Ghost Pirates' Savannah debut marks 'a new era of sports in our city'

Adam Van Brimmer, Savannah Morning News

November 3, 2022 at 7:58 AM·3 min read

For Savannah, pro hockey is a 20-year itch you need a long, curved hockey stick to scratch.

The Savannah Ghost Pirates play their home opener at 7 p.m. Saturday at Enmarket Arena. A minor league affiliate of the National Hockey League's Vegas Golden Knights, the Ghost Pirates are the first professional hockey franchise to call Savannah home.

But they aren't the first to flirt with the Hostess City.

The city has been courting a team since the early-2000s, when the success of a college club tournament, today known as the Savannah Hockey Classic, signaled area residents' interest in the sport. Another minor league, the Atlantic Coast Hockey League (ACHL), explored adding a Savannah team in 2003, even staging a series of regular season games at the Savannah Civic Center.

Negotiations between the ACHL and the City of Savannah failed, and the saga of building a new arena soon followed. That facility opened earlier this year with one committed tenant: A hockey team announced in January 2021 that came to be known as the Ghost Pirates.

The Savannah Ghost Pirates, a minor league hockey team, play their first-ever home game at 7 p.m. Saturday before a sellout crowd at Enmarket Arena. In the days leading up to the debut, the Savannah Morning News is publishing a series of stories previewing the inaugural season.
Tuesday
► Savannah's minor league sports history
► Q&A with Ghost Pirates' Bob Ohrablo
Wednesday:
► A pro hockey team finally arrives in Savannah
► What you need to know about the Ghost Pirates' league, the ECHL
Thursday
► Ghost Pirates' gameday experience: 5 things to watch for
► Hockey 101: What you need to know about the game

Savannah Mayor Van Johnson, who's served on the council in some capacity throughout the city's long history with hockey, called the Ghost Pirates' debut “the start of a new era of sports in our city,

“The home opener will put an exclamation point on the construction of a brand new arena to serve as a home base,” Johnson said.

Savannah's Darion Hanson (34) high fives a young fan during the season opener against the Greenville Swamp Rabbits that resulted in a 5-4 win for the Ghost Pirates at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, SC, on Saturday, Oct. 22.

Fan anticipation has been steadily building since the franchise's launch nearly two years ago. Saturday's opener is a sellout, and the Ghost Pirates have sold approximately 3,500 season tickets in the 7,000-seat Enmarket Arena. Dozens of fans made the trip to Greenville, South Carolina for the team's first-ever game on Oct. 22.

“We’ve been talking about this team for almost two years and talking about hockey in Savannah forever," said Chris Baisden, a Pooler resident who attended the season opener in Greenville. "Now it’s real.”

Debut: Ghost Pirates fans on hand as team makes Savannah hockey history

Savannah Enmarket Arena timeline: The long path to replacing the Civic Center

The coolest place in town? Ice installed at Enmarket Arena ahead of Savannah Ghost Pirates' season

The Savannah Ghost Pirates play the first home game in franchise history on Nov. 5.

Savannah plays its first five games on the road. The Ghost Pirates are 4-0 headed into a Friday night game, also in Greenville. The two teams travel across the state afterwards to play the inaugural game in Savannah on Saturday.

Founded: 2021
Venue: Enmarket Arena (Capacity: 7,000)
Ownership: Andy Kaufmann
Coach: Rick Bennett (first season)
Affiliation: Vegas Golden Knights (NHL), Henderson Silver Knights (AHL)
League: ECHL (28 teams)
2022-2023 games: 72 games (36 home, 36 away)
Opener: Oct. 22 at Greenville (S.C.) Swamp Rabbits
Home opener: Nov. 5 vs. Greenville (S.C.) Swamp Rabbits

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Savannah Ghost Pirates play first home game at Enmarket Arena Saturday

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