MOLINE - A press conference has been called for 3 p.m. Tuesday to announce that the Quad Cities will join the International Hockey League for the upcoming season.

The IHL consists of six cities the Quad-City Mallards visited in the old United Hockey League, including the Bloomington PrairieThunder.

Tuesday's announcement will conclude a process that began when owners of the American Hockey League Quad-City Flames, who replaced the Mallards in 2007, announced in March that they would not field a team next season.

A search for a replacement team has been in progress since the Flames' announcement.

It concludes a protracted negotiation with an anonymous party and his partner, both of whom will be introduced at the press conference.

Scott Mullen, executive director of the i wireless Center, said the lead partner, who is not from the Quad-Cities, brings a marketing background that should help the new team overcome a late start and reverse a downward trend in attendance.

"I am confident this guy is going to have the ability to effectively market the team the way it needs to be marketed," Mullen said. "The ability and the background. He has been around the block."

As recently as June 1, the IHL was down to five teams after Kalamazoo's abrupt exit. Since then, Dayton has announced that it will field a team in the league and now the Quad Cities.

PrairieThunder lead owner Tim Leighton said Monday that he is planning a Tuesday trip to Moline.

"We have to be excited whenever there is an opportunity to build a historic rivalry and grow together," Leighton said. "The fact that hockey fans in Bloomington or the Quad Cities can drive a couple of hours for a game is a win for both communities."

Leighton said the league has a meeting scheduled for Wednesday to finalize a schedule for the 2009-10 season.

The season begins Oct. 16.

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