The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Ice Breakers fold after two seasons
The Mentor Ice Breakers are folding after two years playing in the Federal Prospects Hockey League.
Team owner Dan Moon on Nov. 16 said it was not economically feasible to continue pouring money into the team in an uncertain time affected by the novel coronavirus pandemic. He said he and his business partner, Chris Brynarski, lost more than $500,000 operating the Ice Breakers over the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons.
“While it’s not a shock to us, it’s certainly a very sad day,” said Bill Furman, Manager of the Mentor Civic Arena, where the Ice Breakers played their home games. “I just wish everyone would have had the opportunity to see the cooperative nature between the city and this particular ownership group. They are as great a people as we ever had come through the city. Our working relationship was just beautiful.
“We tried to make this more than a hockey game. We wanted it to be a family night out. It was local, inexpensive and 10 minutes after the game you’re home. So the blueprint is established. If the opportunity ever comes again, we’ll be even more prepared to hit the ground running.”
Moon said he had been contemplating his decision for the last three months. He said the FPHL’s inability to commit to a firm starting date because of COVID-19 affected his decision.
“We kept looking at what the state and county was going to allow us to do,” Moon said in a phone interview. “They said we could seat only 122 people. We ( jokingly) said, ‘If everybody pays $100 a ticket, we could do something that way.’
“We petitioned the state about two weeks ago (to allow more fans). That was just when the (COVID) numbers started going up higher and higher. We sat down and said, ‘This is totally not going in the right direction.’ We asked, ‘Are we kidding ourselves?’ and decided we were and decided it was better to shut it down.”
Moon said he thought about going dormant for a year as Delaware and Motor City in the FPHL are, but concluded that was not practical for a variety of reasons.
“We just decided this is better for everybody involved,” Moon said. “I said, ‘ We’ve been leading with our hearts, guys. At some point we have to lead with our brains.’ And our brains and finances say this is not a good venture at this time.” Moon did not completely close the door on reviving the Ice Breakers sometime in the future. He echoed Furman’s remarks about the cooperation he shared with Mentor officials, particularly Kenn Kaminski, the city’s Director of Parks and Recreation, and Furman.
“They worked us exceptionally well,” Moon said. “Kenn and I became friends. We used to have breakfast and talk about how we could improve it. Bill has always been very receptive to whatever we tried to do.”
This is one of those situations where everybody feels bad about the outcome and no one is to blame.
“We want to say thank you to our loyal fans for supporting us and being there,” Moon said. “They bought the jerseys. They bought the merchandise. They came to the games. We’re extremely sorry to see it end this way. We wish we could do more. But there comes a time when you have to admit, ‘This is it. It’s time to close your door and take your tent down.’”
Moon said Director of Hockey Operations Nick Russo, Coach Sebastian Ragno and Director of Sales Tim Walker will be paid through the end of the year.
“I’m heartbroken for the city of Mentor and the players,” Russo said. “I’ve been involved in athletics for 35 years. I’ve been through the death of a program (hockey at Villanova). The Nick Russos will get off the ground and land somewhere else. I’ll be fine.
“What bothers me is the players and the office personnel, which I’m responsible for, and the city of Mentor. I couldn’t be in a better place. What hurts me most is not being here long term. COVID has killed us all, in one way or another.”
The Ice Breakers were 1735-1-5 in 2018-19 as an expansion team.
They were 15-30-0-3 last year in a season cut short by COVD-19.