Category Archives: realignment

Rivermen franchise sold to Canucks…. what other AHL teams might move as well?

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I was hoping to have trade deadline updates, but it’s been pretty slow today.  So instead let’s see if I can get all of this franchise movement straight….

According to the knowledgeable Dave Eminian in Peoria, moves are still in the works following the April 1 (not fools) announcement that the Rivermen had been sold.

The Vancouver Canucks have purchased the Peoria Rivermen from the St. Louis Blues, but it seems that the Canucks have no interest in moving their AHL affiliation from Chicago (where it is currently, and has been for two seasons) to Peoria, a couple of hours away.  Ideally, they want to move their team to Abbotsford, where Calgary’s franchise currently plays and has a long-term lease.

Minnesota had been working on a deal that would move their AHL team (currently the Houston Aeros) closer to them in Des Moines, Iowa.  That deal is allegedly on hold (or cancelled altogether) and Peoria is being considered as an another site.

Calgary wants to move their AHL franchise to Utica, NY, but first has to find a way out of their lease and agreements with the city of Abbotsford.   The other moves make a lot of sense, but moving an AHL team for a far-west team like Calgary to the middle of upstate New York doesn’t make sense to me.  Sure, travel would be a breeze for a team in Utica (Binghamton, Albany, Glen Falls, Syracuse and Rochester are all within a couple of hours of Utica…) but easy travel is a small part of operating a successful franchise, and call-ups would be a hassle. Ticket sales and sponsorship revenue is incredibly important to running a successful sports franchise, but if Calgary thinks there is enough potential in Utica, a city of 62,000 people, then I say go for it.  Clearly, the AHL has done well in small towns in New England for a long time, and expanding to major markets outside of that small region doesn’t seem to be a focus of the league.

As a fan of the sport of hockey, and a team outside of the north east, I’m disappointed that this kind of move would be approved by the league and the Board of Governors.  I don’t think that oversaturating New York and the north east with yet another team is going to help the AHL brand, or the league itself.  If the AHL brand is to grow and expand, it needs to be in recognizable markets with the potential for growth. In cities where there is real name recognition and the opportunity to reach a totally new audience.

 

Other odds and ends from the east (the AHL conference I admittedly don’t pay enough attention to) that also may affect franchise movement:

  • Any move of a western team (Abbotsford or Peoria) to New York means the Western Conference divisions will have to be re-worked again. Just for fun, can the Checkers move to the division with Rochester, Hamilton and Toronto? Maybe then Charlotte will actually play those teams.  Plus, four divisions and two conferences in four years would be a pretty epic stat, eh?
  • Allentown, PA will have a completed arena in 2014, and the plan is to move the Adirondak Phantoms out of Glen Falls, New York.
  • There’s plenty of chatter about the desire for the NY Rangers to move their team in Hartford to Bridgeport. I have no idea where the Sound Tigers/Islanders would go, but the rumors are out there.  There’s also the possibility of moving the Rangers team (currently the Whale) to Glen Falls.
  • I’m probably missing some of the chatter… what have you heard?

An opinionated, slightly snarky take on the Checkers move to the new South division.

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Big big news out of the AHL today. Some interesting rule changes, but most importantly for Checkers fans, another division change.  The full release is here.

For the third time in three years, the Charlotte Checkers will play in a new division.  Three years ago, it was because Michael Kahn (THANKFULLY) bought the River Rats and moved them to Charlotte, so the AHL placed the Checkers in a division with the likes of Hershey, Norfolk, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and others.  Next season, Charlotte will be a part of the newly named South Division, which includes Texas, San Antonio, Houston and Oklahoma City.

Last season, the AHL announced a major realignment, which in a controversial decision, moved the Checkers to the Midwest division.  I was a huge proponent of this move.  I did gobs (that’s a technical term!) of research, and wrote a couple of different pieces on it.  This one, more general and reactionary, and this one, which lists all of the benefits of joining the Midwest division.

