After the 2003 season concluded, talks of a re-location began, as the Destroyers had lost $5 million over five years, went nearly unnoticed by the media (NBC had blacked out all of their games in 2003), and suffered from a lack of local support reflected in low attendance levels. At the time, Destroyers owner Hamister was also in the running, along with partner Todd Berman, to buy the Buffalo Sabres of the NHL, but a deal for a state incentive package fell through and the team was instead sold to Rochester-area entrepreneur and politician B. Thomas Golisano. Shortly after the Sabres deal fell through, in September 2003, Hamister announced that he was relocating the Destroyers to Columbus, Ohio for the 2004 season.
