I've been following this process with great interest as you may have noticed on my blog earlier regarding the Central Hockey League being merged into the ECHL.
There was a great article posted on over on SB Nation about this back in August. In fact that article (plus some up to date news that has since come out) is the inspiration for this post.
Before I get started there are a couple news items that need to be addressed:
#1: The Montreal Canadian have been heavily rumored to be moving their AHL affiliate from Hamilton, Ontario to Laval, Quebec.
#2: The Oklahoma City Barons are going to cease operations after this season. They are the current affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers. The Oilers currently own the Bakersfield Condors of the ECHL and it's been long rumored that Bakersfield will become an AHL team.
#3: The Norfolk Admirals have been sold to the Anaheim Ducks. This will be their last season in Norfolk. Touching on the previous point, the rumor is that the Bakersfield Condors (still owned by the Oilers) will will be moved to Norfolk as play as the Admirals in the ECHL.
#4: The Winnipeg Jets have said they would be pulling their affiliate out from St. John's, Newfoundland. The rumor is that the Jets would like to have an affiliate in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
Based on these facts, here is what I proposed the re-alignment looks like (Going in alphabetical order of the NHL franchises).
Finally, my goal was to keep as many franchises in place as possible even if that means they move up to the AHL from the ECHL or vice versa.
Anaheim Ducks:
The Ducks have already announced their plan to purchase the Norfolk Admirals and move them out west. With the Bakersfield Condors already rumored to be the new Norfolk Admirals in the ECHL it seems like an obvious swap to me. Bakersfield can become the AHL team for Anaheim (Bakersfield is about 2 hours away from Anaheim). Meanwhile the Utah Grizzlies, the current ECHL affiliate, is still out west and that will work out nicely.
Arizona Coyotes:
The current AHL affiliate is in Portland, ME, clear across the country. The best bet would be to move them to Tucson, AZ's convention center arena. The Las Vegas Wranglers are currently dormant in the ECHL but are to return next season, they are 4 and a half hours away or a 1 hour flight
Boston Bruins:
The Bruins are lucky. The Providence Bruins are less than an hour away. No need to change the AHL affiliate. The Springfield Falcons are about 1 and a half hours away and are known to be in the bottom 5 of AHL attendance so a move down to the ECHL might be an ok move.
Buffalo Sabres:
There's a very long standing relationship between Rodchester and Buffalo, no need to change that. Plus it's only an hour away from Buffalo. Elmira, NY is only 2 and a half hours away so the Jackals should remain their ECHL affiliate.
Calgary Flames:
Calgary might be best suited to put their AHL team in Seattle, Washington. With the rumors of the NHL wanting to go to Seattle putting an AHL team there could be a good test. It's a 12 hour drive but a 2 hour flight isn't too bad. With not too many other options in Alberta, the Flames could adopt the Alaska Aces as their ECHL team, it is about a 6 and a half hour flight but the Aces should be used to long trips being located as far the north-west as they already are. The best bet for this to work would be to share Alaska with Edmonton.
Carolina Hurricanes:
Their current affiliate is the Charlotte Checkers, about 2 and a half hours away. No need to change that. The ECHL has team in North Charleston, South Carolina. That team is about 4 hours away and would be the best affiliate for the Hurricanes.
Chicago Blackhawks:
The current AHL affiliate in Rockford is 2 hours away. No need for a change there. The Indy Fuel are about 3 hours away so no need to change the ECHL affiliate either.
Colorado Avalanche:
The Colorado Eagles of the ECHL are top 5 in attendance and are an hour away, so a move to the AHL makes sense to me. The Rapid City Rush (who currently have no affiliate) of the ECHL are about 6 hours away so they might be the best ECHL affiliate for the Avalanche.
Columbus Blue Jackets:
The Lake Erie Monsters are 2 hours away so that would be the best move. The Toledo Walleye 2 and a half hours away so that should be the new ECHL affiliate.
Dallas Stars:
The Texas Stars are in Cedar Park, Texas which is 3 hours away so that will still work. The Allen Americans of the ECHL are half an hour away from Dallas so they should be the new ECHL affiliate.
