Winnecke to Update Future of Hockey in Evansville

The Ford Center is the home of the Evansville Thunderbolts.

Evansville Mayor Lloyd Winnecke says he will address the future of ice hockey in in the city Monday. Last month, Winnecke said negotiations with the Evansville IceMen ECHL team had reached an impasse.

Multiple reports have suggested that the IceMen will move to Owensboro, Kentucky.

The relationship between the city and the team began in 2010. The IceMen were the first professional tenant of the Ford Center, and played the first sporting event at the arena.

In January, Winnecke released a statement saying the city was "more than willing to continue negotiating" with the IceMen, and stressed that "it is our goal to ensure that professional hockey is played next season in the Ford Center." The team issued a response on its Facebook page, saying its rent is one of the highest in the ECHL, and adding that the team could not afford to pay more.