Blazers Skate Out of Oklahoma City

NEWS 9 Sports Staff

OKLAHOMA CITY - Oklahoma City will be without professional hockey this season.

After 17 seasons, the Oklahoma City Blazers have suspended operations. The Blazers have not renewed their lease with the Ford Center, informing the Central Hockey League of their decision Wednesday.

"It was purely an economic decision. The franchise has operated on a loss for the last six or seven seasons. We tried to make cutbacks the last few years, but it just didn't work," Blazers Assistant General Manager Josh Evans said.

The Blazers won the 1996 and 2001 CHL titles, but struggled with a decrease in ticket sales.

Oklahoma City, however, may not be without hockey for long. The city is set to begin negotiations to bring an American Hockey League franchise to town for the 2010-2011 season.

The city council is scheduled to vote Tuesday to approve a "Letter of Intent" between the city and AHL Hockey Club, LLC.

The Edmonton Oilers of the NHL own a dormant AHL franchise.

Discussions have taken place about the possibility of relocating that team to Oklahoma City.

For many faithful fans, they've known for some time that something was up. In fact, the coach voiced serious concerns about the future of the team not long ago to NEWS 9. It was back in December when we met Coach Doug Sauter at Express Ranch and he didn't hide his fears or feelings. He knew back then his team was already skating on thin ice.

"You know, the entertainment dollars are shrinking," said Coach Sauter who added his team took a double whammy last year when the economy started to shrink and the Thunder stormed into town. He said the team was left fighting for the leftovers of Oklahoma sports fans.

"We're kind of the forgotten team. There's a lot of talk and hype for the Thunder and football and we've just been here for a long time," Coach Sauter said in a December 2008 interview.

The owners of the Blazers confirm the team was suffering financially, long before the NBA bounced into the Sooner State.

In the meantime, fans across the metro have been reacting with mixed emotions.

"Really? They're leaving? Wow," Dylan Duke said. The 17-year-old Oklahoma City Blazers fan said he'll miss the interaction with the audience during the games on ice.

Many others said they'll miss Oklahoma City's hockey team, but even life-long fans said it's the price you sometimes have to pay for progress.

"If you got to have one or the other, I'm going to say keep the NBA," said Oklahoma City resident and Blazers fan Bryan Nix.