Originally posted on prohockeynews.com
After their season ended on April 6th, Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs fans wondered whether or not head coach Scott Muscutt would be back for another season. Less than a month later, Muscutt was re-signed. Now fans will wonder if their team will return to play after a 12-season run in the Central Hockey League.
At a press conference today, it was announced that owner John Madden plans to shut the team down if a buyer is not found by the end of this month. Madden was conspicuously absent, but his general manager, Ray Delia broke the news.
Madden is the second owner of the team, which he purchased in 2002. He has said that franchise has not been making money, estimating losses of at least $1 million over the past seven years. Rising costs and falling attendance have plagued the franchise and without any foreseeable improvement, Madden felt he had to make a move now.
"I respect John's decision," Delia said. "It's his team; it's his money; without having a partner, he owns this team 100 percent and the cross is his to bear."
With the league planning for the upcoming season, there is a limited timeframe available to get a deal done.
"The Central Hockey League requires a commitment this month to begin scheduling for the upcoming 2009-10 season,” Delia said. “I don’t believe Mr. Madden will be willing to make a commitment to 2009-10 unless he is engaged in a legitimate buy-sell conversation with a prospective owner."
Now, the Mudbugs faithful find themselves in an all too familiar situation for CHL fans. Last season the Corpus Christi Rayz and the Austin Ice Bats suspended operations for similar reasons. At the last minute, the Rayz were sold to a local businessman and were able to put a team on the ice this season. The Ice Bats have yet to return.
One of the few successful sports teams to ever grace the Bossier-Shreveport area, the Mudbugs found success early winning the President's Cup Championships three straight years (1999, 2000, 2001) in the Western Professional Hockey League. Since the merger of the WPHL and the Central Hockey League in 2001, the Mudbugs have found their way back to the Ray Miron President's Cup Finals twice (2004, 2006).
This year, the Mudbugs went 39-19-6, earning 84 points during the regular season. Their season ended after being swept by the Colorado Eagles in the Northern Conference Quarter Finals four games to none.
Head Coach Scott Muscutt reflected on the reality of the situation in an interview with the Shreveport Times, Roy Lang III.
“There is not an owner in the Central Hockey League who can’t wait to look at the bottom line tomorrow. It’s a tough row to hoe," Muscutt said. "Owners, just like players and just like coaches, do what they do because they love it – to provide something for their community to take pride in and get involved in. No one is getting rich. The owners in most cases are taking hits.”
Photo Credit: Robert Keith
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