Black, Red, White (later) The Roanoke Express were a professional minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL from 1993 until 2004.

For most of the 1980s and early 1990s, various teams such as the Virginia Lancers and Roanoke Valley Rampage played in a custom built facility called the LancerLot in Vinton.

The team continued to be successful, and in fact reached new heights, after Anzalone left for the Lowell Lock Monsters and was replaced by Scott Gordon.

However, by the early 2000s, the novelty of hockey in the Roanoke Civic Center had worn off and the team's inability to advance deep into the playoffs led to a frustrated fanbase and sagging attendance.

The Dawgs have made numerous references to the Express, including retiring the number of Terence Tootoo, who had committed suicide not long after his sole season in Roanoke.