The NEHL was a low professional minor league that operated in the 2003-04 season. The NEHL was founded by Jim Cashman, an individual who was involved in starting several other low professional leagues. The teams that started the season were the Jamestown Titans, York IceCats, Oneida/Mohawk Valley Comets, and the Poughkeepsie Panthers. Although Cashman played for the York IceCats, he may have owned more than one team in the league, and perhaps all of them. The teams played in recreational rinks, for example, the Mohawk Valley Comets played in the Whitestown Community Center.
The NEHL did not complete the 2003-04 season. From all accounts, the league was heavily disorganized and many of the players were of a low calibre. It was not uncommon for teams to score in the double-digits - for example, the Mohawk Valley Comets beat the Poughkeepsie Panthers by a score of 22-2.
The Poughkeepsie Panthers apparently tried to move to Connecticut to play out the season as the Co... [Click for more]nnecticut Cougars. They were reported to be trying to move to either Cromwell or Simsbury. The Cougars played at least two games - one against York, one against Mohawk Valley, but it was reported that they were a road-only team. The team's roster supposedly mostly turned over when they made the move.
According to a message posted on the Mohawk Valley Comets website by David Hajdasz, General Manager, the Comets withdrew from the league on February 28. Hajdasz accused Cashman of ignoring his phone calls, and there was mention of various unpaid bills. At that time, the only team said to be not defunct was York. There were, however, reports of a championship game being played between the Jamestown Titans and the York IceCats in early April. Although Jamestown was reported as winning the league championship, there was heavy skepticism of the game since the league had not played in over a month.
The league did not operate in 2004-05.