From the opening night of the season, McMahon was not happy with how the league was run. Schenectady and Fitchburg were owned by the same person. Fitchburg was placed under a league suspension and would fold after 6 games. Schenectady would fold after 9 games. In January 1982, McMahon tried to borrow $15,000 from the league, citing "slow cash flow". When the league denied his loan, McMahon folded his franchise. With the league now down to 4 teams, the league decided to end the season early and set the playoffs by geographical area to save on expenses. Coincidentally, the matchups did end up having the first and fourth place teams meet, along with the second vs third place teams. The Salem Raiders defeated the Winston-Salem Thunderbirds, and the Mohawk Valley Stars defeated the Baltimore Skipjacks. The Raiders and Stars played in the league final, with the Mohawk Valley Stars defeating the Raiders for the Bob Payne Trophy.
