 | The Mississauga Steelheads of the Ontario Hockey League are proud to announce that they have reached a new four year lease agreement with the City of Mississauga that will keep the Steelheads at the Hershey Centre for four more exciting seasons. | | Mississauga - July 24, 2014 - The Mississauga Steelheads of the Ontario Hockey League are proud to announce that they have reached a new four year lease agreement with the City of Mississauga that will keep the Steelheads at the Hershey Centre for four more exciting seasons.
The Steelheads, owned by local businessman Elliott Kerr, are thrilled to continue the partnership with the City of Mississauga and the Hershey Centre. “The City has been a great partner since day one and together I know we will make OHL hockey work in Mississauga. I am proud to call Mississauga my home and our team is dedicated to not only winning a championship for this City but also contributing to the growth of our community. I believe we can succeed and I know we will!” stated Kerr. Kerr , who purchased the franchise in 2012, rebranded the team to its current Blue and White colours and changed the name to the fan selected “Steelheads”. Since then, the Steelheads have worked diligently to give the team a more Hometown Mississauga feel. To that point, this past April, the Steelheads dove into City’s talent pool and selected Mississauga native, Michael McLeod with their first pick (5th overall) at the 2014 OHL Priority Selection.
The City of Mississauga and Mayor Hazel McCallion have been tremendous supporters of OHL hockey since the first days of the Ice Dogs in 1998. The Ice Dogs, led by Don Cherry enjoyed nine seasons (1998-2007) in Mississauga before relocating to Niagara. Following the IceDogs, the Mississauga St.Michael’s Majors played at the Hershey Centre for 5 seasons (2007-2012), highlighted by a run to the Memorial Cup finals when the tournament was hosted at the Hershey Centre in 2011. Mississauga Mayor, Hazel McCallion loves the hometown feel of the Steelheads and believes Kerr and his group can thrive in Mississauga “Mississauga City Council is very pleased and proud that the Steelheads will continue to make the Hershey Centre in Mississauga their home for another four years,” said Mayor Hazel McCallion. “The great Canadian sport of hockey is a healthy activity and great entertainment for everyone. Having our very own team, the Steelheads, right here in Mississauga is important to our city. We need our residents, our community organizations and our corporate community to come out and support the team next season…let’s go Steelheads!”
As the Steelheads look towards the 2014-2015 season and beyond, the future is bright both on and off the ice. Fans have started to take notice of this exciting young team as the franchise enjoyed a 12% increase in attendance during the 2013-2014 season. Led by rookie sensation Sean Day and veteran goaltender Spencer Martin, the Steelheads will look to take their game to the next level this season as they strive to bring a championship home to Mississauga. Off the ice, the Steelheads and their ever popular mascot “Sauga” have continued to give back to the community through the support of minor hockey, schools and community events across the City. Sauga and his event team can be found at events across Mississauga all season long.
The Steelheads will kick off their 2014-2015 season on Friday, September 26th as they host their Eastern Conference rivals, the Oshawa Generals at 7:30 pm at the Hershey Centre.
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