Detroit Red Wings:
Grand Rapids is 2 and a half hours away so the AHL affiliate should remain. Kalamazoo is a straight shot 2 and a half hours west from Detroit, the Wings would be best suited as the ECHL affiliate for Detroit, not to mention the whole "wings" naming match up.
Edmonton Oilers:
It would have to be a big shake up for the Oilers. The Barons are being folded but moving the AHL affiliate to Fort McMurray which is about 5 hours away and there is a proposal for a brand new 7,000 seat arena in the city. The new "Oil Barons" would work nicely. With not too many other options in Alberta, the Oilers could adopt the Alaska Aces as their ECHL team, it is about a 6 hour flight but the Aces should be used to long trips being located as far the north-west as they already are. The best bet for this to work would be to share Alaska with Calgary.
Florida Panthers:
The Orlando Solar Bears of the ECHL is about 3 hours away and would serve well as an AHL Franchise. The current AHL affiliate, the San Antonio Rampage, is a 4 and a half hour flight away. A little far but it might be a good solution if they share the ECHL affiliation with Tampa Bay.
Los Angeles Kings:
The Kings are one of the west teams who have been expected to move their AHL affiliate closer and San Diego is about 2 hours away. So the Manchester Monarchs will move to San Diego. The current ECHL affiliate in Ontario, California should stay put they are about an hour away.
Minnesota Wild:
The Iowa Wild are about 4 hours away (or a 1 hour flight) so the AHL affiliate makes sense. The current ECHL affiliate is 5 and half hours away (or a 1 hour flight) so that will continue to work.
Montreal Canadians:
The Hamilton Bulldogs are rumored to be moving to Laval, Quebec so that's what we will go with. Laval is only a half hour drive away.With Ottawa and Montreal being so close I'd move the Cincinnati Cyclones to Saint-Jerome, Quebec. It's 40 minutes away from Montreal.
Nashville Predators:
The Chicago Wolves of the AHL are a 7 hour drive but only an hour and a half flight from Nashville. That is one of the further drives but the flight is between 2 major cities and short, so it will work. Evansville of the ECHL is about 2 and a half hours away so they would be a good affiliate.
New Jersey Devils:
The Albany Devils are a 2 and a half hour drive from Newark or a 1 hour flight, the AHL affiliate can stay put. The Adirondack Flames are still a new AHL franchise and the Flames are rumored to be moving away from this franchise so moving them down to the ECHL might be a good move. They are only 3 hours away from Newark.
New York Islanders:
The Islanders are moving to Brooklyn so I calculated the distance based on this. Their current AHL affiliate is about an hour and a half away. So the Sound Tigers should stay. The Syracuse Crunch would be a good option for an affiliation even if they need to drop down to the ECHL which is 4 hours away from Brooklyn or just an hour flight.
New York Rangers:
The Rangers are affiliated with the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack which is a 2 hour drive so that works out nicely. The Binghamton Senators are a 3 hour drive or 1 and a half hour flight away from the Rangers, they are currently an AHL team but it's an established minor professional market so it could work out nicely.
Ottawa Senators:
There has been lots of talk of Cornwall, Ontario doing some big renovations to their arena and seeing as Cornwall is about an hour away from Ottawa it would be a good fit for an AHL team. With Ottawa and Montreal being so close I'd move the Cincinnati Cyclones to Saint-Jerome, Quebec. It's 1 hour and 40 minutes away from Ottawa.
Philadelphia Flyers:
The Flyers have a long standing affiliation with the Phantoms organization. Right now they are an hour and 20 minutes away from Philadelphia so no need to change. The Reading Royals are the current ECHL affiliate and are also an hour and 20 minutes away from Philadelphia. No need to change that either.
Pittsburgh Penguins:
Wilkes-Barre is about 4 and a half hours away from Pittsburgh and it's a long standing relationship, that shouldn't change. The Wheeling Nailers are an hour away from Pitt so that works out nicely as the ECHL affiliate.
San Jose Sharks:
San Jose would need to completely relocate both affiliates. The first step should be to move the Worcester Sharks to San Francisco. The Stockton Thunder are 1 and a half hours away from San Jose so they would be a great ECHL affiliate.
