SHREWSBURY, N.J./BLOOMINGTON — Professional hockey will once again be returning to the Bloomington area beginning with the 2024-25 season, according to a press release Tuesday.
The ECHL Board of Governors approved the application for an expansion team in Bloomington and admittance into the league. The City of Bloomington will be in charge of confirming the negotiated lease of Grossinger Motors Arena, which is set for completion on January 22.
The expansion team will be under the ownership of Carmel, Ind.-based Hallett Sports and Entertainment. Hallett Sports owns and operates the Indy Fuel of the ECHL and the newly expanded Fishers Freight football team of the Indoor Football League.
“The ECHL is thrilled to welcome Bloomington into the league and rejuvenate professional hockey in the market as the league’s 30th member,” said ECHL Commissioner Ryan Crelin. “Bloomington is a natural geographical rival for our teams in the Central Division. Hallett Sports has shown a commitment to the communities they serve in growing the game and fan experience, which makes puck drop in 2024-25 very exciting for next season.”
Fuel owner and chairman Jim Hallett shared some excitement about this newest venture in the press release.
“I am extremely excited to bring professional hockey to Bloomington and watch the sport as well as the community grow through this expansion,” said Hallett. “I am honored to be part of this group helping expand the growth of ECHL hockey throughout North America and bring a positive sporting experience to the city of Bloomington.”
This would not be the first time that professional hockey has come to the area, as they’ve hosted several hockey teams in various leagues over the years. The city has also previously been home to a professional football team and a minor-league baseball team. Unfortunately, most of these teams did not last very long, most of them folding after a few years.
Neither Hallett nor his sons Chad and Sean Hallett immediately returned a response about Bloomington’s prior checkered past with professional sports in the city or how things will be different under their tutelage.
The Grossinger Motors Arena, the team’s home venue, has been open since 2006 and is currently owned by the City of Bloomington.
Additional information, including where and how to sign up for tickets for the 2024-25 season, will come in a press release at the arena on Wednesday, Jan. 24.
Requests for additional comment from Hallett Sports were not returned prior to publication.
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Jake Leonard, a broadcast media and journalism veteran, is the editor-in-chief of Heartland Newsfeed. Leonard is also GM and program director of Heartland Newsfeed Radio Network, wrestling editor and contributing writer for Ambush Sports, a contributing writer for My Sports Vote and Midwest Sports Network, and a former contributor to Bleacher Report and Overtime Heroics. He resides at home in Nokomis, Ill. with his dog Buster.
