WJRT reports that "Michigan's only pro soccer team" is moving to the Dort Federal Event Center, sharing it with the Flint Firebirds.
I glad that the Waza is playing in professional arena. I hope the people come out and support the team. I heard from the news report that the team might go as Flint Waza Flo or just as Waza Flo.
Good move. Detroit and the near west suburbs are tapped with two very successful franchises with Detroit City FC downtown and Michigan Bucks having built their new indoor stadium in the Ignition/Waza territory. From Novi to Flint are a lot of untapped dollars. I was just reading yesterday about Flint's downtown revival under their very forward thinking mayor. Know the area well having grown up a little over an hour away.
Just wondering but could the Waza play where the Ignition did, I mean if the Dort Arena didn't work out?
USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, formerly known as Compuware Arena. Waza DID play there, but they struggled for the "soccer dollars" in the near west suburbs as the popular Michigan Bucks outdoor team built their own indoor stadium. Incidentally, Plymouth also lost their OHL hockey team to Flint's new arena. Now they host the USA Youth team that competes in the USHL. Flint is undergoing a bit of a renaissance under their mayor (a bright guy, as in Rhodes Scholar and Oxford University bright) and have a growing number of businesses and residents there and in surrounding towns to support sports franchises.
First of all, not exactly all-that "new." (Where is this "weeks before season begins" coming from?) Been known / speculated for months (since the season-ending "Arena Soccer World Cup" played matches there). Tryouts this Fri-Sat, BTW: http://www.detroitwaza.com/Iceland Flyer.jpg
Wow! They have fallen off since 2012 then! They were regularly near 2k that year. They were better in Saginaw. Detroit City FC must be cutting into that? I know that they've become a trendy club.
Looks on the webcast like a perfect sized MASL Arena. And good seats (most seats?) are still available!
And there is a kerfuffle on the hockey side of Flint. Looks like the coaching staff was fired last night (after a comeback win over the defending Memorial Cup champions), then the entire team walks out (including the son of the team owner!): http://www.freep.com/story/sports/nhl/red-wings/2015/11/09/flint-firebirds-quit/75443996/ Ah, minor league hockey. Loved it when we had minor league teams here in metro Detroit....
And the owner admitted today that he acted rashly and reinstated the coaches. This is the OHL, ladies and jellyspoons. We talkin' 'bout the OHL. Not the NHL, not the NHL, we talkin' 'bout the OHL.
Of course the OHL has been around since 1933 and unlike indoor soccer is not in danger of going out of business every season.
That is completely true. Point being, going off and firing your entire coaching staff over a loss in a junior hockey league is a bit much.
Flint actually won the game. Although there were unconfirmed reports that the dispute involved the amount of playing time of the owner's son, nothing has been actually confirmed as to what set the owner off.
In case you missed it, the team fired the entire coaching staff again. The League stepped in and put some competent hockey people for the coaching staff: http://www.sbnation.com/nhl/2016/2/...ds-fire-coaches-rolf-nilsen-ohl-junior-hockey http://www.detroitnews.com/story/sp...-hockey-league-suspends-flint-owner/80569552/
I know it’s off topic, and it’s only junior hockey, but that situation is just too damn funny! The owner fires the coaches twice in the same season, the entire team (minus the owner’s son) quits twice, and now the league has suspended the owner, and is stepping in to talk to the players and run the team. Some of the other details are even better. Great stuff!
Did anybody see the OTL piece a week or two back, where the Firebirds GM was interviewed about the Flint situation? At one point the interviewerror from ESPN asked if Dort had any other tenants. The GM replied, "Yeah, we have uhh other um concerts and turf sports and things." He was so obviously trying to avoid giving Waza Flo publicity. Jerk move after they had just announced accommodating the George Lopez benefit concert for Flint. And how sad you are so intimidated mentioning your competitor that barely pulls in over 1k? I hope he got canned.
From my understanding, the owner of the hockey team invited the waza to play in flint. More like, "come on man come play in this arena with me its going to be great!"
Say what you will about the OHL and junior hockey, but this isnt some minor league outfit. Getting an OHL team is no mean feat. You need a $10 million dollar asset base and at least $5 million in working capital to invest in the team. More than one guy has been turned away. In fact, a certain Raj Kalra/Kalhra from Vancouver was politely refused from a WHL (West Coast/Prarie equivilaiant of the OHL) team before the San Diego debacle in indoor soccer. The OHL is not in the habit (or mood) for this. The owner has been given a crystal clear message. It's up to him if the team returns next year. The exact message that was delivered to him by the OHL was FIFO (Fit In or F*** Off). They want him out of the day to day hockey operations and out of the newspaper. He can sell the team, have the OHL sell the team for him or suddenly become a real good owner. Between mothers worried about the reports of Flint's drinking water on CBC radio or father's worried about the stunted development of their sons hockey progress, attracting talent next year will be a struggle for the Firebirds. They might be the Thunder Bay Firehawks soon. The league has interest from Ft Wayne, Jamestown, Buffalo and Cleveland and Cornwall.