Who Are The Savannah Ghost Pirates
Written by Alexandra Salazar-Rodó. Photos by Ally Abruscato.
Ahoy! Do you know about Savannah’s very own hockey team, The Savannah Ghost Pirates? The Ghost Pirates are a professional minor league team within the ECHL (formally known as the East Coast Hockey League). Savannah’s mayor made a deal with the owner of the Jacksonville Icemen, Andy Kaufman, to create an expansion minor league team that would play in the southern division. The team’s first debut would have been the 2022-2023 season.
When setting sail with the team’s identity, management took to Savannah’s community for help. A naming contest would give hockey fans a way to pitch in, as well as set foundations for the new emerging community. Ghost Pirates prevailed as the winning name, highlighting the city’s supernatural and nautical history all at once.
The Ghost Pirates are recognizable symbols throughout Savannah. The iconic logo found on many Ghost Pirates merchandise showcases a miniature ghost with glowing neon green eyes, often wearing a pirate hat and holding a smallhockey stick. Displaying black, white and neon green coloring, the Ghost Pirates flag flies high all around the city. The band of skating pirates has been able to grow their very own crew here in Savannah.
You can find them playing home games at the Enmarket Arena, where they have taken on opponents for the past two seasons, defending the city. Loud and eccentric nights, the crowd goes wild, cheering on the boys and the game. Ghost Pirates’s management likes to get the audience involved as much as possible by keeping the crowd energetic with upbeat music choices, fan cams and comedy skits. Game nights become fun small community parties, and sometimes there are themes, like a ‘Star Wars’ night, they will promote beforehand. You will see people dressed up as pirates all over the stadium, from the audience to workers. The whole evening ends as an amusing affair: watching the game, having some good grub and a good evening with your own small crew, all the while watching a riveting game.
This year’s season began on Oct. 18. The Ghost Pirates went up against the Indy Fuels. Smokin’ them out of the ship, the final score ended with 4-1 due to the Ghost Pirate’s tenacity. Our Ghost Pirates were able to send the Fuels down to Davy Jones’ locker. The boys secured their first win of the season in their opening game, an amazing way to begin! Both players and fans left the game with a positive mentality for the future. Not only is a victory exciting for the players, but the new head coach, Jared Staal, gains his first win in the ECHL with the Pirates. Even though it wasn’t a perfect game (due to a few lineup hiccups and plays), The Ghost Pirates look like they are going to have a remarkable season and hopefully collect more booty.
At these games, you might also be able to witness their mascot make an appearance. The lovable ghost pirate of the team, named Davey, a character management wouldn’t want you to miss. His death day has been marked as Jul. 26, 2022, on the 13th hour. As a pirate, he sails the Atlantic coast, sizing vulnerable ships and stealing treasure, but after landfall, he remains in Savannah to haunt other ECHL players to their doom! The team has created a whole, lovable, and haunting personality for their mascot, which can be found on the Savannah Ghost Pirate website.
Altogether, the Savannah Ghost Pirates are creating a wonderful pirate crew here in the city, especially for hockey fans. They work with nonprofits throughout Savannah, helping out with raffles and donations during their home games. And if you are unable to make an actual game, they recently made a deal with WJCL 22 to broadcast their games, so set sail that way to see them.
All in all, Savannah’s hockey team is worth supporting and watching. Not only are the workers trying to make a good experience for the audience. The team works closely with the city to help the community. Look up their schedule, and if it aligns with a free night of yours, get a clan of friends together and have a fun night watching some hockey. Sail, ho, and support your local hockey team.
