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Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report

by Dan Krieger
May 24, 2010 - Premier Basketball League (PBL)


BASEBALL

Atlantic Baseball League: The ABL and the city of Sugar Land (TX), near Houston, have announced plans for a new ballpark to be built in the area for an ABL franchise that could start play in the 2012 season. Sugar Land would be the first team in a planned western division for the eastern-based ABL.

Continental Baseball League: The CBL's new Desert Valley Mountain Lions team is based in El Paso and will play some home games at the El Paso Community College in 2010. The Mountain Lions plan to eventually settle in Utah in 2011 and will play a neutral site series in Utah in late 2010. The league's Coastal Kingfish travel team practices at the El Paso Community College.

Frontier League: The Frontier League has started its 2010 season and will again be aligned into two six-team divisions. The Normal (IL) CornBelters expansion team was added to the West Division to replace the Rockford (IL) RiverHawks, which moved to the Northern League. The Windy City ThunderBolts were moved to the East Division and the Florence (KY) Freedom to the West Division. The 2009 team known as the Midwest Sliders of Ypsilanti is now the Oakland County (MI) Cruisers, but the team will be without a true home field in 2010 as it waits for financing to be worked out for a proposed ballpark.

South Atlantic League (SALLY): The city of Columbia (SC) is interested in having a Low Class-A SALLY team return to the city. The league's Capital City Bombers left Columbia for Greenville (SC) after the 2004 season. The SALLY is interested in the Columbia market, but it lacks a suitable ballpark and that is why the Bombers moved out. The High Class-A Carolina League could also be an option for Columbia, if a new ballpark is built.

Southwestern League: The proposed independent professional Southwestern League has announced it will delay forming the league due to immigration and violence issues in Mexico. The league reports that its current franchise owners will have a stake in a team called the Southwestern Travelers that has applied to join an existing pro league for 2011.

BASKETBALL

National Basketball Association Development League: The new NBA D-League franchise based in Frisco (TX) will be called the Texas Legends when it starts play in the 2010-11 season. This is the former Broomfield-based Colorado 14ers franchise that played three seasons (2006-09) in the league and sat out last season after announcing its move to Frisco. The league's Los Angeles D-Fenders franchise will sit out the 2010-11 season and plans to return at a different Southern California venue for the 2011-12 season. The D-Fenders have been part of the league for four seasons (2006-10).

Premier Basketball League: A proposed PBL expansion franchise called the SouthCoast United will be based in Fall River (MA) and plans to be part of the 2011 season. The PBL envisions some expansion opportunities in various Canadian markets, but is not going to rush in without the right ownership groups in place. In addition to the Manchester (NH) Millrats move to St. John (New Brunswick) for 2011, the league is considering the New Brunswick market of Moncton; the Ontario markets of Guelph, Hamilton, and London; and possibly Montreal, which was home to the Montreal Sasquatch team in the 2009 PBL.

International Basketball League: A proposed IBL team called the Ohio Hidden Gems played a game against the league's Holland Blast this past week. The Hidden Gems have yet to appear on the league's list of future teams.

American Basketball Association: The Hawaii Pegasus ABA team has moved to Cypress (TX) where the team is expected to play as the Cypress Pegasus in the Southwest Division for the 2010-11 season. The ABA has announced it will also add an expansion team called the Lafayette (LA) United to the Southwest Division for the 2010-11 season. The league has made several previous attempts in Louisiana with teams called the Hurricanes (Lake Charles), Cajun Pelicans (Baton Rouge), Blues (New Orleans), and Stallions (Shreveport-Bossier City). The ABA plans to expand its global operations and reports that teams from eight countries are expected to join the ABA in the next three years.

FOOTBALL

Indoor Football League: The IFL has announced that its Anchorage-based team called the Alaska Wild has folded. The team's remaining home games have been cancelled, but the league plans to have some version of the team play its one remaining road game in June. The league is trying to work with potential investors for an Anchorage team to return next season. The IFL's West Michigan ThunderHawks franchise, based in Grand Rapids, is having financial difficulties and the league may have to step in to make sure the team can finish the season. The league is trying to form a Southwest Division for its 2011 season and recently met with officials of the Central Valley Coyotes, which played six seasons (2004-09) as part of arenafootball2, along with potential owners from Las Vegas, Albuquerque, Tucson, Prescott Valley (AZ), and El Paso (TX).