The Midwest division was a good one for Charlotte.  Heck, the entire West was a good place for Charlotte to play as far as numbers are concerned. Other than the East division and those Calder Cup winning Norfolk Admirals and Hershey Bears, the Checkers were nearly dominating in their Western Conference play.  Just look at these numbers:

Midwest West (South) North East
Charlotte 19-11-0-2 11-11-1-1 5-1-1-1 3-6-1-2
 So the Midwest division was a good fit for Charlotte.  On the three-in-three weekends, the team would generally fly into Chicago or Milwaukee, and bus from there.  I did the roadtrip twice (once in the dead of winter, once in the spring) so I have a pretty good idea at what road-travel to Illinois and Wisconsin is like, and none of the cities are more than 3-4 hours apart, and the drives were relatively pleasant.
The Texas (and Oklahoma) teams are a different beast. They aren’t as close together.  The Checkers flew from one city to the next on most occasions, especially if they were in Oklahoma City.  That meant 4 or 5 a.m. wake up calls, to take a bus and hop on a plane, where the players and personnell had the “privilege” of experiencing the Dallas-Ft. Worth airport for a layover, to finally make it to their destination around lunch time for an evening or late afternoon game.  Travel was BRUTAL for those Texas weekends.  (I could write an essay on the sponsorship agreement the Checkers have with a major airline and how that might help the pockets of the organization, but hurts the play of the team, but that’s for another time and place.)  I firmly believe that a 3-4 hour bus ride following a game is better than a 4 a.m. wakeup call to fly to the next city, and that opinion comes from YEARS of traveling with a theater company for work.  Busing short distances is far superior to flights with layovers at odd times of the morning and night.
I guess my opinionated self just doesn’t buy that this is going to be a good move for the Checkers.  It seems unfair to the organization and the fans, who are getting tossed around again, and will have no chance at establishing the great rivalries that being a Hockey fan are built on.  It’s not fair to the team or it’s amazing fans to keep moving them around from division to division.
As the summer continues, I’ll have some get-to-know you pieces about the Checkers new division mates.  I’m hesitant to use the term rivals anymore, since a rival insinuates there’s an ongoing relationship between the organizations, and at the rate the Checkers are going, they might be playing in a division with Toronto, Hamilton and Abbotsford in 2013!
 I should stop writing and let some of my bitterness simmer down….
I will have more on the other (exciting) rule changes and what to expect out of the 2012-13 season in the coming days.
A few thoughts before I sign off:
  • July 1 is only three days away.  What UFA’s would you like to see the Hurricanes and Checkers target?  Jonathan Bombulie, who writes for the WBS Penguins, wrote an INCREDIBLE piece that lists and ranks the top 250 (and more) AHL UFA’s.  Any names you’d like to see in Charlotte?
  • Paul Branecky wrote an interesting piece this morning on the plight of the goaltenders in the Hurricanes organization.  It seems Brian Boucher is injured, and will miss two to four months of the season, leaving the Hurricanes without a number two, and John Muse the only other goaltender signed and in the system.   Here’s Capgeek’s list of UFA goalies.  Who should the Hurricanes target? Some interesting names are available, including Carolina’s Justin Peters.  While the Hurricanes drafted two goalies this year, I still think they may need to sign two immediately that can play this season at the NHL or AHL level.
Stay cool!

Thoughts about the NHLPA’s no-go on realignment

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I’d thought about mentioning this, but since it’s an NHL issue and doesn’t directly affect the AHL and Checkers, I decided against it.  Until I read Jason Shaya’s commentary about the situation in his weekly ten thoughts, and figured I’d offer a stab at it, and share my opinions.

Two months ago, the NHL announced this grand realignment plan that would divide the 30 teams into four divisions, and have every team in the NHL play each other twice, and within each division, teams would play each other six times each.  For the most part, the divisions were divided geographically, with the exception of the two Florida teams, which were lumped in with the teams in Eastern Canada, forcing them to travel a few extra times across the border for games.

The teams all voted, and 26 of 30 said yes to the new realignment.  (I’m assuming, that since the Phoenix Coyotes are “owned” and operated by the NHL that their voting right was with the NHL, but I could be wrong.)

So yesterday, over a month after the alignment deal got the NHL stamp of approval, the NHLPA said NO GO, as the players association had determined it unfair.  As Jason Shaya mentioned in his ten thoughts, just weeks ago the players were enthusiastic about the deal, but are now being forced to side with the NHLPA and it’s decision that the new alignment goes against the current Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Now, here’s where I feel I have to insert my own personal experience with unions (even though the NHLPA claims to be an “Association” and not a “Union”, in this case, it’s the same thing.)

