In the early 2000s, there were efforts to bring a minor professional hockey team to the Coliseum. Plans to move the dormant Phoenix Roadrunners of the International Hockey League to Toronto for the 2002-2003 season fell apart when the league dissolved and six teams, but not the Roadrunners, were absorbed by the American Hockey League (AHL) in the summer of 2001. The same group then attempted to purchase the Louisville Panthers AHL franchise, which had suspended operations for the 2001-2002 season, and relocate it to the Coliseum, but the AHL voted against the transaction in December 2001. The Toronto Maple Leafs pressured the Hamilton Bulldogs, who held territorial rights to Toronto since it fell within their 50-mile home territory, to veto the transaction. The Leafs reportedly did not want the Coliseum to be upgraded as it would compete with their newly opened Air Canada Centre. Next, the group began pursuing the Bulldogs, which were owned by their NHL affiliate the Edmonton Oilers. The Bulldogs did not require league approval to move to Toronto since the Coliseum was within their territory. An agreement was reached with the Oilers to relocate the Bulldogs to Toronto, and to rename them the Toronto Roadrunners. Borealis signed a 49-year sublease to the building with the Roadrunners for $9,500 per game.