IHL EYEING TORONTO AND NEW ORLEANS FOR ADDITIONAL MARKETS

          The IHL has made Canada a target for expansion,
     "beginning" with Toronto, according to David Shoalts of the
     Toronto GLOBE & MAIL.  A group led by former IHL Phoenix
     Roadrunners Owner Lyle Abraham has reached a "conditional
     agreement" on an arena lease with the Metropolitan Toronto
     Hockey League to house an IHL expansion team for the '99-
     2000 season.  IHL governors are also considering an
     expansion application in New Orleans and there is interest
     among other IHL governors to "move further" into Canada.  If
     plans proceed as "some governors wish," the IHL could add
     teams in Toronto, Victoria, Saskatoon, Montreal and Halifax. 
     The GLOBE & MAIL's Shoalts notes that these cities fit what
     the IHL wants in a market, "a mid-sized to large centre with
     solid corporate support" (Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 2/19).
          ALL-STAR: The IHL All-Star Game was played before a
     sell-out crowd of 10,834 in Grand Rapids last night
     (INDIANAPOLIS STAR-NEWS, 2/19).