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It may have seemed incongruous for a hockey team to take to the ice in the Travis County Expo Center, the same building that hosts rodeos, car shows and circuses, but for a while, the Ice Bats captured the city's attention, bringing in over a million customers in five years.
But attendance dropped in recent seasons to some 2,000 per game, and then even less after the team moved from the Expo Center to Chaparral Ice, a family-fun rink north of town, in February.
In May, the Bats announced they weren't able to find a home for the 2008-09 season and a few weeks later, the team shut down its operations.
The Ice Bats could still return next year, and pro hockey will be back in the area in 2010 when the Dallas Stars' minor league club takes up residence in Cedar Park. Until, then, fans can reminisce with the Times' article and their memories of Guaranteed Fight Night.
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I don't know a thing about hockey, but I do know the Ass Bites had some of the filthiest, skankiest, ugliest team dancers this side of Nastville.
What is wrong with the city of Austin? How did two of its northern suburbs get minor league teams? Why not put the hockey team in east Austin near one of the future light rail stops? At this rate the city deserves to be the one of America's largest without a pro sports team. It can't keep them, nor does it seem to want them.
If you examine the demograph that attends minor-league hockey, it is pretty obvious the Ice Bats couldn't retain an audience in competition with the two roller derby leagues operating in Austin.
Seth
at least we gots the Austin Aztex!
Damn, Jennifer Gale even got a mention in that NYT article..
We don't need pro sports.
We have the Longhorns and that's big time enough.
Although the location (Cedar Park) kind of sucks, having the Stars' minor league team in town will be great. The AHL isn't a goon league (OK, not entirely), and some of the Stars' top prospects will pass through town.
As far as pro sports in Austin goes, Tarvin's mostly right - the Horns are plenty, except when it comes to hockey.