The affiliate thread

and i thought travel was an "issue" when it came to the bigs and their affiliates. in Jan-Mar, they can travel by dog sled (at least through UP Michigan... maybe that's what they're thinking. some teams ownership has really good cost cutting ideas.

 

Because pictures are gooder than words:

 

San Jose is the only team with no sort of ECHL affiliation. In the long term, that's a great way to fuck up player development.

I like that Elmira is about one hour from Rochester and that Rochester is about one hour from Buffalo. It's nice to have one's team in a market that appreciates hockey.

 

I just deleted a post. I thought SJ was going to renew with the Bulls assuming they came back. The Bulls are still dead, whoops.
Here's a list and they even list CHL affiliations.
http://artfulpuck.wordpress.com/2014/08/09/fyi-nhl-team-affiliations-with-ahl-echl-and-chl-teams/

 

I just learned the CHL corporate office is in AZ. The company that owns the CHL is in Dallas.
I don't get it.

 

Correction: The NJ Devils are ECHL/CHL barren too.

Thanks, I always give a + when I get introduced to a new site.

 

I love this logo. The ECHL is fun hockey...

 

nice to see markstrom clear waivers and give the utica comets the chance to play him regularly in case miller goes down. waiving players early, smart. teams are still evaluating 45 players.

 

that makes sense.
I'm surprised that he wasn't grabbed though.

 

One of my favorite logos.

 

Hawks lost a couple players that they waived while trying to time the market. Vancouver got stanton unfortunately, probably the difference between Rockford playing in the spring and staying home and TB claimed Kostka. 2 wasted assets for Chicago.

I'm not so sure the timing was great for Markstrom. A few teams are still weak or questionable at the number 2 goalie slot and many more are very weak at the number 3 goalie slot including Chicago, WPG, BUF, NJ, etc. Markstrom clearing waivers is leading me to one of two conclusions, either he really sucks still, or there is a significant backlog of trades that gms are sitting on.

 

Interesting. I saw Markstrom play in San Antonio and thought he looked pretty good, but of course that was against AHL competition. I hadn't even considered that there may be a lot of possible trades.

Meanwhile I have not heard if Luke Adam has gotten through waivers. He's an AHL star but except for brief flashes has never done anything in Buffalo. I attribute most of that to circumstances, but he may well be a career AHLer. Still, he's a big center and I half expected he'd be claimed.

 

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=XbC8G365SJE[/video]

 

Vancouver's ahl squad is a misnomer, the bestest prospects are in the whl or ohl

 

The ECHL has absorbed the CHL; not a merger, but simply taking over some clubs. The Central Hockey League is now consigned to history.

The seven CHL teams joining the ECHL: the Allen (Texas) Americans, Brampton (Ont.) Beast, Missouri Mavericks, Quad City Mallards (Moline, Ill.), Rapid City (S.D.) Rush, Tulsa (Okla.) Oilers and Wichita (Kan.) Thunder. The ECHL now has a much stronger Midwestern footprint. As discussed before, I believe this presages a grand realignment of minor league hockey including AHL clubs moving to the E, and probably some E cities moving up to the A.

Meanwhile there are no more Denver Cutthroats! Catastrophe!

 

There are now 28 ECHL teams, and 28 NHL teams with single or dual affiliations. The ECHL team map had a yawning gap between Indiana and Utah, and that is now closed. We now see form taking for the "AAA" AHL and "AA" ECHL* that will permit an effective minor league system compared to the hodge podge.

(*) "ECHL" is the league's name, they are no longer the "East Coast Hockey League". I imagine that another name change is in order.

 

flyers moving their AHL team to the allentown/bethlehem area.

 

Cat, I am traveling today so cannot look it up. Who is their ECHL affiliate?

Glens Falls wasted no time replacing the Phantoms with the (Adirondack) Flames.

 

dan - i'm not sure. i thought it was the trenton titans?