After the last seconds ran out on the clock at Saturday's Whitehorse Huskies vs. Powell River Regals game, all attention turned to the coach, and whether the Huskies would skate again next season.

It's too soon for an official green light for the Whitehorse Huskies to make their return next year, but coach Randy Merkel said the idea is floating around.

"People are looking at me to make that decision,” Merkel said.

Now that the final game is over, Merkel said the next step will be to take a look at the debt accumulated by the games this season.

A poor turnout meant the Huskies camp is running in the red, although final numbers have not yet been announced.

"There's going to be a substantial little debt left over,” Merkel said.

Merkel said the team will need to find a sponsor to take over that debt in order to continue with the team for next year.

Another change Merkel said he would look for next year, is the development of a team of people to help out at the games. This year himself and general manager Jim King did the bulk of the leg work – Merkel even washed hockey jerseys on Thursday ahead of the game.

Despite only winning one game this season, Merkel said the team has developed a dedicated core fan base.

"The people that come to watch the games, there were a lot of faithful fans,” Merkel said.

Those fans were treated to great games this season, he added.

"This is the best hockey this town has ever seen,” Merkel said.

If the team were to continue next year, Merkel said it will only get better, as the development of this year's line-up has led him to a number of ideas for players next year.

"I have made a tremendous amount of quality contacts,” he said.

Merkel managed to build himself a team he could be proud of, with a mix of imports and local players.

"I liked a lot of these guys,” he said.

If the team were to continue, however, Merkel admits he needs to build up the scoring potential by bringing in top-quality forwards that are capable of getting goals.

"We needed two to three high quality scorers,” Merkel said.

The coach said it is the right time to be building a AAA team, as the Allan Cup's popularity is rising.