Stanley Cup-winning coach buys Cincinnati hockey team

Just more than two years ago, Ryan Colville was standing on the ice at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, hoisting the Stanley Cup over his head to celebrate the Los Angeles Kings' title.

Now, the former video coach of the Kings has bought a junior hockey team in Cincinnati for 16- to 20-year-olds and is trying to build a successful franchise with a strong fan base. The Cincinnati Swords would complement the professional minor-league Cincinnati Cyclones, who play at downtown's U.S. Bank Arena.

"We are the second-best level of hockey in Cincinnati," he said. "This is an alternative to the Cyclones. In a lot of ways, this is a youth version of the Cyclones."

Colville and his dad, Jim, bought the team in August. He wouldn't disclose the cost. The Swords began playing regular-season games in early September, so time was short to get ready for competition in the North American 3 Hockey League. That's the third tier of junior hockey, all of which comprises kids 16 to 20 years old. Some kids from the top level get drafted into the NHL. At the Swords' level, the goal is to move up to a higher level of junior hockey or to get into a U.S. college program.

Colville grew up in Toronto and played college hockey at Division III Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisc. But he's got plenty of connections to Cincinnati. His mom, the former Jackie O'Bryant, grew up in Mason. He has spent plenty of time here visiting relatives. And his dad played hockey at Ohio State, where his parents met. He was video coach with the Columbus Blue Jackets for three years before joining the Kings in 2008. They won the Stanley Cup in the 2011-12 season, getting him a championship ring and a chance to hold the Cup on the ice.

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