SACO — There was no ribbon cutting photo op on the site of the MHG Ice Centre, Wednesday.

And there might never be one.

Still, the visit paid by Portland Pirates’ Managing Owner/ CEO Brian

Petrovek to the skating and training facility in Saco was more than just a courtesy call.

It was more like a speed date.

Petrovek met with MHG owners Ron Cain and John Wipfler, even as his Pirates were conducting a one-hour practice on the 2-year-old rink.

It was the second time this season the Pirates have used the facility, and it could be the harbinger of a greater involvement between the Pirates and the MHG Ice Centre.

“It was another opportunity for the team to visit the site,” Petrovek said. “Take advantage of some of the amenities that exist there, and get a little further feel for it as we continue to explore our opportunties (there) moving forward.”

The meetings with Cain and Wipfler were part of what Petrovek considers “due diligence”, as he tries to button down a long-term plan for the club.

The Pirates, who have called the Cumberland County Civic Center home since 1994, recently extended their lease with the aging County-owned arena for two years.

That move followed a turbulent few weeks during which Petrovek, who is part of an ownership group that purchased the Pirates in 2000,  explored the possibility of transferring the club to Albany, N.Y.

While that buys time for the Civic Center’s trustees to consider much needed renovation plans, it also gives Petrovek the chance to consider other options.

Foremost among them, said Petrovek, is the possibility of building a 5,000 seat arena on the 22-acre Lund Rd. tract that meets all of the Pirates’ playing, training and marketing needs.

“We wanted to continue the conversation,” said Petrovek, “regarding the feasibility of building a competition and performance venue on the same site.

“We had a good discussion with the owners of the facility. We focused more on the feasibility of building a venue, and what steps (we might) need to take. We agreed on a series of next steps. We’ve got that iron

in the fire, and we’re going to drill down into it as aggressively as we can to see if that’s an alternative, in case the (Civic Center) renovation doesn’t happen.”

Petrovek said that an arena project in Saco could be a boon to the club’s player development relationship with its NHL parent, the Buffalo Sabres.

“You could theoretically have,” he said, “one location that would serve the entire player development need. Training, practice, medical care, and the ability to perform in front of crowds in excess of 5,000. You don’t have to go anywhere else. That could be a pretty attractive proposition, if we could ever figure out the

economics.”

The Sabres, who agreed to a long-term extension of their affiliation with Portland three weeks ago, are on board with such an idea. According to Darcy Regier, Buffalo’s General Manager, they would

consider utilizing the facility themselves for off-season training.

“We’ve had some conversations (with Petrovek) about that,” said Regier, Monday, in Boston, between periods of the Sabres/Bruins game. “It’s something we’re going to have more conversations on.”

Regier said he’s high on the rabid hockey interest found in southern Maine.

“It’s a great community,” he said. “(Portland) is a great hockey town. Players love to play there, coaches love to live there. To be in the environment and the culture that exists there is a big bonus.”

Petrovek said that an arena project could spawn development of other ventures, such as hotels, shops, and restaurants.

And there is precedent for a professional sports venue located in York County, although it could hardly be considered a success story.

The Ball Park in Old Orchard Beach housed a Triple-A baseball team for just five seasons (1984-88) before the team pulled up stakes.

That left OOB townsfolktrying to figure out what to do with the dormant facility.

More than 20 years have passed, and only now has the Ball Park been made ready – almost exclusively through volunteer efforts from citizens – to reopen for baseball.

Chief among the reasons baseball failed there was reluctance of fans from Portland proper to embrace the Old Orchard-based team.

The traffic that often chokes OOB streets in the summer served to strangle the Guides’ (and later the Phillies’) hopes for survival.

Petrovek said he didn’t believe that would be an issue with an arena in Saco, which would sit just off Maine Turnpike Exit 36.

“There are differences,” he said. “First of all, you have immediate access to the Turnpike. With the Old Orchard situation, Rte. 1 (was) a little tricky. Turnpike accessibility, with surface parking, and easy in and out in a portion of our market that is growing, we think that location would be an absolute asset.”

While he couldn’t provide hard numbers, Petrovek said that an increasing amount of the Pirates’ business ”“ tickets, sponsorships, etc. ”“ comes from York County.

“We’re seeing more and more of our fan base come from the south,” he said. “That’s a growing trend that shouldn’t surprise anybody. We’re skewing more south, year-to-year, in the 10 years we’ve been here. That’s a trend we’ve been following closely.”

Similar trends have been reported by Portland’s two other minor league professional sports teams, baseball’s Portland Sea Dogs, and the first-year Maine Red Claws basketball team.

About 40 percent of the Sea Dogs’ sponsor base lies in York County, the club recently told the Journal Tribune.

“It goes with the population growth,” said Petrovek, “and it goes with the demographic trends that we’re seeing in York County, which are very positive and encouraging.”

— Contact Staff Writer Dan Hickling at dhickling@journaltribune.com.