APPLETON, Wis. — A new junior hockey team is coming to northeast Wisconsin.
The Fox Cities Forge, a junior hockey team based in Appleton, will begin competing this fall in the North American 3 Hockey League.
The team is the product of a trio of co-owners that includes Mark Mazzoleni, Jeff Lindemann and Darrell LaCrosse. Mazzoleni is a former head coach of the USHL’s Green Bay Gamblers, and Lindemann is the head coach at Neenah High School.
The team’s roster is still being built, with 14 players signed for the inaugural club. The Forge will play 22 home games at Appleton Ice Arena.
Junior hockey serves as a development program between high school hockey and higher levels, including college and beyond. Other junior hockey leagues include the NAHL and USHL, which includes the Green Bay Gamblers.
Lindemann said the team could give Wisconsin players a chance to stay closer to home.
“Especially Wisconsin kids where they could stay a little closer to home and do this instead of having to go out to the East Coast or maybe they had to go to Minnesota to do it,” Lindemann said. “They can stay in Wisconsin and play in front of friends and family. But I think it’s great for the youth group. These kids are going to have a great chance to get out here, watch kids play at the next level. Kids that they’ve probably seen and know and that’s going to be great for hockey community altogether.”
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