I’m a very proud, and card-carrying member of a Union.  I live and work in a “Right to work” state, but my Union membership has benefited me a great deal, and without it, I would be

My union "bug"... you've probably seen it in the credits of just about every TV show and movie you've watched. Look for it in the upcoming Hunger Games film, which I worked on last summer!

lucky to be making minimum wage.  In a business that relies on hundreds of independent freelancers to work on shows, movies, events, etc., my membership in the I.A.T.S.E. (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees) is the one unifying thing I have with my colleagues.  It’s an organization that is responsible for the behind-the-scenes works in films and television, Broadway shows, and large concerts and events all over the world.  The local in Charlotte gives all of us who freelance the ability to negotiate with employers on wages, benefits, working conditions, etc., and allows the companies we work with in Charlotte to have the most skilled, experienced and educated staff possible for their events where safety, skills, timeliness and experience are of the utmost concern.

With this in mind, and my personal experience with the I.A.T.S.E., I know all Unions aren’t like this.  Some have gotten out of control as far as strikes, wage demands, etc. are concerned.  I’ve heard stories about pilots unions forcing flights to be delayed and faking mechanical concerns just to make a point and get what they want as far as wages, etc., but that’s not been my personal experience.

So the NHLPA is saying they are vetoing the move by the NHL to have a four-division realignment.  From what I’ve read and heard, one of the biggest issues they are citing is travel.  The teams in Florida and Eastern Canada, in particular, are going to have to go through the hardship of clearing customs a couple of extra times a year, and that takes about 90 minutes each way to do, which on top of a long flight over the east coast, makes travel a hassle.

But when I think about the benefit to the league… to EVERY SINGLE TEAM in the 30-team league, I’m overwhelmed.  For example, having a team like the Red Wings in Raleigh every year would be a huge boost to ticket sales, not to mention facing teams like the Penguins, Rangers and Devils three times each at home.  For the Canadian fans who love to travel to warm places, fans in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa would be able to travel to Florida three times a year, where what they pay for tickets is probably 1/5 of what they would at home in Canada.

So for the NHLPA to cite “travel hassles,” I’m having a hard time getting on board.  They travel in luxurious, private charter planes.  The teams often fly out of private airports that make security easier to manage, and while I’m sure it sucks to go through customs a couple of extra time, isn’t that why the 700 or so players in the NHL, as top-tier athletes and therefore compensated greatly to play a sport, do exactly that, when there are millions who only dream of that kind of opportunity?

This year, the Montreal Canadians have to clear customs about 26 times at the most, assuming all games are one offs when they come to the U.S. (which of course, they rarely are).  Next year, under the new now-defunct realignment, they’d have to clear it at the maximum, 34 times.  Tampa Bay, on the other hand, currently only has to cross the border for games approximately seven or eight times, and the new alignment would require them to go to Canada for 12 games.

But really, in the whole scheme of things, what amounts to an extra hour here and there, is that REALLY worthy of throwing the whole scenario down the toilet? I don’t think so.

I guess I keep coming back to the travel issue because it’s such a hot button topic with me, personally.  In the last workplace negotiations I faced that almost resulted in my co-workers signing an agreement with a union to allow them to negotiate for us, we were faced with major workplace changes, and travel situations that were much more complex than an extra 90 minutes 5 or 6 times a year.  We wanted fair turnarounds between shows and performances, and compensation when that wasn’t possible.  We would leave one show, have to DRIVE a 24′ truck to another state, and then load in another show, all within an eight-hour window.  No time to sleep, no hotels between events, nothing.  That to me is something worthy of a discussion, but not when we’re talking private planes and a whole assembly of staff who take care of the details, handle the luggage and gear, and so on, it just seems like it’s less of a hassle in the whole scheme of things.

