Adirondack Thunder Issue Statement on Opt out of 2020-21 Season
November 18, 2020 - ECHL (ECHL)
Adirondack Thunder News Release
GLENS FALLS, NY - The Adirondack Thunder, proud ECHL affiliate of the New Jersey Devils, announced today that they will be opting out of the 2020-21 season. The Thunder join the rest of the North Division (Brampton, Maine, Newfoundland, Reading, Worcester) in the decision to not play in January. Both Team President Jeff Mead and Head Coach Alex Loh will address fans and answer questions on Facebook Live tomorrow, (Thursday, November 19) at noon eastern.
The Adirondack Hockey Coalition LLC and Adirondack Civic Center Coalition has announced today that the Adirondack Thunder will not be able to participate in the 2020-21 ECHL season due to the on-going COVID-19 pandemic and the State's Guidelines on permitting no fans inside the arena.
We were hopeful that government restrictions would ease up as we approached the time we needed to declare our formal intentions for the season. Unfortunately, we are unable to have any fans in attendance for the foreseeable future and cannot sustain a season without fans.
The North Division of the ECHL is comprised of six (6) teams including Adirondack, Worcester, Maine, Reading, Brampton, and Newfoundland. All six (6) of these teams will not be able to play in the 2020-21 season.
We knew this season would be a challenge regardless of any state restrictions on fans in the arena. We had worked on numerous contingency plans to socially distance fans and to ensure a clean, safe environment, and to fully abide by all state-imposed guidelines. We were ready to play at a 50% capacity, knowing it would be difficult to operate at that capacity.
We know the disappointment our fans, coaches, players, staff, and community share with this announcement. Our focus going forward will be to start the planning for the 2021-22 season. All season ticket holders' payments will automatically be shifted to the 2021-22 season. For those fans that wish to discuss their plans, please reach out to us at 518-480-3355 x319. Season Ticket pricing for the 2021-22 season will remain flat and go on sale December 1, 2020.
Despite not being able to participate in the 2020-21 season, we will still encounter significant expenses throughout the winter. If you wish to donate your ticket monies to our Keep Hockey Here campaign, please reach out to Jeff Mead at jmead@echlthunder.com.
We are thankful to our community as well as local and state officials that have supported the Cool Insuring Arena and Adirondack Thunder since 2015. We know without this incredible support, we would not be able to operate the arena and team.
We have a lot of work to complete before we drop the puck in October for the 2021-22 season. We will have further announcements in the near future for the best fans in the ECHL.
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