AHL expansion?

[bluelinebob]

i have heard rumors that the AHL wants to get into 2 more markets next year and 2 more for 06, bringing a total of 4 new teams into the league .
is there any truth to the rumors?.i knoe about Iowa but who else??? I'll get of the air and listen.
BLUE LINE BOB.............UR DONE!

[HockeyCanuck]

I know that Des Moines, IA is one of the new markets they are going into.

[Geoff]

The Iowa franchise leaves room for only one more team. Per league policy, each team must have an NHL parent club thus only allowing 30 AHL teams at this time.

[Shootmaster_44]

Not that I put much truth into this but yesterday in the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, there was an article detailing a proposed trade between Saskatoon and Edmonton. Apparently, the Oilers want to buy the WHL's Blades and give the Brodsky's (the Blades current owners) the AHL's Roadrunners. I thought the Oilers moved the Roadrunners to Edmonton so they can keep a closer eye on their prospects? Why would they want a WHL team instead?

[HockeyCanuck]

Probably because once the NHL starts back up next season the AHL team wont draw nearly as well as it would in Saskatoon. The WHL team wont cost nearly as much to run either.

[Shootmaster_44]

Yeah could be, but Brodsky says he's not up for it. Too bad actually, I'd like to see AHL hockey here in Saskatoon.

[patmc16]

I'm confused. Is the proposal for the owners of each francise to just swap teams, or to actually move them. I got the impression that the same teams would be in the same cities in the same leagues, but the ownership would switch. Are they looking to move the AHL operation to Saskatoon, and the WHL operation to Edmonton?

[E5]

The Oilers brought the Roadrunners to Edmonton for two reasons: 1. they were forced to take control of the team after it was kicked out of Ricoh, and 2. they wanted something in Rexall place this year. This was the best option after failing to land a WHL team.

Long term, the AHL does not make sense in Edmonton because of the travel. The nearest teams are in Winnipeg and Utah. The cost of travel is ridiculous, especially with the Oilers subsidizing the costs to fly teams into Edmonton.

Saskatoon is much closer to Winnipeg, allowing for bus travel, which would reduce the travel costs, while Edmonton could hope to duplicate the success the Flames have had with the Hitmen in a league with much more managable travel costs.

As for the AHL, there will be only one more team, and it will be in the US midwest. The Flames intend to resurrect their dormant franchise next season. I would guess Des Moines would be the most logical choice. We'll likely have an announcement within a couple months.

[bluelinebob]

i agree its the flames who will bring in a expansion team..but its not iowa. iowa is with the stars......there has been some rumors that Omaha is in line.

[Shootmaster_44]

I'm confused. Is the proposal for the owners of each francise to just swap teams, or to actually move them. I got the impression that the same teams would be in the same cities in the same leagues, but the ownership would switch. Are they looking to move the AHL operation to Saskatoon, and the WHL operation to Edmonton?

The way I understood it was it would be a 1 for 1 swap. The Oilers would gain control of the Blades and the Brodskys would get the Roadrunners. Therefore the Blades would be based in Edmonton and the Roadrunners in Saskatoon. A weird deal if you ask me, since the Brodskys would then have a much higher budget to contend with. He did say that the WHL would probably block any such move as it would kill the other Saskatchewan based teams. How Saskatoon being out of the league would cause Moose Jaw, Swift Current and Regina to die is beyond me. I can see the added travel costs for Prince Albert, so they might be a casualty.

[E5]

i agree its the flames who will bring in a expansion team..but its not iowa. iowa is with the stars......there has been some rumors that Omaha is in line.

Sorry, you are correct. Omaha.

[Mikovio]

Peoria will be one of those teams, it looks like.

http://www.pjstar.com/stories/102704/RIV_B4IBU6IR.082.shtml

The Rivermen were in the IHL until 1996, when they moved to the ECHL. They won two Turner Cups in the IHL and added an ECHL Kelly Cup in 2000, and still hold the record for professional hockey's longest winning streak, and road winning streak.

The move back to AAA-hockey has a lot of central Illinois hockey fans excited....

