Roller Hockey International (1993)
Tombstone
Born: 1993 – RHI founding franchise
Moved: December 1993 (Las Vegas Flash)
First Game:
Last Game:
Murphy Cup Championships: None
Arenas
1993: South Towne Center
1993: Delta Center
Opened: 1991
Branding
Team Colors: Gold & Black
Ownership
Owners: Dan Kotler & Cal Coleman
Editor's Pick
Wheelers, Dealers, Pucks & Bucks
A Rocking History of Roller Hockey International
Who won the first professional sports championship for the city of Anaheim? Which Roller Hockey International team owner posed for Playboy? Which RHI team’s logo did Sports Illustrated describe as looking like “a malevolent vacuum-cleaner attachment?” Which coach won two championships for two different teams in RHI’s first two seasons? Why were fans nearly ejected from the Oakland Skates’ arena for celebrating a hat trick?
Author Richard Graham takes you behind the scenes to show how Dennis Murphy created Roller Hockey International, and why Murphy might be the most unlikely, least known and most influential visionary in North American professional sports history.
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Background
The Utah Rollerbees were one of twelve founding franchises in Roller Hockey International during the summer of 1993.
The Rollerbees roster was a mix of minor league ice hockey players on their summer vacations and amateur street hockey players more accustomed to the nuances of in-line skating. Many of the ice hockey players on the Rollerbees were current or former players on the Salt Lake Golden Eagles of the International Hockey League, including goaltender Paul Skidmore, leading scorer Rich Chernomaz and Head Coach Brent Meeke.
Unique among RHI’s twelve clubs in 1993, the Rollerbees initially played their games in an outdoor setting. The club played on a 4,700-seat court known as “The Hive” erected in the parking lot of the South Towne Center shopping mall in Sandy, Utah. But at the end of July, the team ended the outdoor experiment and moved their final three home games into the Delta Center, home of the NBA’s Utah Jazz.
Rollerbees co-owner Dan Kotler was the owner of Salt Lake City-based Sport Court, Inc. Founded in the 1970’s, Sport Court built an international business installing plastic backyard recreational sports surfaces. By the early 1990’s, Sport Court had become to surface of choice for the booming sport of roller hockey.
Struggles & Move To Las Vegas
The Rollerbees were outmatched on the court and unloved at the box office. The team finished with a 2-11-1 record in 1993, tied for the worst mark in RHI. Average attendance was fewer than 2,000 fans per game.
In December 1993, owner Dan Kotler announced he had lost just over $200,000 on the 1993 season and would move the club to Las Vegas. The former Rollebees franchise was known as the Las Vegas Flash in 1994 but went out of business after one season in Nevada. RHI closed its doors in 1999.
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