MACON - Macon's East Coast Hockey League franchise has been leased to a pair of Canadians who will place the team in Lexington, Ky. <br>
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Jean Gagnon and Michel Cadrin made the long-rumored move official Friday when they announced the franchise that played the 2001-02 season as the Macon Whoopee will take the ice in Lexington's Rupp Arena next season. <br>
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The Elmore-Tuttle Sports Group owns the franchise and in 2001 leased it for one season to the Macon Sports Group, which owns the Whoopee nickname. <br>
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ECHL president Rick Adams said the league is not planning on having a team in Macon next season. <br>
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The city already will be without baseball come September. The Macon Braves, a Class A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves, announced in November they were moving to a new stadium in Rome after this season. That leaves the Macon Knights, a member of arena football, as the city's lone professional sports team. <br>
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The Whoopee played its first five years in the Central Hockey League, but last year moved to the ECHL. The franchise averaged just 2,791 tickets sold per game, 26th in the 29-team league. <br>
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Gagnon and Cadrin have a two-year deal to play in Lexington.