[HockeyCanuck]

So with Worcester moving to Peoria what will happen to the team there? Will there be no more hockey team in Worcester?

[patmc16]

Worchester would actually be a pretty good fit in the ECHL. They could take Peoria's place in the Northern Division. The 2 leagues could swap cities. Worchester would fit better, geographically, in that division than Peoria does. If Danbury survives, they would also fit in the Eastern division of the UHL, giving it 5 teams like the other divisions have.

Since Peoria would be a reloacted Worchester franchise, that still leaves 1 spot open to get to 30. ????????

[HockeyCanuck]

Maybe the AHL should put that team in a place like Indianapolis, Kansas City or Omaha. Indy and KC supported IHL teams with worse travel in the IHL and Omaha would probably be the best place to have a team now out of the cities with lower than 'AAA' teams.

[bluelinebob]

LOOKS LIKE OMAHA IS GETTING THE FLAMES MINOR LEAGUE TEAM.....

ITS GOING TO BE HOCKEY TIME IN OMAHA ONCE AGAIN......******************THE OMAHA KNIGHTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[HockeyCanuck]

Where did you see that Omaha is getting the Flames farm team? I haven't seen anything on the NHL, AHL or Flames websites at all.

[bluelinebob]

Its all over the local fish wraps.....nothing offical yet just putting finishing touches on the contracts..........

omahaworldherald.com

blb

[Pounder]

Is it asking too much to request a true western division to service the western NHL teams?

[bluelinebob]

no.........But hold your breath nothing has been offcial yet :?

[Connecticut/ Hockey Ed]

Danbury Connecticut Trashers team is owned by a fairly wealthy fellow. Mr. Galante the team owner(Danbury Trashers) tried to buy the old New Haven Knights/ UHL franchise which folded due to the closure of the New Haven Colisieum which is vacant but still standing. The Danbury Ice Arena was a one thousand seat skating rink which has been converted due to some nifty engineering into a 2200 seat arena. Most games on the weekend are close to capacity/standing room only sellouts. The Trashers game /fan support is decent considering how small their facility really is.. Worcester would be better off in the UHL. I understand the Worcester area hockey fans are unhappy with the AHL Ice Cats to Peoria move announced just as the AHL season got underway. They would be happy in the UHL.

[board2death]

why would Iowa get a team? they can't even fill the Mac dome with Marios Lancers! Yeah it's juniors but I see a much bigger market in Nebraska (home of the Lancers, when they could pack the fans to the ceiling) I say bring on the Flames Farm team.. i'll by season tickets!

[Pounder]

Politicians always want a sports anchor when they build a new arena. Since AHL will be "bigger time" than juniors (like I'm going to tiptoe through a minefield), Des Moines will draw better than for juniors, initially. Whether that could happen in Portland is another matter...

...which brings me to my next question. Yo, Shoot!

Last I read was that the Edmonton for Saskatoon trade proposal fell through. Meanwhile, this article had mentioned that the Road Runners were in talks with another WHL city for the same deal.

Apparently, Portland is the main rumored city. Seattle is also in the mix.

Have you seen anything about this, any updates, or any other rumors? Anything?

[rams80]

Whenever I hear rumors about pro hockey coming to Portland or Seattle, its almost always involving an NHL team moving. If travel costs are supposedly a problem now with the Roadrunners in Edmonton, I cannot help but think that they would be an even bigger problem if the team were in Portland, with Utah becoming the closest team to them. I believe that if one were talking about a pro league ending up in Portland/Seattle, it would be either the NHL or the ECHL, not the AHL.

[Shootmaster_44]

Yo, Shoot!

Last I read was that the Edmonton for Saskatoon trade proposal fell through. Meanwhile, this article had mentioned that the Road Runners were in talks with another WHL city for the same deal.

Apparently, Portland is the main rumored city. Seattle is also in the mix.

Have you seen anything about this, any updates, or any other rumors? Anything?

I haven't seen anything. I'm not up on the WHL that much only hear things from the newspaper here in Saskatoon. Sadly, they cover the Blades ad nauseaum, the rest of the league almost ceases to exist.

