richmondhockey
06-06-2006, 10:22 AM
NO RUSH: The new Richmond Renegades have a coach (John Brophy) and a player-assistant coach (Brian Goudie), and owner Allan Harvie says he's heard from 100 players, and/or their agents, "who want to play here."
With that kind of demand, it's unlikely the Southern Professional Hockey League expansion franchise will be signing many - if any - to regular-season contracts before training camp. Teams can only have three veterans, which in the SPHL means players with more than 224 games of pro experience (not counting playoffs). Goudie will be one.
Harvie previously said he would like to add Dan Vandermeer, the United Hockey League's defenseman of the year for the defunct Richmond RiverDogs. But he is coming off a career season (75 assists, 90 points) and should command the kind of money that presumably would be too steep for the SPHL's salary cap of $5,600 a week.
Is there a chance the 28-year-old Vandermeer will play for the Renegades? The Caroline, Alberta, native now calls Richmond home. He's married with a 21-month-old son. You've got to believe wife Kristi prefers that he plays here.
"There's a chance," Vandermeer said yesterday afternoon, "but I don't know if [Harvie] wants me or not. We talked once. He hasn't made me an offer."
He said he's received several offers from East Coast Hockey League teams but none from the UHL. Six of his seven pro seasons were spent in the ECHL, including four with the old Renegades, who went out of business following the 2002-03 campaign.
Maybe AHL Norfolk would be interested enough in Vandermeer, a tireless puck-carrying defenseman, to work out a two-way arrangement that would benefit both teams. A longtime coach of the ECHL Hampton Roads Admirals, Brophy still has connections there.
MORE 'GADES: The franchise has been in business for about five weeks, and Harvie said season-ticket sales are in the neighborhood of 500. He's looking for about 1,000 in all.
On the SPHL Web site, the Renegades have received 81.81 percent of more than 4,500 votes in response to the question: "Who will win the SPHL this season?" Defending champion Knoxville had 8.87 percent as of yesterday.
With that kind of demand, it's unlikely the Southern Professional Hockey League expansion franchise will be signing many - if any - to regular-season contracts before training camp. Teams can only have three veterans, which in the SPHL means players with more than 224 games of pro experience (not counting playoffs). Goudie will be one.
Harvie previously said he would like to add Dan Vandermeer, the United Hockey League's defenseman of the year for the defunct Richmond RiverDogs. But he is coming off a career season (75 assists, 90 points) and should command the kind of money that presumably would be too steep for the SPHL's salary cap of $5,600 a week.
Is there a chance the 28-year-old Vandermeer will play for the Renegades? The Caroline, Alberta, native now calls Richmond home. He's married with a 21-month-old son. You've got to believe wife Kristi prefers that he plays here.
"There's a chance," Vandermeer said yesterday afternoon, "but I don't know if [Harvie] wants me or not. We talked once. He hasn't made me an offer."
He said he's received several offers from East Coast Hockey League teams but none from the UHL. Six of his seven pro seasons were spent in the ECHL, including four with the old Renegades, who went out of business following the 2002-03 campaign.
Maybe AHL Norfolk would be interested enough in Vandermeer, a tireless puck-carrying defenseman, to work out a two-way arrangement that would benefit both teams. A longtime coach of the ECHL Hampton Roads Admirals, Brophy still has connections there.
MORE 'GADES: The franchise has been in business for about five weeks, and Harvie said season-ticket sales are in the neighborhood of 500. He's looking for about 1,000 in all.
On the SPHL Web site, the Renegades have received 81.81 percent of more than 4,500 votes in response to the question: "Who will win the SPHL this season?" Defending champion Knoxville had 8.87 percent as of yesterday.