Minor league hockey is a transient being. Teams – and leagues – fold, move, expand, contract, merge and go on hiatus at an alarming rate. Single-A professional hockey is the worst when it comes to those matters.
Southwestern Pennsylvania has seen its fair share of those struggles, with no less than six teams calling (or attempting to call) the region home over the last decade. The most recent of which, the Southwestern PA Magic of the Federal Hockey League, began play this fall.
As is sometimes the case in minor-league hockey, the team’s owner, John Canterbury, bailed on the team and they folded in October after playing just one game. The players were left stranded in the middle of a road trip, locked out of their hotel rooms.
That’s the typical story of how a minor-league hockey folds. With new ownership, the players were given a second-chance, but the financial struggles remained. The new team’s new owner, Annice Reaves, has taken a 21st century-approach while searching for the answer to the team’s financial problems.
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When the Southwest PA Magic folded, a void was created in the world of single-A professional hockey.
The Federal League needed a sixth team to remain eligible for imported players (mostly Canadians) to play in the league due to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services policy. They also had home games on the 52-game schedules of their five other teams that were suddenly lacking opponents.
Rostraver Ice Garden owner Jim Murphy, in addition to the empty dates on his calendar, was missing out on a crucial opportunity to grow his business.
Finally, twenty-some young men were going to miss the opportunity to play a season of professional hockey. The Federal League is the lowest level of pro hockey in North America, and with the season already started, opportunities to sign on with other clubs were minimal.
Ms. Reaves, an Orlando, Florida resident, was the agent for one of the players. She stepped in to try and save the team. She took over the management of the club with only her own resources to try and get the squad through the season. Her first task was ridding the team of it’s ridiculous name and award-winningly bad logo. Improbably, the Steel City Warriors were born.
The biggest issue for the team has been a startling lack of attendance. The team has averaged just 146 fans through 16 home games this season. With tickets around $10 each, the revenue just isn’t making a dent in the team’s budget.
“They told me it was going to take 40 to 50 grand,” Ms. Reaves said. “I’ve spent almost $400,000, and I’m flat broke.”
Not only has the team struggled at the gate, they’ve struggled on the ice as well. Their 3-26-2 record is dead last in the Federal League. The team has gone through 41 players, and with the team not currently receiving paychecks, many have left for opportunities elsewhere or decided to hang up the skates for the season.
Captain Zach Tatrn is one of the ones that has stayed. Tatrn, a Lower Burrell native, played four years of Canadian junior hockey, along with professional stops in Knoxville, Tennesse, and Greenville, South Carolina before joining the Warriors.
“It’s been good,” Tatrn said of his time with the club. “Especially for me; I’ve never had the luxury of playing close to home. It’s always nice to play here and get to see my parents in the stands every night.”
The team is currently comprised of rookies and players released from other squads. Tatrn is hopeful that things could turn around and the team could be a destination for more talented players in the future.
“I think if we get things moving here, we can definitely get the talent in here to be a good team and start bringing in more fans,” he said.
Despite this season’s lack of success Ms. Reaves remains committed to the team, through this season and beyond, if she can find the right mix of investors and sponsorships.
“It would make a lot of sense for me,” said Mr. Murphy of a keeping a pro team in his building, “I would get a lower rate per hour for practice time and I would get my standard rate per hour for their games. I have a bar/restaurant at the other end of the arena where we can sell alcohol.”
“I did it for the boys,” Ms. Reaves said. “That’s why I did, and I why I continue to do it. I’ve put myself in some really bad debt … but I’m not going to give up just quite yet.”
That determination – and desperation – led to Reaves to the internet for funding for her team. GoFundMe is a San Diego-based web site that utilizes a fundraising technique known as crowdsourcing. The website allows users to create a campaign to raise funds for their personal cause.
In 2014, Olympic speedskater Lisa Scott used it to fund her trip to Sochi, Russia. Dozens of potential 2016 Olympic hopefuls have also turned to the site to fund their campaigns. Despite several success stories, not everyone seems so enthused about the idea.
“When I first heard about the doing some fundraising to help the players out, that would be fine, but (the GoFundMe account) is another thing,” said FHL commissioner Don Kirnan. “I don’t think they’re doing it anymore; when we found out about it, we told them they couldn’t do it.
Despite the commissioner’s stance, the site remains active and has collected $240 of the $30,000 that Reaves feels that the team will need to make it through the remainder of their travel schedule.
After two home games this weekend, ten of the team’s next twelve games are on the road. The other teams in the Federal League are in Danville, Illinois, Dayton, Ohio, Watertown, New York, Danbury, Connecticut, and Berkshire, Massachusetts.
If the fundraising drive is unsuccessful, Ms. Reaves doesn’t believe her team will have the funding to complete the team’s road schedule. She is also seeking investors and sponsorships.
“If somebody pulls the plug on me, then I don’t have a choice,” she said. “But currently, I’m doing what I can, trying to keep them on the ice.”
The Warriors host the Danville Dashers Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2:00 p.m. at the Ice Garden. Their GoFundMe campaign can be found here.
Photo credit: Ryan Breidling @Breidling43
