New player uniforms arrived Thursday at the National Sports Center in Blaine, tangible proof that local professional soccer survived a difficult offseason.

Financial troubles ended the Minnesota Thunder's 20-year existence following the 2009 season. But the National Sports Center Foundation applied for, and was granted, ownership of a new team -- the NSC Minnesota Stars.

The Stars, coached by former Thunder president Manny Lagos, start their season on Sunday at Vancouver. The team plays in the new-look professional soccer league made up of minor league teams from the United Soccer Leagues (USL) and the North American Soccer League (NASL).

"It's been challenging but exciting," Lagos said. "We're getting a mixture of guys that I think are going to want to start this new franchise up the right way."

Image repair will be a process both on and off the field. Last season's 7-13-10 finish marked the fourth time in the past five seasons the Thunder missed the playoffs. Nine former Thunder players are now on the Stars roster. Local businesses are awaiting payment or have taken legal action against Thunder owner and St. Paul native Dean Johnson.

Last November, the Thunder began crumbling. Coach Donny Gramenz left the team after not receiving a paycheck for at least 10 weeks. General manger Djorn Buchholz left for a job with the USL's Austin Aztex. All Thunder players were released from their contracts. And in December, Lagos resigned as team president.

USL president Tim Holt said the Thunder "departed the USL in bad standing with outstanding league debts approaching six figures."

"There was incredible disappointment, obviously, in how things ended up," said Lagos, a former Thunder player whose father, Buzz, helped start the Thunder. "But I'm hoping people see that this is a new group ... trying to make sure soccer is preserved here."

The minor-league soccer landscape also changed during the past couple months. Three United Soccer Leagues First Division teams, including the Thunder, left the USL to start the new North American Soccer League (NASL). Pressure from the United States Soccer Federation forced the two leagues to reach a one-year agreement to operate as a unified league in 2010.

The Stars join Austin, Portland, Puerto Rico, Rochester and Tampa Bay in the USL Conference. Baltimore, Carolina, Miami, Montreal, St. Louis and Vancouver make up the NASL Conference.

Locally, however, the Stars are trying to generate the interest of soccer fans and sponsors. The Stars are owned by the NSC Foundation. No public funding goes to the team. Stars General Manager Kris Bjerkness said the team has more than 30 sponsors.

"I really haven't run into anyone who's unwilling to talk to us or work with us because of their experience with the Thunder," Bjerkness said. "We have a stable platform and relationships with hundreds and hundreds of businesses and people."

David La Vaque • 612-673-7574