Chicago Hounds
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| Chicago Hounds | |
| Founded | 2006 |
| Home ice | Sears Centre |
| Based in | Hoffman Estates, Illinois |
| Colors | black, blue, gold |
| League | United Hockey League |
The Chicago Hounds were a professional ice hockey team in the United Hockey League for the 2006-07 UHL season. They played their home games at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. The Hounds franchise was officially a relocation of the Richmond RiverDogs franchise, which played in Richmond, Virginia for three seasons from 2003-2006. Their only coach was former Fort Wayne Komets coach, Greg Puhalski, who came in as the having the most wins as a head coach in UHL history.
The Hounds got off to an inauspicious start, as their first home game was canceled due to bad ice at the brand new Sears Centre. The game was supposed to start at 7:30pm Central Time, but the decision to cancel was not announced until 9pm. Several fans were alleged to have thrown rubber pucks for the Chuck-A-Puck promotion in the direction of UHL commissioner Richard Brosal, who was the one that made the official announcement to the fans.
On June 6, 2007, Hounds owner Craig Drecktrah ceased the team's operations, saying his inability to negotiate a reasonable lease with the Sears Centre brought him to this decision. Drecktrah said the Sears Centre wanted him to take mostly weekdays, leaving the more desirable weekend dates for the other tenants. He also said the building management wanted to triple the cost of his lease. Technically, the franchise is on hiatus while Drecktrah looks for a new market; that may be hard, as the ECHL and the USHL have already tied up most of the attractive markets within the new IHL footprint. At the time of the announcement, Chicago joined four other UHL teams, the Elmira Jackals, Port Huron Flags, Quad City Mallards, and Rockford IceHogs to leave the league after the 2006-07 season.
The team attempted to resume play in the IHL for the 2008-09 season, however Drecktrah was unable to secure a venue in the Chicago area. As a result, the Hounds future remains uncertain.
[edit] External links
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| Soccer | MLS: Chicago Fire, PDL: Chicago Fire Premier, MISL: Chicago Storm |
| Baseball | MLB: Chicago Cubs • Chicago White Sox, FL: Windy City ThunderBolts, MWL: Kane County Cougars, NL: Gary SouthShore RailCats • Joliet JackHammers • Schaumburg Flyers |
| Softball | NPF: Chicago Bandits |
| Basketball | NBA: Chicago Bulls , WNBA: Chicago Sky, PBL: Chicago Throwbacks, IBL: Elgin Racers • Gary Steelheads • Windy City Soldiers |
| Football | NFL: Chicago Bears, AFL: Chicago Rush, CIFL: Chicago Slaughter, IWFL: Chicago Force |
| Hockey | NHL: Chicago Blackhawks, AHL: Chicago Wolves, USHL: Chicago Steel, MAHL: South Shore Shooters |
| Rugby | RSL: Chicago Lions RFC • Chicago Griffins RFC |
| Lacrosse | MLL: Chicago Machine, NLL: Chicago Shamrox |
| College athletics (NCAA Division I) |
Chicago State University • DePaul University • Loyola University Chicago • Northern Illinois University • Northwestern University • University of Illinois at Chicago • Valparaiso University |
