Not enough said.... They should have let Schermerhorn bring in the ECHL franchise years ago. They said thanks but no thanks then, fast forward to know and there are struggles to keep things going, hows that for Nuff said!
how long until the echl will have 31 teams and where you put the teams?
- Thread starter CANADIENSFAN90
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Not enough said.... They should have let Schermerhorn bring in the ECHL franchise years ago. They said thanks but no thanks then, fast forward to know and there are struggles to keep things going, hows that for Nuff said!
I'd like the ECHL to place a team in Dayton or Youngstown so that the Jackets can have a local affiliate...disappointed that Cincy went with the Sabres, not the kind of news the Jackets needed after yet another first round exit at the hands of the Pens.
210
Registered User
CrazyEddie20
Hey RuZZia - Cut Your Losses and Go Home.
It's not about the ECHL placing a team there -- it's about an owner buying an ECHL membership and placing it there.
rumblings are Buffalo uses the E more so than the Blue Jackets do, and the roster limitations the E has in place prospect-wise, are more of an issue....
I agree with several on here that Cornwall would be a better fit. I could even see a world where Cornwall would get Belleville's AHL team following a few token years, with Belleville getting its old Bulls OHL team back. Cornwall should be ripe for CHL expansion/relocation, but its complicated history with the Q (where this version of the Royals has a rich history) and the O (where it didn't, and would be small potatoes - and longer travel, if it went back) means it probably won't get either. Add in the fact a Q team won't happen b/c its in O player territory and its best to consider this market prime AHL/ECHL territory...
...decent rink, close to Laval and a possible Trois Rivieres team ...
On to this fun hypothetical discussion. I've long thought a small four- team division involving Alaska, Prince George BC, Dawson Creek BC and Grande Prairie AB might work.
These centres are too small for AHL, and the WHL won't expand into this area.
Now this idea is far-fetched, moreso now that Western North America isn't represented anymore in the ECHL....but just for fun...
-These would be the three closest rivals Alaska would ever had have.
-For PG, travel to its 2 closest rivals would be closer than it currently is in the WHL with the Cougars.
-This idea was conceived before the Cougars ownership started taking things seriously, and so they had poor attendnace, I figured a league change may help revitalize that.
-Dawson Creek may seem too small, but for some reason the town built a recently built a rink that would work.
-Grande Prairie also has a suitable sized rink.
-This area has some money (surprising, maybe, to some).
-PG (Canucks affiliate), Dawson Creek (Flames), GP (Oilers), Alaska (hypothetical Seattle NHL affiliate - direct flights!)
...thoughts??...never happen eh
Sports Enthusiast
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Sports Enthusiast
Not Here To Be Liked
The city and Adirondack fan base IMO really didn't do right by Barry and Steve. They brought a solid organization to the people of the North County of Upstate NY. They had a very competitive team, they had a cool name and logo in the Adirondack Frostbite, and the team was very well coached until his unfortunate and untimely passing. They brought the UHL All Star game to that city which was a sold out affair, by comparison the ECHL All Star event last winter wasn't even a sell out by nearly 1000 less fans. Barry allegedly angered 'The AHL or nothing" fans and city fathers when he made the statement the AHL outgrew Glens Falls, which it did. The AHL Phantoms and Flames tenure was temporary, fans knew that but didn't want to accept it. Schermerhorn wanted to buy the arena, had an ECHL franchise already locked up, and had the personal capital to make professional hockey work. City Fathers yet again said thanks for your interest, but no thank you...
Agalloch
EliteProspects
any chance some teams in the SPHL 'move up'. I know, it's not working like that but maybe try to buy a franchise in the ECHL.
Like Peoria or Knoxville ?
Like Peoria or Knoxville ?
how much is Peoria a 'damaged market' after the Blues and the Rivermen fiasco of 2005, where they essentially pulled the rug out from Worcester (now Utica)
With the execption of Mississippi and Fayetteville, all SPHL clubs were once ECHL markets. Mississippi and Fayetteville were once in the CHL which was also a AA league like the ECHL. As much as I want Peoria and Evansville out of the SPHL, I think the league is fine where it is at. Its more inexpensive to stay in the SPHL than it is in the ECHL. I would like to see the SPHL expand some more. Maybe some of the old WPHL/CHL markets in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas as well as some old ECHL markets in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and Florida.
