Corpus Christi Caller Times Caller.com - Guidelines established for new CHL

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Saturday, June 9, 2001
Guidelines established for new CHL
Teams to be finalized this week; IceRays to retain All-Star Game
By Javier Becerra
Caller-Times
The new Central Hockey League is still without teams, but officials have approved several operational details - including the new league's salary cap, divisional breakdown and use of the red line - during owners meetings held this week in Arizona.
   Formed last month after the anticipated merger between the Western Professional Hockey League and the CHL, the new league has set a June 15 deadline to determine which of the 23 combined teams will remain.
   Several existing franchises in both the WPHL and CHL are still in question as to whether they will meet financial criteria set by the new league, which WPHL president Brad Treliving said will eliminate at-risk teams.
   Last year, the WPHL lost two franchises in Tuscon and Central Texas. The CHL also lost teams in Texarkana and Topeka.
   "The criteria that we've set is basically a risk formula," Treliving said during a conference call Friday afternoon. "The teams need to be viable from a revenue standpoint. We don't want an operation that is not going to be able to support itself.
   "The ownership groups have been very supportive of the criteria established," he said. "We have removed the risk for both the franchise and the league."
   The league has less than a week to finalize which teams will be in it. With the criteria in place, however, the Corpus Christi IceRays - voted the WPHL's franchise of the year in 2000 - should be fine, said general manager and former coach Taylor Hall.
   "Things are happening very quickly, but I think this is going to be a great thing for minor league hockey," Hall said. "There are some cities right now that might be too weak to be included. There are enough teams that are strong enough financially."
   The new CHL will be divided into Eastern and Western conferences, each consisting of two divisions. Teams will play a 64-game regular season, split evenly between home and away games. The regular season will begin the third week of October and conclude the third week of March.
   The scheduled WPHL all-star game for next season, which had been awarded to Corpus Christi, still will take place at the Memorial Coliseum as the CHL all-star game.
   Treliving said the league will base the new schedule on close geographical rivalries, eliminating the need for extended travel between Eastern and Western conference teams.
   In the playoffs, teams will play a best-of-5 format until the finals, where they will play a best-of-7 series.
   The league will enforce a hard salary cap of $8,500, as well as implement the use of the red line, which prohibits passes across two lines.
   The WPHL had used a weekly salary cap of $10,000.

Additional Changes

In the playoffs, teams will play a best-of-5 format until the finals, where they will play a best-of-7 series
The new league will implement the red line, which prohibits passing across two lines
Teams must carry three rookies and will be allowed five veteran players (four skaters, one goalie)
In the event of a tie, teams will play 4 on 4 in a five-minute penalty, followed by shootout periods. Source: CHL

   Teams will be allowed five veteran players (four skaters, one goaltender) with 211 or more games of experience. Each team must also carry three rookies who have played less than 25 games at the time they're signed.
   Also announced Friday was the league's overtime format. In the event of a tie after regulation, teams will play 4 on 4 in a five-minute period. Should the teams remain tied after the extra period, they will continue with a three-man shootout, followed by sudden death.


Contact Javier Becerra at 886-3734 or becerraj@caller.com

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