| Eastern Professional Hockey League | |
| Pixels: | 300px |
| Sport: | Ice hockey |
| Founded: | 2008 |
| Folded: | 2009 |
| Teams: | 4 |
| Champion: | Jersey Rockhoppers |
| Website: | Official Site |
| Commissioner: | Jim Riggs |
The Eastern Professional Hockey League (EPHL) was a low-level professional ice hockey league. The league was developed by Curtis Russell, Tim Kolpien, Igor Mrotchek, and Jim Riggs, the former commissioner of the Mid-Atlantic Hockey League in 2007.
Jim Riggs was hired to become the commissioner of the EPHL after being the commissioner of three leagues that folded.
In October 2008, weeks before the first games were scheduled, two franchises (the Rome, New York-based Copper City Chiefs and the Exeter, New Hampshire-based New Hampshire Freeze) were replaced by the Hudson Valley Bears, based in Poughkeepsie and Newburgh, New York.
The four-team league played the 2008–09 season with the Brooklyn Aces winning the regular season title. The Aces lost a three-game championship series to the Jersey Rockhoppers, two games to one. Average league attendance was 821.[1]
The Hyannis Storm were announced as an expansion team to begin play in the 2009–10 season, however, Dan Adams, the chief investor of the Storm, said he would not be moving forward with bringing the team to the Hyannis Youth and Community Center that year.[2]
On April 10, 2009, Curtis Russell became President of the EPHL after Tim Kolpien resigned.[3]
The Eastern Professional Hockey League did not return for a second season. Mad Hatters principal owner and former EPHL president Tim Kolpien all but acknowledged the minor ice hockey league no longer exists. "Frustrating to say, but no consensus or agreement has been reached," Kolpien said by e-mail, "But given where we are on the calendar, I don't see any way the Mad Hatters or EPHL can play in 2009–10.[4]
| GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | GF | GA | Pts | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | 35 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 278 | 157 | 76 | ||
| 50 | 32 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 243 | 198 | 66 | ||
| 50 | 30 | 18 | 0 | 2 | 222 | 171 | 62 | ||
| 50 | 3 | 45 | 1 | 1 | 145 | 362 | 8 |
The league had four teams located in the Northeast portion of the United States.
| Team | City | Arena (capacity) | Avg. attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brooklyn Aces | Brooklyn, New York | Aviator Arena (2,500) | 1,098 | |
| Danbury Mad Hatters | Danbury, Connecticut | Danbury Ice Arena (2,344) | 984 | |
| Hudson Valley Bears | Poughkeepsie, New York | Mid-Hudson Civic Center (650) Ice Time Sports Complex (400) | 235 | |
| Jersey Rockhoppers | West Orange, New Jersey | Richard J. Codey Arena (2,500) | 935 |
2008–09 — Jersey Rockhoppers: On March 28, 2009, the Jersey Rockhoppers won the first EPHL Championship with a 4–1 victory over the Brooklyn Aces at the Aviator Arena in Brooklyn, New York. Jersey prevailed in Game 3 of the Finals, winning two straight after dropping the series opener.[5]