The NHLPA says that the change in divisions essentially changed the nature of the job, and the contracts players signed with their respective teams.  They also say the NHL didn’t come forward with an example of what the schedule might look like next year even though it was requested.  I’m not saying that creating a 30-team schedule is a breeze, but wouldn’t it have been worth the effort by the NHL to create a hypothetical one based on this years dates, conflicts, etc. so the NHLPA could have all of the information they requested?  I thought it was fishy from the beginning that the NHL didn’t fully list what divisions would play each other in the playoffs, and how the Stanley Cup finals would be reached, but to completely shut down the proposal I think is a step in the wrong direction for both parties, especially with a Collective Bargaining Agreement that’s set to expire this year.

 

So Checkers fans… what are your thoughts?

 

 

 

 

 

The one about the Peoria Rivermen

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And now for the second installment of the “Getting to know the Midwest Division.”  Before I begin, I have to give a shoutout to the Admirals Roundtable for getting the ball rolling and giving me the idea to do this!

If you missed the first post, here’s the Q&A with the Admirals Roundtable.

Zachary at the Lets Go Rivs  blog was kind enough to answer my questions, both serious and not-so-serious.  You can follow the blog on twitter at @LetsGoRivs

Another plug about this experience is by “meeting” fellow bloggers in Milwaukee and now Peoria, I’ve guaranteed two beers when I visit their arenas this season.  (And of course, I will be returning the favor if and when they come to Charlotte!)  I still need to follow up with Zachary on what the heck a “Prancer” is, and why that was the name of the hockey team that pre-dates the Rivermen…  Take note of where he predicts the midwest team ranks.  I like it.

So without further adieu…

1.  What can you tell us about hockey in Peoria?  What’s the history of the team, and hockey in the community?  How has the city embraced the team, and the team the city?  Do the Riverman get regular media coverage?  Anyone Checkers fans should follow in the media or with the team to keep abreast of one of our new rivals?

The Peoria metro is actually several small communities anchored by the City of Peoria. Therefore, the hockey community in Peoria actually draws from several towns. There are two organizations in the area for youth hockey, one centered in Pekin, and the Peoria Youth Hockey Association (PHYA).

We are a small hockey community, really, but we are very tightly bound together. The youth hockey associations and the Rivermen have a very good working relationship, and as such the hockey families are really rabid about supporting and cheering for the Rivermen. Some of the nights the kids talk about the most is when they get to play in front of the crowd at intermission. The Rivermen staff do it up right, sounding the horn when the kids score, and the crowd cheers for each team as if they were their own kids.  With the Blackhawks winning the Stanley Cup in 2010 and Team USA’s silver medal in the Olympics there has been a significant uptick in interest in hockey in the area, and this can only be viewed as a good thing. I coach my son’s mini-mite team, and along with other coaches and the Rivermen we have over 100+ kids just in the 4-6 age bracket alone hooked on hockey. On game nights it isn’t uncommon to see parents, players, or other coaches in the stands. We know each other very well, and all of us really gather around the Rivermen.

I wouldn’t call Peoria a hockey town, at least not right now, but the Rivermen are working to change that. We have decent attendance on the “off nights”, though it could be better. I like to think of the Rivermen as the hidden gem of the sports world in Peoria. Most of the media coverage in the fall goes to the Bears, Bradley University basketball, and then a mention of the Rivermen. It’s okay, though, because those of us who go to the games all the time know that this is our team, and I think that the players know that they have a very,very dedicated core.

Media members to keep an eye on:

Dave Eminian – Peoria Journal-Star Rivermen beat writer. There are times when Mr. Eminian and I do not agree on the finer points of the game, but he is a great guy to have as the beat writer for the Rivermen. Rumor has it he is joining Twitter soon… stay tuned.

Brendan Burke – Rivermen play-by-play man on the radio. Great guy to listen to call a game. He just has a touch. Knowledgeable about the game, does it all without a color analyst and makes it sound seamless. Follow him on Twitter @brendanmburke

As for history, the franchise of the Peoria Rivermen has been around since the 1982-83 season when it was known as the Peoria Prancers. The following year the name changed to the Rivermen and every team to play in Peoria since has had that name regardless of league affiliation. There is a Kelly Cup championship in the team history as well, coming in 1999-2000 season.

The Rivermen have been in the AHL since the 2005-06 season, with 2011-12 marking our seventh year in the league. All seven have been with a St. Louis Blues affiliation. We’ve been to the playoffs three times, all three times opening round losses against the Houston Aeros, twice being swept out, and once losing a game 7 on home ice. If I never see Houston in a playoff game again it will be too soon.

