1st Mariner

In a twist of fate, a scrappy street feline has become not only the 1st Mariner Arena mascot but the star of the latest "Show Your Soft Side" campaign ad. First Mariner general manager Frank Remesch was almost ready to leave work this fall when one of his staff called him out to the parking area -- a cat was under one of the cars. Remesch, an animal lover who rescues Mastiffs and let hundreds of city shelter animals weather Hurricane Sandy in the arena, flopped onto the concrete and proceeded to look for something furry, as one by one more of his employees came out to watch, help and bring flashlights.

Current operator SMG is the winning bidder for a new five-year contract to run 1st Mariner Arena and oversee its potential renaming, according to a memo from the city's top purchasing agent. SMG's proposal awaits approval by the Baltimore Board of Estimates but has cleared the rest of the city's bidding process. The board will vote on the contract Wednesday. The Pennsylvania-based management company, which has operated the arena since 1999, beat proposals from Los Angeles-based AEG and Global Spectrum, a subsidiary of Philadelphia-based Comcast-Spectacor.

The city's ethics board wants Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake to enact stricter controls over how her office uses free tickets to events at 1st Mariner Arena and other venues. In an opinion released Wednesday, board members wrote that they believe the acceptance of tickets to 1st Mariner was permitted under a contract with the venue, but said they were "troubled" by the way the tickets have been distributed. Rawlings-Blake got dozens of tickets to distribute to sold-out concerts.

The Colonial Athletic Association is bringing its postseason men's basketball tournament to Baltimore, two league sources told The Baltimore Sun. According to one of the sources, the tournament will be held at 1st Mariner Arena beginning in 2013-14 and will played there for three years. An official announcement is expected to be made Wednesday in Baltimore. It will mark the first time the league's postseason tournament will be played outside of Virginia since the CAA was established in 1982-83.

Site: 1st Mariner Arena When: Friday, 7:35 p.m. Video: mislnation.com Outloook: Call it rivalry weekend for Baltimore. While the Ravens travel to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers, the feeling is similar when the Blast plays the Wave. In a rematch of the past two Major Indoor Soccer League championships - both won by Milwaukee - the Blast will try to stay on its early-season roll and get the first jab in against the Wave. In its fast start, the Blast has shown selfless play, with a balanced offense and surprisingly poised performances from rookie goalkeepers Troy Hernandez and William Vanzela.

The Blast signed five players Wednesday, including two goalkeepers, team president and general manager Kevin Healey announced. Troy Hernandez and William Vanzela will help the Blast replace veteran goalkeeper Sagu and backup Akira Fitzgerald (Loyola Blakefield). The team also added midfielder Marco Mangione (Calvert Hall, Towson University), as well as forwards Lucas Roque and Jamie Darvill (Loyola University). All of the moves are pending approval from the Major Indoor Soccer League.

The Baltimore Civic Center opened on Oct. 23, 1962, with the hometown debut of the Baltimore Clippers hockey team. This week, it celebrates the beginning of its 50th year with nine performances of "Disney on Ice. " In between, the arena has hosted the Beatles and Bruce Springsteen, circuses and monster trucks, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and televangelist Joel Osteen. "The unique thing about our building: history," said Frank Remesch, the general manager of 1st Mariner Arena . Fifty years after it opened, Baltimore's arena is among the world's top-grossing in its class.

This year's Baltimore Hockey Classic at 1st Mariner Arena has been canceled as the NHL announced Wednesday that it had canceled all September preseason games due to the ongoing lockout. Fans who bought tickets for the event, which was scheduled for Sept. 26, are entitled to a full refund at the original point of purchase. Despite issues with the ice surface at last year's inaugural Baltimore Hockey Classic, Arena officials described the event as a “walk-off home run,” and they expect to hold the event again in 2013.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake's law office says it can't find the current contract it has argued allows her to accept free 1st Mariner Arena tickets, but can find an older, 1988-version of the agreement with the arena that permits the behavior. "After an exhaustive search with the Comptroller's Office, the City's official archives of all Board of Estimate's [sic] records in the Legislative Reference Department, the records of the Finance Department, the records of the Law Department, and a records request to SMG, the final signed 1998 contract has not been located," Baltimore City Solicitor George Nilson wrote in a letter to ethics board director Avery Aisenstark.

The Blast will open the 2012-13 season at 1st Mariner Arena against the expansion Chicago Soul on Nov. 3 at 7:35 p.m. In a rematch of the 2011 and 2012 Major Indoor Soccer League championship, the Blast will face the Milwaukee Wave for the first time on Nov. 16 at 7:35 p.m. in Baltimore. The two teams will meet four times during the 26-game slate, which was released Friday. The Blast and Wave will also square off on Dec. 22 and Jan. 12, both at 7 p.m. in Milwaukee, and in the regular-season finale on Feb. 23 at 7:35 p.m. in Baltimore.