Southern Indoor Football League: A team called the West Texas Rustlers will be a non-league opponent for the SIFL's Louisiana Swashbucklers next month. Although some reports state the Rustlers are part of the Regional Indoor Football League, the Rustlers' owner parted ways with the RIFL a few weeks ago and formed a new league called the Professional Indoor Football League that plans to start play in 2011. The West Texas Rustlers are not listed as a current member of the RIFL.

American Indoor Football Association: Due to troubles with the AIFA's Ogden (UT) Knights franchise, a semi-pro team called the Anchorage Vikings filled in last week as the opponent in Wasilla (AK) against the league's Arctic Predators.

HOCKEY

American Hockey League: The AHL has announced that its new affiliate of the National Hockey League's Edmonton Oilers will be called the Oklahoma City Barons when it starts the 2010-11 season. The AHL's Rochester Americans plan to search for a new NHL affiliate after the 2010-11 season.

Central Hockey League: The CHL announced that the Amarillo Gorillas will not be part of the 2010-11 season and a Tier II Junior-A North American Hockey League team plans to move to Amarillo. The team started as the Amarillo Rattlers in the Western Professional Hockey League in 1996 and joined the CHL when the two leagues merged in 2001. The team was renamed the Gorillas under new ownership in 2002. The league's Corpus Christi IceRays franchise is also reported to be leaving the CHL.

North American Hockey League: The Tier II Junior-A NAHL has accepted an expansion team in Amarillo for the 2010-11 season that will replace the city's departed professional Amarillo Gorillas of the Central Hockey League. The Amarillo team is reported to be the NAHL's Albert Lea Thunder team that the league has been trying to sell since taking it over during the 2009-10 season. A group in Corpus Christi (TX) reportedly has agreed to purchase and relocate the NAHL's Alpena (MI)IceDiggers team. The NAHL team is expected to replace the city's Corpus Christi IceRays franchise that plans to leave the CHL.

International Junior Hockey League: The Philadelphia Thunder, which has been part of three different junior hockey leagues in the past four seasons, has been renamed the Philadelphia Jackals as the team becomes part of the IJHL for the 2010-11 season. The league's South Jersey Raptors team plans to return in 2010-11 after sitting out last season.

Continental Hockey Association: The CHA Junior-B league will grow from 12 to 18 teams for the 2010-11 season with the addition of the Bay State Breakers, Junior Bruins, New England Jr. Huskies, South Shore Kings, Brewster Bulldogs, and Suffolk PAL. All of these organizations operate affiliated teams in higher level junior leagues.

Ligue Nord-Americaine de Hockey: The Quebec-based minor professional LNAH has announced it will return with seven teams in the 2010-11 season. A new team based in Sorel-Tracy will be added, but will take over the roster of the Pont-Rouge Lois Jeans franchise that was removed from the league this past February. A team called the Sorel-Tracy Mission last played in the LNAH's 2007-08 season.

SOCCER

United States Soccer Federation Division-2 Pro League: Funding from major investors for the AC St. Louis club in the USSF Pro League and the St. Louis Athletica club in Women's Professional Soccer is apparently in jeopardy and the future of both clubs could be at risk. The investors had originally planned to fund the teams through 2011, but have run into difficulties.

Premier Arena Soccer League: The men's division of the PASL-Premier league has started its 2010 summer season and currently has a six-team Pacific Division and a five-team Rocky Mountain Division. The women's division, which only plays in the summer season, currently consists of five Colorado-based teams that will start play early next month.

OTHER

Major League Lacrosse: The Chicago Machine played its first 2010 neutral site "home game" against the Toronto Nationals in Cary (NC), near Raleigh-Durham. The MLL has been looking at this market over the past couple of years for possible expansion. During the 2008 MLL season, the now-departed Philadelphia Barrage franchise was a travel team and played a game in Cary against the Rochester Rattlers.

Dan Krieger is the creator of the Leagueology™ almanac known as "Leagues, Teams & Nicknames", which tracks the changes in league alignments, franchise movements and team nicknames in today's sports world. The latest 2009-10 edition is available at http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/leagues-teams-nicknames-2009-10/6534940. Dan can be contacted at dankrieger@leaguesteamsnicknames.com.

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Premier Basketball League Stories from May 24, 2010


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