2.  Do the Rivermen have icegirls/cheerleaders?  Are they well received?  In a fight between a Hurricane flag waving polar bear, and a Riverman, who would win?

Continue reading →

The one about Brett Bellemore, and the Checkers need for more veteran defensemen

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The Carolina Hurricanes announced that defenseman Brett Bellemore has signed a two-year two-way contract, beginning with the 2011/2012 season.  Bellemore, 23, spent the past two full seasons in the Hurricanes organization at the AHL level with Albany, and most recently the Checkers.  Prior to that, he spent four seasons with the Plymouth Whalers of the OHL.

Bellemore will be another welcome addition to the Checkers line up.  Last season, he was Michal Jordan’s defense partner.  Assuming the two stay together, I’d expect more great things out of that combination.

Bellemore’s two years of AHL experience make him our most experienced defenseman.

The Chasing Checkers contract spreadsheets have been updated to reflect this signing.

 

Hurricanes and Defense:

Currently, the Hurricanes have seven defenseman under contract who will probably begin the season with them in Raleigh.  For their minor league squad, including Bellemore, seven defenseman are under contract, two of whom (Justin Kruegar and Tommi Kivisto) have European transfer agreements and contracts and can choose not to play in North America.

Other defenseman include Michal Jordan, who spent the entire season in Charlotte last year, Kyle Lawson who played all but 18 games in Florida, Rasmus Rissanen who played one game for Charlotte, and Justin Faulk who played two rounds of the playoffs with Charlotte.  Needless to say, it’s a very young squad that still lacks veteran leadership.  Hopefully the Hurricanes will complete contract negotiations with Bobby Sanguinetti, and either re-sign Casey Borer or find another skilled veteran defenseman.

If I had my choice, that veteran would be two-time Calder Cup Champion Andre Benoit.  He had 55 points last year (11G, 44A) and served as an Alternate Captain with the Binghamton Senators.  Benoit’s fast, offensive style of play would be a huge benefit to the Checkers, especially with the loss of Bryan Rodney on defense.  Of course, I’m hearing rumors of Benoit going back to Europe, but if he ended up in Charlotte, I’d be incredibly happy.

 

Schedule rumors and realignment:

Many feared that realignment might mean the end of interconference play.  Thanks to a buddy (@MarkRAndrews) on Twitter, I got a glimpse at what teams the still-unnamed St. John’s team is going to play.  They will face two western teams (Toronto and Hamilton) eight times each, and won’t play all 14 Eastern opponents.  I think this leaves hope for us Checkers fans who still want to see some of the Eastern teams we faced during our inaugural season.  Hopefully, we find out sooner than later what the verdict is going to be!

 

Thoughts to ponder:

  • I have a blank, black Checkers third jersey in my closet.  I hate blank jerseys.  But I have no idea who’s name or number to put on it.  Suggestions?
  • Has everyone bought their tickets to the Hurricanes/Jets preseason game?  I’m excited about where I’m sitting… in the GOOD seats at center ice, as opposed to the cheap-os I usually sit in (though I did upgrade from the five hole section this year!)!
  • Coming in a few days, a Q&A with the guys over at Admiral’s Roundtable.  They’ve got some great insight on their city, team and division.  Look for it mid-week!

Quick Hits – More realignment news, Canes signings and Checkers losses, and a plea for Terry for Captain!

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A few thoughts a day after the big realignment announcement was made:

