Vancouver Canucks Renew ECHL Affiliate Deal with the Kalamazoo Wings
August 20, 2014 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Utica Comets News Release
Vancouver, B.C. - Vancouver, B.C. - Vancouver Canucks President Trevor Linden announced today that the Canucks have renewed their ECHL affiliate deal with the Kalamazoo Wings.
"We are pleased to continue our partnership with the Kalamazoo Wings," said Canucks President of Hockey Operations Trevor Linden. "Kalamazoo is an organization that shares our level of commitment to success and we will continue to work together to provide our prospects with opportunities to further develop on and off the ice."
The K-Wings were 2009.10, 2010.11, 2011.12, and 2013.14 champions of the ECHL's North Division.
"The entire Vancouver Canucks organization has been amazing to work with and we are elated to continue our relationship," said K-Wings Director of Hockey Operations and Head Coach Nick Bootland. "With being in constant communication with Lorne Henning and Pat Conacher, our ability to develop their prospects and bolster our lineup makes this a great fit for our organization."
The K-Wings originally played in the International Hockey League (IHL) from 1974 through 1999 before joining the United Hockey League (UHL) from 2000 to 2006. The K-Wings entered the newly re-established IHL from 2007 to 2009 before most recently joining the ECHL to start the 2009.10 season.
With renewal of this agreement, it marks the 12th occasion that the K-Wings have had an NHL affiliation and the third ECHL season with Vancouver, who Kalamazoo was affiliated with from 1984-87 when the K-Wings were a member of the IHL.
The K-Wings previously played in the ECHL's North Division where they have finished first overall for four seasons. This season, Kalamazoo will compete in the Midwest Division, which features Kalamazoo, as well as the Colorado Eagles, Evansville IceMen, Fort Wayne Komets, and Indy Fuel.
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