Chicago Express
| Chicago Express | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| City | Hoffman Estates, Illinois |
| League | ECHL |
| Conference | Eastern |
| Division | North |
| Operated | 2011–2012 |
| Home arena | Sears Centre |
| Colors | Navy, Gray, Sky Blue |
| Owner(s) | Craig Drecktrah |
| Head coach | Steve Martinson |
| Affiliates | Springfield Falcons (AHL) |
| Franchise history | |
| 2011–2012 | Chicago Express |
The Chicago Express was a professional ice hockey team located in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, serving the Chicago market. The Express was a member of the North Division of the ECHL's Eastern Conference. The team played its home games at the Sears Centre.
The Express were owned by Craig Drecktrah, who formerly owned the United Hockey League's Chicago Hounds and Rockford IceHogs.
It was announced on July 13, 2011 that the Express would be affiliated with the NHL's Columbus Blue Jackets and the AHL's Springfield Falcons.
On April 6, 2012, it was announced that the Chicago Express would cease operations due to poor attendance numbers and lack of support. The Express finished last in the league for average attendance with 2,508. On some nights, the Express, which also had AHL and NHL competition in the same market, was struggling to get 1,000 spectators at its games.
The team formed out of talks between owner Craig Drecktrah and officials at the Sears Centre. On the heels of the Chicago Hounds folding in 2009 after only playing one season (2006–07) at the Sears Centre, Drecktrah worked with arena and Hoffman Estates village officials to bring in an ECHL franchise. The league approved the franchise's application at the ECHL's annual Board of Governors Meeting in June 2010.
To name the new franchise, the team held a special name the team contest that eventually received over a thousand unique name suggestions. On July 22, the four finalists for the team name were unveiled. They were The Chicago Blizzard, Hoffman Estates Hammers, Chicago Knights and Chicago Express. Voting for the team's name closed on August 4, with Express announced as the winner on September 21. The final four portion of the contest received a total of 20,000 votes.
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