I’ve been a hockey fan since I was a kid, well before the Carolina Hurricanes arrived on the scene. I followed the Wayne Gretzky-led LA Kings and caught every game on ESPN’s National Hockey Night. With family in Colorado Springs (and having spent significant time there) I adopted the Colorado Avalanche after the franchise moved from Quebec in 1995. I always dreamed of having an NHL team in my home state, but I resigned myself to going to see the Raleigh IceCaps whenever possible (hey, hockey is hockey).
I followed with great interest the expansion bid led by Felix Sabates, Jr.