[Pounder]

Whenever I hear rumors about pro hockey coming to Portland or Seattle, its almost always involving an NHL team moving. If travel costs are supposedly a problem now with the Roadrunners in Edmonton, I cannot help but think that they would be an even bigger problem if the team were in Portland, with Utah becoming the closest team to them. I believe that if one were talking about a pro league ending up in Portland/Seattle, it would be either the NHL or the ECHL, not the AHL.

You, of course, make excellent sense, which we all know means the owners in question aren't using it.

Mind you, I always felt that most of the WCHL teams that are now in the ECHL could easily make a viable and profitable AHL Western Division. At the rate the ECHL is going, it'll be an all-western league all too soon. May as well let the AHL step in.

[wetdawg]

Ok this is wierd i heard that the AHL is looking into Birmingham Al. I heard that this afternoon. Am I crazy or is it possible?

[Pounder]

I heard that the owner of the SEHL team (the league that isn't playing this year because they have three teams, liberally estimated) in Birmingham is trying to lure the AHL there. It doesn't sound like a very effective effort, or at least was portrayed to me as a bit of a joke.

In this environment, just about anything is possible. Whether it is likely, or intelligent, is another matter.

[Shootmaster_44]

Now I'm kind of hazy on why the Rockets are now in Kelowna, but didn't the WHL's Tacoma Rockets routinely draw over 10,000 per game? Why doesn't the AHL look at placing a team there? Another possibility would be a team in an NHL city. Montreal would be a distinct possibility or at least one of the suburbs. I think the NHL will be closed for another season, so why not capitalize on the strong hockey tradition in Montreal? Of course for it to fly, they would need to change their affiliation from Hamilton to the new Montreal team.

One question, is the AHL/NHL going to limit the AHL at 30 teams? Or if they reach 30 teams and each is an affiliate of someone, will they add more teams to be independent clubs like the IHL had?

[Pounder]

When the Rockets were in Tacoma, they had a handful of games over 10,000. "Routinely" isn't the word I'd use.

The T-Dome is a BIG building, the rent ain't cheap, and it has to be a bit expensive to maintain. The sightlines for hockey weren't very good when the Rockets were there. Some realignments made for the WCHL Sabercats were an improvement, but not good enough to reach what the Rockets did. There has been a lot of talk, for a long time, about renovating the Dome into more of a standard arena (it hosts full-field football games), and Tacoma is no closer to a decision than when the talk started.

I believe the AHL wants to go to 30 and stay there. The question out here has been whether the western NHL teams want their AHL affiliates closer to home. There seems to be a tug of war waiting for one of two outcomes- either (1) another team moves out west, which would likely start a major movement, or (2) Utah's ownership sells to Eastern interests. Both have been discussed lately. Stay tuned.

[E5]

I believe the AHL passed a resolution a few years ago requiring all franchises to have an NHL affiliation. Basically, the AHL capped itself at how many teams the NHL has.

Tacoma and Portland dont make sense for the same reason Edmonton doesnt make sense: the travel. Hell, both Tacoma and Portland will be even worse off than the Roadrunners are in Edmonton.

[Pounder]

Consider this possibility:

Portland ends up going with, oh, San Diego, Fresno, Bakersfield, Victoria, and perhaps someone else en masse into the AHL. Most of the western NHL teams really would like to save on the cost of flying callups to the big house. There might even be some marketing advantages to doing this for the new AHL markets... at least some emphasis should be placed on "might," of course.

This kind of rumor has circulated previously.

The fate of Utah, not Edmonton, probably determines what happens next.

[SuperSonicStuart]

I wish Kansas City had an AHL team or at least I wish the Kansas City Blades moved to the AHL back when the IHL folded. But then we ended up with an UHL team, the Kansas City Outlaws and I did like the Kansas City Outlaws but I think I liked the Kansas City Blades better because the Blades were a higher level hockey team than the Outlaws. But Kansas City hopefully will get an NHL team for the Sprint Center in Downtown Kansas City!