St. Louis Blues:
The Missouri Mavericks are 3 hours and 45 minutes away or a hour flight so it would make sense to promote this team to the AHL. The currently independent Tulsa Oilers are 6 hours away or 1 hour 15 minutes away via flight. A little far, but it might be a good ECHL affiliate.
Tampa Bay Lightening:
The Florida Everblades are 2 hours away and a promotion to the AHL should do the trick for Tampa. A little far but it might be a good solution if they share the ECHL affiliation with Florida.
Toronto Maple Leafs:
The Toronto Marlies play about 10 minutes down the road and are owned by the Leafs and play in an arena that is also owned by the Leafs. That's not changing. The Brampton Beast are about 45 minutes away and are currently unaffiliated (although they started the season as a Tampa Bay affiliate it was just kind of dropped without notice.). This would make the most sense.
Vancouver Canucks:
The Canucks would be well served moving their AHL team from Utica, New York to Abbotsford where the Flames used to have their affiliate as Abbostsford is only an hour away form Vancouver. The Idaho Steelheads may be the best ECHL club to use as an affiliate although they are an 11 hour drive away, it's only a 3 hour flight.
Washington Capitals:
The Hershey Bears are a historic AHL club that is 2 and a half hours away from Washington, it's a great fit. The Greenville Road Warriors are 7 and a half hours away, it's a little far but it can still work out.
Winnipeg Jets:
The Jets have made it clear that they want to move their AHL affiliate to Thunder Bay, Ontario. Thunder Bay is an 8 and a half hour drive from Winnipeg due to water but is only an hour flight. The Fort Wayne Komets consistently draw over 7,000 people for their games and seeing as it's a 4 hour flight from Winnipeg, that might be the best ECHL solution for the Jets.
Here's a quick chart to put a visual to it all:
| NHL Team | AHL team | ECHL Team |
| Anahiem Ducks | Bakersfield Condors | Utah Grizzlies |
| Arizona Coyotes | Tucson Pirates | Las Vegas Wranglers |
| Boston Bruins | Providence Bruins | Springfield Falcons |
| Buffalo Sabres | Rochester Americans | Elmira Jackals |
| Calgary Flames | Seattle Flames | Alaska Aces |
| Carolina Hurricanes | Charlotte Checkers | South Carolina Sting Rays |
| Chicago Blackhawks | Rockford IceHogs | Indy Fuel |
| Colorado Avalanche | Colorado Eagles | Rapid City Rush |
| Columbus Blue Jackets | Lake Erie Monsters | Toledo Walleye |
| Dallas Stars | Texas Stars | Allen Americans |
| Detroit Red Wings | Grand Rapid Griffins | Kalamazoo Wings |
| Edmonton Oilers | Fort McMurray Oil Barons | Alaska Aces |
| Florida Panthers | Orlando Solar Bears | San Antonio Rampage |
| LA Kings | San Diego Monarchs | Ontario Reign |
| Minnesota Wild | Iowa Wild | Quad City Mallards |
| Montreal Canadians | Laval Bulldogs (Titan) | Saint-Jerome Cyclones (Panthers) |
| Nashville Preditors | Chicago Wolves | Evansville Icemen |
| New Jersey Devils | Albany Devils | Adirondack Flames (Devils) |
| New York Islanders | Bridgeport Sound Tigers | Syracuse Crunch |
| New York Rangers | Hartford Wolf Pack | Binghamton Senators (Rangers) |
| Ottawa Senators | Cornwall Senators | Saint-Jerome Cyclones (Panthers) |
| Philedelphia Flyers | Lehigh Valley Phantoms | Reading Royals |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | Wiles-Barre Penguins | Wheeling Nailers |
| San Jose Sharks | San Fransisco Sharks | Stockton Thunder |
| St. Louis Blues | Missouri Mavericks | Tulsa Oilers |
| Tampa Bay Lightening | Florida Everblades | San Antonio Rampage |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | Toronto Marlies | Brampton Beast |
| Vancouver Canucks | Abbotsford Comets | Idaho Steelheads |
| Washington Capitals | Hershey Bears | Greenville Road Warriors |
| Winnipeg Jets | Thunder Bay Icecaps | Fort Wayne Komets |
