CANLAN REPORTS THIRD QUARTER 2010 FINANCIAL RESULTS

BURNABY, BC, Nov. 10 /CNW/ - Canlan Ice Sports Corp., industry-leading providers of on-ice experiences to youth and adults across North America, today announced its financial results for the three- and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2010.

Selected Third Quarter Financial Highlights

In thousands  except share and % data	Q3 2010	Q3 2009	Change
Total revenue	$14,215	$13,582	+4.7%
EBITA^1	($140)	$39	-$179
Earnings (loss) before taxes	($2,066)	($1,890)	-$176
Net earnings (loss)  after taxes	($1,516)	($1,361)	-$155
Net earnings (loss) per share	($0.11)	($0.10)	-$0.01
Total Assets	$109,311	$110,720	-1.3%
Cash and Cash equivalents	$4,450	$4,053	+9.8%
Total Interest bearing debt	$47,000	$49,600	-5.2%

"Our third quarter results, which historically are our weakest due to the seasonality of our operations, are generally consistent with expectations," said Joey St-Aubin, President and CEO of Canlan Ice Sports. "Our performance was impacted by a number of investments that we made to support our future growth and commitment to delivering an unmatched customer experience. Most notably, we invested approximately $500,000 towards our start-up facility in the U.S., and earmarked almost $1.1 million towards building improvements and the purchase of new ice plant equipment.  Some of these investments are already delivering positive results given that we experienced higher registrations for our summer Adult Safe Hockey League, strong growth for our Ice Sports Fort Wayne facility, and same store revenue growth of more than two percent in Q3."

Q3 2010 Operational and Financial Highlights

• Same store revenue grew by 2.1% or $283,000
• Ice Sports Fort Wayne, which the company launched as part of its expansion in select U.S. markets, generated revenue of $349,000.
• Adult Safe Hockey League (ASHL) revenue increased by $279,000.
• Purchased $1.7 million of capital assets, including $469,000 on leasehold improvements and equipment for Ice Sports Fort Wayne.
• Reduced interest-bearing debt by 5.2% or $2.6 million from $49.6 million at year end 2009.

Selected Year-to-date Financial Highlights

In thousands  except share and % data	2010	2009	Change
Total revenue	$49,833	$47,633	+4.6%
EBITA	$4,843	$5,492	-11.8%
Earnings (loss) before taxes	($932)	($196)	-$736
Net earnings (loss)	($747)	($313)	-$434
Net earnings (loss) per share	($0.06)	($0.02)	-$0.04

Review of Financial Results

Canlan reported consolidated revenue of $14.2 million for the three-month period ended September 30, up 4.7% from $13.6 million for the corresponding period of 2009.  A key driver of the growth was due to the ramp up of operations at Ice Sports Fort Wayne, which was launched in February 2010, and generated revenue of $349,000 in the third quarter.

Same store revenue in Q3 2010 grew by 2.1% or $283,000 over Q3 2009.  The growth was principally due to increased ice sales and internal program registrations, including registrations for the Summer Adult Safe Hockey League, which grew by $251,000.

On a year-to-date basis, Canlan generated consolidated revenue of $49.8 million for FY2010, up 4.6% from $47.6 million for FY2009. On a same store basis, revenue increased 2.8% or $1.4 million.  The revenue growth on a nine-month basis was principally due to higher revenue contributions from the Adult Safe Hockey League, which grew by $1 million, as well as to higher revenue from instructional programs and youth hockey league registrations, which combined increased by $277,000.

Canlan derives its revenue from the rental of its playing surfaces, registrations for internal programming, food and beverage sales, sports stores sales, tournament registrations, management and consulting fees and other related fees. Given the seasonality of its operations, Canlan's revenue is at its highest in first and fourth quarters, periods when the Company's Adult Safe Hockey League division is operating at peak capacity.

Operating expenses for Q3 2010 were $13.2 million, up 6.6% from $12.4 million for Q3 2009. The increase was primarily due to rent payment costs associated with the Ice Sports Fort Wayne facility.  On a same-store basis, operating expenses grew by $339,000 or 2.7 % over the corresponding period of 2009.The increase was attributable to higher labour costs, utility expenses and higher costs to service increased demand for programs.

For the nine-month period of FY2010 operating expenses were $41.5 million, up from $38.9 million for FY2009.  The year-over-year increase was due to the launch of Ice Sports Fort Wayne, and investments in plant operations, and supplies to service higher customer volumes.

General and administrative expenses for Q3 2010 totaled $1.2 million, flat when compared to $1.2 million for the same period of FY2009.  On a nine-month basis, general and administrative expenses totaled $3.5 million for FY2010 and $3.3 million for FY2009, respectively. The increase was attributable to the launch of a new retirement savings program aimed at employee retention.

Earnings before interest, taxes and amortization (EBITA) for Q3 2010 was negative $140,000, down from positive EBITA of $39,000 for Q3 2009, representing a reduction of $179,000. EBITA for the nine-month period of FY2010 was $4.8 million, down 11.8% from $5.5 million for FY2009. The change was primarily due to higher operating costs, including higher wages and higher rent, related to the launch of Ice Sports Fort Wayne, which to date has generated an operating loss of $507,000. The change was also attributable to the recording of a $341,000 expense related to the Company's Stock Appreciation Rights Plan as a result of the appreciation of Canlan's share price.  

Canlan generated a loss before taxes for Q3 2010 of $2.1 million, up from a net loss before taxes of $1.9 million for Q3 2009. On a year-to-date basis, Canlan generated net loss before taxes of $932,000 million for FY2010 and a net loss before taxes of $196,000 for FY2009.

Net loss for Q3 2010 was $1.5 million or $0.11 per fully diluted share, which compares to a net loss of $1.4 million or $0.10 per fully diluted share for FY2009.  For the nine-month period of FY2010, Canlan generated a net loss of $747,000 or $0.06 per fully diluted share.  This compares to a net loss of $313,000 or $0.02 per fully dilute share for same period of FY2009.

At September 30, 2010, the Company held cash and cash equivalents of $4.5 million and interest bearing debt totaling $47 million. This compares respectively to $4.0 million at September 30, 2009 and $49.6 million at December 31, 2009. The Company is compliant with all of its debt covenants.

Outlook

"We are very encouraged by the start of Q4, which is our busiest and historically most profitable quarter of the year," added Mr. St-Aubin. "Registrations for our internal programs are strong, early results from our sponsorship programs with Molson-Coors have been promising, and we are experiencing growing market success for our Ice Sports Fort Wayne facility. Combined, these developments should lead us to end 2010 with strong momentum."

Canlan's financial statements and Management Discussion & Analysis for the period ended September 30, 2010 are available via SEDAR and through the Company's website, www.icesports.com

About Canlan

Canlan Ice Sports Corp is the North American leader in the development, operations and ownership of multi-purpose recreation and entertainment facilities. We are the largest private sector owner and operator of recreational ice sports facilities in North America and currently own and/or manage 22 facilities in Canada and the United States with 65 surfaces including ice rinks and indoor soccer fields.

Canlan Ice Sports Corp. is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol "ICE."

Caution concerning forward-looking statements

This document contains forward-looking statements, which may be identified by words like "expects", "anticipates", "plans", "intends", "indicates" or similar expressions. These statements are not a guarantee of future performance and are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors set forth in reports and other documents filed by the Company with Canadian securities regulatory authorities from time to time.

¹  Earnings before interest, taxes and amortization (EBITA) is often used as a measure of financial performance. However, EBITA is a not a term that has specific meaning in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and may be calculated differently by other companies. Canlan reconciles EBITA to its net earnings.

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