RoadRunners, Everblades To Meet In Pre-Season

June 18, 2008 - ECHL (ECHL)
Phoenix RoadRunners News Release


PHOENIX, Ariz. - The Phoenix RoadRunners of the ECHL, a proud affiliate of the San Jose Sharks and the Worcester Sharks, announced today that the club will host a portion of their 2008-09 training camp in Estero, Fla., and will play two pre-season games against the Florida Everblades Oct. 10 and 11 at Germain Arena.

The two-game pre-season series will be the first ever meeting between the RoadRunners and Everblades in ECHL play, and will mark the return of RoadRunners Head Coach Brad Church to Florida where, as a player, he helped the Everblades capture the 2005 American Conference Championship and advance to their second consecutive Kelly Cup Finals before falling in six games to the Trenton Titans.

"I'm very excited about the opportunity to return to Florida for what will hopefully be a great experience for both myself and our hockey club," said Church. "The Everblades organization along with (President and General Manager) Craig Brush provided me with some of my fondest memories as a player, and they continue to set the standard for excellence in the ECHL year after year, which is something that we're obviously looking to achieve."

The RoadRunners will leave for Florida on Oct. 7 and conduct practice sessions on Oct. 8 and 9 in preparation for the weekend series.

The Everblades finished the 2007-08 regular season with a record of 39-25-8 and advanced to the Kelly Cup Playoffs for the 10th consecutive year where they were eliminated in three games by the Columbia Inferno in the South Division Quarterfinals.

Florida recently named former Texas Wildcatters and Long Beach Ice Dogs head coach Malcolm Cameron as their third head coach in club history.

"We're thrilled to be playing the RoadRunners in the pre-season this year," said Brush. Aside from the games being good, strong warm-ups to the regular season, it's great to give our fans a chance to see a team they've never had an opportunity to see before. Whenever you have two teams playing for the first time in their histories it's exciting, and it should be fun to see these two clubs face-off."

The RoadRunners return to the ice at US Airways Center in October for their fourth season of ECHL hockey. Keep up with everything that's happening during the off-season from player signings and community appearances by logging on to www.phxroadrunners.com. Information on season tickets, half-season packages, and flex plans for the 2008-09 season of Phoenix RoadRunners Hockey are available by calling (602) 462-GOAL.



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