynx were lacking. For the die-hard fans though, today's announcement couldn't come soon enough.

"Well, I'm just glad that we have hockey again," said former Lynx season-ticket holder Kelly Ayres. "I don't know what the caliber of this league is. Hopefully, it'll be of the same quality but just to have something to do, and something to see again and cheer on, I'm very pleased."

With a two year lease agreement signed with the James Brown Arena, now the only question, how long will this team last?

"I would like to see it 10 years from now, 12 years from now," said Kerzner. "And I'd like to see an average fan base of about 3,000 a game. If we can get 3,000 and with a little corporate support, we'll be just fine."

The team does not have a coach or name yet. If you want to help name the team, head to the SPHL.com.