PORTLAND — Talk about your dominoes. Who knew that when LeBron James so famously made his “Decision”, the one that delighted the folks in Miami and infuriated his homies in Akron, it would also impact the Saturday evening plans of hockey fans in Portland?

Indeed it did.

Which accounts for the lengthy delay in the release of the American Hockey League’s 2010-11 regular season schedule, which was finally announced Wednesday.

Still, when building avails and television schedules have to be accounted for ”“ and lets face it, the AHL has slightly less clout in those areas than does the NBA ”“  a waiting game is bound to ensue.

As Brian Petrovek, the Portland Pirates’ COO sees it, securing a favorable 40-game home schedule, all of it to be played at the Cumberland County Civic Center, was well worth the wait.

“I’m very pleased,” said Petrovek, who with business partner Lyman Bullard, is entering his 10th year of Pirates ownership. “We have the benefit, because of our seniority as a marketplace, of getting real good weekend (dates) when our building is available. We picked up some more Saturdays which I like. On balance, based upon all the circumstances that go into scheduling, I’m overall pleased.”

As in recent years, the Pirates will play exclusively within the AHL’s Eastern Conference, with the bulk of their games to come against Atlantic Division rivals.

The Bucs will start the season with a four-game home stand ”“ beginning with the Oct. 9 season opener with the Manchester Monarchs ”“ and end it at home on Apr. 10 against the Springfield Falcons.

In between, the Pirates will host three weekday matinees ”“ Oct. 11, Feb. 21, and Mar. 22 ”“ and will host  10 Tuesday and Wednesday night tilts.

“We’re going to take a more aggressive (marketing) approach to that portion of the schedule,” said Petrovek.

The weeknight dates will feature a “family friendly” 6:30 p.m. faceoff time, and are designed to minimize the AHL’s notorious three-in-three weekends, which has been a sticking point in the league’s relationship with the National Hockey League.

 “These guys can’t play four games in five nights every single week,” Petrovek said. “It’s never perfect, but I think the players will come out if it pretty good.”

The Pirates’ full schedule, as well as ticketing options, is available on the club’s website, www.portlandpirates.com.

Portland will play two pre-season games, both against Manchester, with the dates to be announced later.

One will be played at the Portland Ice Arena, while the other will be held in New Hampshire.

EMPTY NETTERS: When Petrovek signed a two-year Civic Center lease extension last March, it set in motion activity on several fronts designed to put to rest for good, the club’s critical venue question.

“There’s light at the end of the tunnel,” he said, “in terms of getting a final report from the consultants of Brailsford and Dunleavy on an optimum strategy to renovate this building. We’ve received the draft report, but its up to the four parties who represent the task force (i.e. the city of Portland, the CCCC trustees, the Cumberland County commissioners, and the Pirates) to determine what the next step is.”

Of course, agreeing on a set of blueprints is one thing.

Securing the greenbacks ”“ several million of them ”“ to fund the necessary improvements is quite another.

Especially since public money will have to cover a substantial part of the tab.

Which is why Petrovek continues to explore other options, including a proposed 4,500 seat events center in Saco which would be built adjacent to the MHG Ice Centre.

“You have to,” he said. “I’d prefer not to. But when you only have a two year extension, you don’t have a choice. I can’t assume it (the Civic Center plan) is going to come together and make sense for all parties. I hope it does.

“We came  here a decade ago thinking that the place for us to be for the long haul was in downtown Portland, at a Civic Center in renovated form. We still feel that way. But until the deal is done, we have to look at the alternatives, because we want to call Greater Portland home.”

Regardless of where the franchise ultimately plays its games, Petrovek remains open to the idea of the Pirates using MHG as its primary training and practice home.

The rub there is the size of the rink’s ice surface, which is about five feet narrower than the 85 foot NHL/AHL standard.

“That’s where the challenge remains,” Petrovek said. “We’ve got to get that sheet NHL-sized. The ownership there (agrees) as well. We want to continue to be active there when we can.”

— Contact Dan Hickling at dhickling@journaltribune.com.