Columbus Cottonmouths open training camp Wednesday
The Columbus Cottonmouths, along with the rest of the Southern Professional Hockey League, open training camp Wednesday.
For the Snakes, it’s a chance to avenge their last-place finish last season.
Columbus was the only team without a playoff chair when the regular season music stopped last April, the first time in their 12-year SPHL history the Cottonmouths were locked out of the postseason. The Snakes finished 19-29-8, seven points behind eighth-place Macon.
The Cottonmouths look to correct two particularly disturbing statistics from last season.
Their 124 total goals scored set an SPHL record for fewest goals in a season, breaking the record set by the expansion Bloomington (Ill.) Thunder in 2013-14.
They also finished the season with a better record as the visiting team than the home team. The Snakes had a 11-12-5 record on the road compared to an 8-17-3 mark at the Columbus Civic Center.
The training camp roster is peppered with a mix of returning players and first-year players looking to make an impact.
Captain Kyle Johnson returns on the blue line for Columbus, while the Snakes also return forwards Andy Bathgate, Alex Kromm, Patrick McCadden, Ben O’Quinn, and Craig Simchuk; and defensemen Rusty Hafner, Alex Pompeo, and Kyle Shapiro.
The SPHL had a net increase of one this season, from nine teams to 10. The Louisiana (Lafayette) IceGators suspended operations, while the Evansville (Ind.) Thunderbolts and Roanoke (Va.) Rail Yard Dawgs both joined the league as expansion teams. The two new clubs join the Snakes and the Fayetteville (N.C.) FireAntz, the Huntsville (Ala.) Havoc, the Knoxville (Tenn.) Ice Bears, the Macon (Ga.) Mayhem, the Mississippi (Southaven) RiverKings, the Pensacola (Fla.) Ice Flyers, and the Peoria (Ill.) Rivermen in the league.
The teams will play a 56-game regular season that begins next week and ends the second weekend in April. The top eight teams will make the three-round, best-of-three playoffs, culminating in the President’s Cup championship.
The Cottonmouths will hold training camp at the Columbus Ice Rink this week, while the Civic Center is prepared and used for the Shrine Circus this weekend. The team will travel to Macon on Friday for an exhibition game against the Mayhem, returning to the Ice Rink Saturday for an exhibition game against Pensacola.
The regular season schedule begins next Friday, Oct. 21, at Macon, with the two Peach State rivals playing the next night in Columbus for the home opener on Saturday, Oct. 22 at the Civic Center.
Cottonmouths 2016-17 schedule | ||
Friday, Oct. 21 | Columbus at Macon | 7:35 p.m. |
Saturday, Oct. 22 | Macon at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Friday, Oct. 28 | Pensacola at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, Oct. 29 | Columbus at Pensacola | 8:05 p.m. |
Friday, Nov. 4 | Columbus at Huntsville | 8 p.m. |
Saturday, Nov. 5 | Columbus at Fayetteville | 7:30 p.m. |
Friday, Nov. 11 | Columbus at Pensacola | 8:05 p.m. |
Saturday, Nov. 12 | Columbus at Pensacola | 8:05 p.m. |
Friday, Nov. 18 | Huntsville at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, Nov. 19 | Mississippi at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Friday, Nov. 25 | Mississippi at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, Nov. 26 | Columbus at Macon | 7:35 p.m. |
Friday, Dec. 2 | Peoria at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, Dec. 3 | Peoria at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Friday, Dec. 9 | Columbus at Evansville | 8:15 p.m. |
Friday, Dec. 16 | Macon at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, Dec. 17 | Columbus at Macon | 7:35 p.m. |
Friday, Dec. 23 | Pensacola at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Tuesday, Dec. 27 | Columbus at Huntsville | 8 p.m. |
Friday, Dec. 30 | Columbus at Pensacola | 8:05 p.m. |
Saturday, Dec. 31 | Pensacola at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Friday, Jan. 6 | Huntsville at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, Jan. 7 | Columbus at Fayetteville | 7:30 p.m. |
Friday, Jan. 13 | Columbus at Knoxville | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, Jan. 14 | Roanoke at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Sunday, Jan. 15 | Pensacola at Columbus | 4 p.m. |
Friday, Jan. 20 | Columbus at Peoria | 8:05 p.m. |
Saturday, Jan. 21 | Columbus at Peoria | 8:05 p.m. |
Friday, Jan. 27 | Roanoke at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, Jan. 28 | Roanoke at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Thursday, Feb. 2 | Fayetteville at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Friday, Feb. 3 | Knoxville at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, Feb. 4 | Columbus at Knoxville | 7:30 p.m. |
Tuesday, Feb. 7 | Pensacola at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Friday, Feb. 10 | Huntsville at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, Feb. 11 | Columbus at Fayetteville | 7:30 p.m. |
Friday, Feb. 17 | Evansville at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, Feb. 18 | Huntsville at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Monday, Feb. 20 | Columbus at Mississippi | 4 p.m. |
Friday, Feb. 24 | Columbus at Huntsville | 8 p.m. |
Saturday, Feb. 25 | Fayetteville at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Friday, March 3 | Columbus at Knoxville | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, March 4 | Columbus at Knoxville | 7:30 p.m. |
Sunday, March 5 | Fayetteville at Columbus | 4 p.m. |
Friday, March 10 | Knoxville at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, March 11 | Macon at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Friday, March 17 | Columbus at Macon | 7:35 p.m. |
Saturday, March 18 | Macon at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Sunday, March 19 | Columbus at Pensacola | 5:05 p.m. |
Friday, March 24 | Columbus at Roanoke | 8:05 p.m. |
Saturday, March 25 | Columbus at Roanoke | 8:05 p.m. |
Tuesday, March 28 | Columbus at Mississippi | 8:30 p.m. |
Friday, March 31 | Mississippi at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Saturday, April 1 | Evansville at Columbus | 7:30 p.m. |
Friday, April 7 | Columbus at Evansville | 8:15 p.m. |
Saturday, April 8 | Columbus at Evansville | 8:15 p.m. |
This story was originally published October 11, 2016 at 8:15 PM with the headline "Columbus Cottonmouths open training camp Wednesday."