RHI Can’t Pay Bonuses for Playoffs

Roller Hockey International doesn’t have the money to pay postseason bonuses it promised its players, including the Murphy Cup champion Bullfrogs, according to league CEO Larry King.

King said the league is not in danger of filing bankruptcy or folding, but Bullfrog President Stuart Silver said owners have given King an ultimatum: Either pay the players by Thursday or the owners will consider breaking away to form a new league.

“There will be a league [next year],” Silver said, “but who owns it is another story.”

The Bullfrogs were supposed to earn about $4,000 per player for their recent championship victory over New Jersey, but King said the $151,040 earmarked by RHI for the playoff pool was instead used for league operations.

According to RHI bylaws, each team puts up its share of the playoff pool money before the start of the season, and the league office is responsible for paying players when the season ends. However, one week before the start of 1997 season, King decided RHI should take over operation of the failing Ottawa Wheels and subsequently spent $330,000 of the league’s money to run the team.

King said he has been trying to procure a loan since July to cover the playoff pool and hopes to secure one by next week.

RHI players, the majority of whom play minor league ice hockey, make about $480 per week during the summer roller hockey season. The playoff-pool money was intended to be an incentive for players to skate during what is normally their off-season.

Bullfrog goaltender David Goverde, who plays ice hockey for the Phoenix Mustangs of the West Coast Hockey League, said he was tricked into believing playoff shares were safe. “It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that the money went somewhere else,” he said.

Rich Shillington, owner of the San Jose Rhinos, said he has received calls from angry players.

“This is not a good situation,” Shillington said. “I don’t think there is a future for RHI. We’ve had five years and no one is making any money.”