It all makes sense now.

First, just days before the press conference at which his team's new name and logo would be unveiled, Colorado Indoor Lacrosse Team president Steve Govett refused to identify the location of the announcement.

Later, when the venue was identified, it turned out to be the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. A museum? What self-respecting professional sports team holds a press conference at a museum?

Colorado Mammoth logos. Standard logo is at top, with text-based version (middle) and "Tusks" (bottom).

One that has chosen to name itself the "Colorado Mammoth" and wants that decision to be revealed against the backdrop of a giant mammoth skull.

And why not? A potential sponsor requested that the team be named for an animal, and after mammoth fossils were found at a construction site near Denver this summer, the area's fascination with the creature went on the rise.

"The fact that the animal was from a prehistoric time gave the creature a mythical feel," Tom Philand, Kroenke Sports senior vice president, said. "Who isn't fascinated by big creatures from another age?"

Team president Steve Govett preferred to compare the migratory animal to his migratory team, set to play in its fourth city in five years.

"Like the mammoth that roamed this area thousands of years ago, our team has migrated to Colorado, found itself a home and an exciting new identity," Govett said. "We couldn't be happier and we're ready to play."

The Mammoth franchise dates back to the league's first season, 1987, when it played as the Baltimore Thunder. Following the 1999 season, the team moved to Pittsburgh and became the CrosseFire. After one year, though, Washington became the team's new home, but the Power could never draw well and left the District of Columbia after last season.

Govett, team captain Gary Gait, and several others from the organization helped to unveil the team's logo, which features the word "Mammoth" in white lettering and burgundy trim on a black background.

The first M in "Mammoth" is much bigger than the rest of the word, and curls outward to create tusks. The tusks' tips are burgundy, and the left tusk curls into the shape of a C, for Colorado.

The logo does not, however, feature a mammoth -- only the tusks -- but its designers wouldn't want it any other way.

"The logo intentionally stays away from a clear identity of the animal, allowing the fan to create its own mental image of the mammoth," Dan Price, president/creative of Adrenalin Design Group, said. His company helped create the logo using a preliminary design formulated by Kroenke Sports officials.

"[The logo is] mysterious but it also provides a sense of force and a touch of fan friendliness," Price added.

Price also pointed out that the Mammoth's colors -- burgundy, silver and white -- are common to other teams owned by Kroenke Sports, including the NHL's Colorado Avalanche.

One piece of the puzzle not introduced today was the expected announcement of a sponsorship deal with Frontier Airlines. That is expected to happen when the Mammoth unveils its uniforms.