I'd like the SPHL to try out more Northern markets abandoned by the ECHL too and change their name to go with it. Markets like Johnstown, Dayton, Trenton, and all that.
you do remember why Roanoke and other markets like them finally said no to pro hockey, Z, IT JUST WASN'T WORTH IT and no assistance from local leaders....
look how long it's taking to reestablish hockey at the ECHL level, in teams 27 and 28 after years at the 2nd highest level, the SPHL isn't going North, when in fact you just saw what Berlin/Danbury just went through as well....
the NAHL and the NA3EHL, have filled that void up here quite well...
Knoxville doesn't have regulation-sized ice. They can't be in an affiliate league because of that. If they get a new arena as proposed in the next couple of years, it may be viable; but I can't see the current ownership group taking on the ECHL. Knoxville is a good enough hockey market to hang in the top 3rd of the league in attendance if they had the right building and ownership. I think the only question mark would be if they had a strong enough sponsorship base to thrive in a bigger league.
royals119
Registered User
Umm Roanoke has a team in the SPHL.
Wheeling doesn't have regulation ice and neither does Kalamazoo. There might be a couple other teams too. Maybe they put in some new rule recently, and they grandfathered current teams? I don't remember hearing about cities being excluded from the ECHL just because of ice size.
210
Registered User
CrazyEddie20
Hey RuZZia - Cut Your Losses and Go Home.
210
Registered User
not that, Royals, the Rebels collapsed years ago, as did the Express, and Roanoke finally said no affiliated pro hockey in that market. IN FACT, WHERE is Roanoke on the SPHL Website.... The Rail Dogs aren't doing all that well
SPHL has: Birmingham, Evansville, Knoxville, Pensacola, Columbus(if it ever gets fixed), Fayetteville....
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Roanoke is the final team listed on the SPHL teams page on the SPHL website. Columbus franchise rights were shifted to Birmingham, the Cottonmouths name is still owned by former owner Wanda Amos, and the guy trying to bring the Columbus Burn to the SPHL expansion application was just terminated.
Roanoke was fifth in the league in attendance last year averaging 3,137. While that would have placed them near the bottom in the ECHL, in SPHL numbers they were middle of the pack which isnt too bad for their first season.
210
Registered User
I applaud you for not giving Hutch a hard time by mentioning that the teams on the SPHL page were listed alphabetically so they're all reasonably easy to find, nor for mentioning to Mr Misinformation that his list is missing a few teams.
Pure Fantasy - off-season special
I'm sure there are plenty of threads about it but I still believe a unified AA to A hockey system is the key to this levels health. I'd love to see the ECHL and SPHL merge to create a 31+ team system.
To make the regions and financial differences work I'd move to a two tier system with promotion and relegation but focused just as much on financial success as on ice.
20 teams in tier 1 split into 2 conferences and 4 divisions. 16 team Kelly Cup championship
The rest (currently 17) in tier 2 split into 2 unbalanced west/east divisions to accommodate regionalism. 12 team playoffs.
Weekly budgets would vary by tier. Player contracts would be transferred at same value. A tiered system may allow teams to move down a level rather than entirely fold. It may add more overall stability.
I don't see it happening but I think there'd be some good benefits.
I'm sure there are plenty of threads about it but I still believe a unified AA to A hockey system is the key to this levels health. I'd love to see the ECHL and SPHL merge to create a 31+ team system.
To make the regions and financial differences work I'd move to a two tier system with promotion and relegation but focused just as much on financial success as on ice.
20 teams in tier 1 split into 2 conferences and 4 divisions. 16 team Kelly Cup championship
The rest (currently 17) in tier 2 split into 2 unbalanced west/east divisions to accommodate regionalism. 12 team playoffs.
Weekly budgets would vary by tier. Player contracts would be transferred at same value. A tiered system may allow teams to move down a level rather than entirely fold. It may add more overall stability.
I don't see it happening but I think there'd be some good benefits.
210
Registered User
There's no benefit at all on the business side for current ECHL owners, so it will never happen.
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