After changing ownership and a scare that they wouldn't be coming back, hockey players with the Wheeling Nailers hit the ice Sunday for their first home pre-season game against Cincinnati.

"It's been a very long summer waiting for the season to start, and I was excited," said Cheryl Watkins, a Nailers fan from Wheeling. "I'm actually missing the Steelers game to be here today."

Fans were pumped up to see the Nailers back on the ice while the NHL is in a lock out.

"We're glad for the new season, glad for the new owners. We used to be season ticket holders for 12 years," said Bruce Littleton, a Nailers fan. "We quit coming to the games, but we're going to start coming back again. We're real excited about it."

Fans said they look forward to the new season and new ownership. The Wheeling Amateur Hockey Association (WAHA) and the Regional Economic Development Partnership (RED) teamed up to purchase and revamp the Nailers. Officials said some changes were made since the sale.

"We're adding some TVs … we're doing some arena improvements as well as we've done some improvements in the locker room, in our front office," said Craig Bommer, Wheeling Nailers vice president. "(We're) just kind of changing things up giving it a fresh look. That's kind of why you have a preseason game, so we can have a little test run before we go for real."

For some of these fans, it's a chance to enjoy the game during the lockout and watch the players they support.

"The fans have been great. We're up about 300 new season tickets so far over last year," said Bommer. "The atmosphere has been incredible all summer long, just basically waiting for today. They just want to see some hockey."

Nailers officials said the new owners will need to figure out how hockey works for them this season.