Hockey team made famous in 'Slapshot' moves to South Carolina
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Juliette Slonka, age 7, gives Chiefs goaltender Bob Deraney a pat on the back as Deraney returns to the ice. -
Johnstown Chiefs game at the War Memorial on Feb. 14, the day the Chiefs confirmed they would be leaving after the season.
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JOHNSTOWN, Pa.-- From her seat in War Memorial Arena, Chris Richey was knitting a scarf for one of her grandchildren because the action in the hockey game was too nerve-racking.
But like the classic knitter Madame Defarge, who used yarn to measure out the life of a man in "A Tale Of Two Cities," her purling is symbolic of the end for an iconic hockey team. After the Johnstown Chiefs play their final home game Saturday, the franchise is skating off to a new home in South Carolina.
"I'm devastated. I'm going to have to find something new," said Mrs. Richey, a season ticket holder who rents an apartment to two Chiefs players. "Times are tough in Johnstown just like they are in a lot of places. This is just one more thing we've lost."
Call it a sad day for hockey.
The Chiefs, indelibly linked to the 1977 movie "Slap Shot," are heirs to a minor league hockey tradition that dates to 1941. But there is no happy ending to this real-life plot. The relocation to Greensville, S.C., was announced in mid-February and has been approved by the East Coast Hockey League.
This Cambria County city, 70 miles east of Pittsburgh, has endured much in its long history -- three epic floods, the crash of the local steel and coal industries, the recent death of congressional patron Jack Murtha. The heartbreak over hockey is relative, of course, but the franchise is part of Johnstown's identity. In some minds, losing this community asset would be like losing the Johnstown Incline.
At a recent game, Dave and Rose Harford, who have had season tickets for decades, spoke in tones suggesting the grief process will be required. "She's going through withdrawal," said Mr. Harford, wearing a Chiefs jersey.
His wife spoke with an air of resignation.
"I'll probably sit home and cry," said Mrs. Harford. "But who would I be angry at? People just don't come to the games. We're surprised it didn't happen sooner."
A combination of circumstances doomed the franchise. The team is in the league cellar with an abysmal record. The average attendance at the 3,745-seat arena is under 2,000 per game. In a region that has hemorrhaged jobs and population since the 1980s, the $14.50 cost of a top ticket is out of reach for many.
First Published March 28, 2010 12:00 am
