The Border City Bandits were a professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

team from

Texarkana, Texas Texarkana is a city in Bowie County, Texas, United States, in the Ark-La-Tex region. Located approximately from Dallas, Texarkana is a twin city with neighboring Texarkana, Arkansas. The Texas city's population was 36,193 at the 2020 census. ...

. They were a member of the

Central Hockey League The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...

during the 2000-01 season and played at the

Four States Arena The Four States Arena is a 5,600-seat multi-purpose arena in Texarkana, Arkansas. Built in 1985, the venue is located at the Four States Fairgrounds which is within the limits of Bobby Ferguson Park. The arena has been home to the Central Hockey Lea ...

History

The Central Hockey League announced that Canadian developer John Barath had been awarded an expansion franchise in Texarkana for the 2000-01 season. The expansion team’s arrival was met with skepticism when the ''

Texarkana Gazette The ''Texarkana Gazette'' is a daily newspaper founded in 1875 and currently owned by WEHCO Media, Inc. It serves a nine-county area surrounding Texarkana. History The newspaper was acquired through the consolidation of several newspapers in ...

'' reported that Barath had previously abandoned the

Tucson Gila Monsters The Tucson Gila Monsters were a short-lived American professional minor league ice hockey team based in Tucson, Arizona. The team played throughout the 1997–98 season, but folded after 21 games during the 1998–99 season. The Gila Monsters, ...

, a team he earlier had owned in the

West Coast Hockey League The West Coast Hockey League was a professional minor ice hockey league active in the western United States from 1995 to 2003. The number of teams ranged from six to nine. The teams were located in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nev ...

. Operating from the CHL’s smallest market, the team was already in trouble by November of its inaugural season, both on and off the ice. One problem was that the Four States Arena was a converted warehouse that would leak onto the ice with a small amount of rain. Crowds had dropped from nearly 4,000 to under 2,200; the team had already seen two head coaches and was on its third general manager; and soon the Bandits were no longer paying their bills. On February 20, 2001, with $80,000 in dues payments owed to the league, the CHL terminated the franchise. The team's record in its only season was 11 wins, 37 losses and 4 ties. The one positive note is during a game versus the

San Antonio Iguanas The San Antonio Iguanas were a minor league professional ice hockey team based in San Antonio, Texas. The first expansion team in the Central Hockey League, they were active for seven seasons from 1994–1997 and 1998–2002. Their home arena wa ...

, the Bandits goaltender Jean-Ian Filiatrault stopped an amazing 60 of 61 shots in one game, which still stands as a single-game record in the CHL.

References

Defunct ice hockey teams in Texas Texarkana, Texas Defunct Central Hockey League teams Ice hockey clubs established in 2000 Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 2001 2000 establishments in Texas Ice hockey teams in Texas 2001 disestablishments in Texas {{Texas-sport-team-stub