  • I did some quick hypothetical plane ticket buying research.  The average price of a flight to Chicago is only $238.  Average price of a roundtrip flight to Harrisburg, PA (for a Hershey/WBS/Binghamton roadtrip) was $348.
  • You’d drive 488 miles between Chicago and the other Midwest cities in a big loop from Chicago, to Milwaukee, Rockford, Peoria, then back to Chicago.
  • You’d drive 602 miles from Harrisburg/Hershey to Wilkes-Barre, Binghamton, Albany and back to Harrisburg.  (Putting Norfolk in the mix made the trip closer to 1000 miles)
  • If you were to drive to Chicago and hit every city in a Midwest division roadtrip, you’d drive 1864 miles.  An East division roadtrip (to Norfolk, Hershey, Binghamton, and Wilkes-Barre) is nearly 1473 miles, and lots of back roads.  Chicago is interstate the whole way!
  • I found another midwest division blog last night for the Peoria Rivermen.  Check it out!  http://rivermenblog.wordpress.com/  Three of the five teams in our division have fan run blogs, which I think is pretty great.  I plan to do a quick review of our new division rivals soon, and will post it here at Chasing Checkers.
Checkers Quick HIts:
  • The Charlotte Observer did a piece on the move west, highlighting the travel situation and how it won’t change much for the Checkers.  It will even be shorter flights for the team by flying to Chicago or Milwaukee on direct flights.  (I’m sure Bobby Goepfert will be happy to hear that!  Less puddle jumper planelets and non-direct flights!)
  • The Hurricanes made a big trade yesterday, sending Joe Corvo to the reigning Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins in exchange for a fourth round pick.  I must admit, I didn’t follow the deal too closely, but a fourth round pick seems like a pretty unequal swap, unless the Hurricanes were desperate to dump some salary.  They also signed UFA Defenseman Tomas Kaberle to a three-year deal.  We’ll see how it pans out for the Canes… they have veteran Defensemen now in Raleigh, I’m just not sold they are the right veterans for the job.  But this is why I am a Checkers fan first, and only follow the Hurricanes from a very outside perspective!
  • Former Checkers captain Bryan Rodney signed a one-year deal with Anaheim.  I will miss his veteran leadership.  He was a great inaugural captain, and spent time in Raleigh during parts of the past three seasons.  His experience will be missed, and he leaves a huge void on the blue line as far as veteran leadership is concerned.  Sometimes I wonder if Corey Perry, 2011 Hart Trophy winner and Rocket Richard winner has an influence on his team signing his former teammates from the London Knights.  Last summer, Danny Syvret, the Captain of the Knights when Perry, Rodney and Syvret won the Memorial Cup in 2005, signed a deal with Anaheim as well.
  •  I can’t decide if signs, posters, a letter-writing campaign or a written petition are my best bet to begin the “Chris Terry for 2011 Captain” campaign.  He’s a former winner for his leadership in Plymouth, where he was team captain and the inaugural winner of the Mickey Renaud Trophy for the Captain of the Year in the OHL.

The one where Charlotte becomes a member of the Western Conference

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Clearly, I was five minutes late and a dollar short when I made my post a bit ago.  I didn’t know the deal was done with realignment because I was too focused on writing, and not reading Twitter.  I’m going to leave that one as it is, because it was more of an analysis about last season and the four division format of the AHL of the past.

So Charlotte is a member of the Midwest Division, in the Western Conference.  It’s a bit ironic, because we are nowhere close to the Midwest, and certainly not what I’d consider “west”, but if we had to move conferences, I think I like this better than being with the Texas teams.  Honestly, I don’t think it’s going to be drastically different being in a group of teams that includes Chicago, Peoria, Rockford and Milwaukee (Check out the Admirals Roundtable, a FANTASTIC blog), then it was facing Adirondak, Albany, Binghamton, Wilkes-Barre, Hershey and Syracuse.  All of the new Midwest teams are close together (no more than about 3 hours or so apart), so the travel there may even be better than what we had this season.  We were still flying to most Eastern cities and busing around, and now we get to go to larger markets in NBA caliber arenas, as opposed to small towns like Binghamton and Glen Falls, New York.

What the 2011/12 AHL is going to look like divisionally

The key to this realignment is going to be what the AHL decides to do with the schedule.  I HOPE they don’t try and force the NHL format onto the AHL, because playing the majority of our games in the West would be a bummer, but if we can get the Rochester treatment where we play lots of teams in our division, but can still have Eastern Conference road trips, I think we’re going to be ok.  As I mentioned in my earlier post, Rochester only played 40 games in their own conference last year, all of which were against their own division, and their other 40 games were against teams in the East that were closer to them than Texas or Oklahoma.

The AHL Board of Governors also announced a change to the playoff format that mimics the NHL with the top three seeds getting guaranteed playoff berths, and the remaining five spots going to the next highest teams in points, regardless of division.  (The first round will be a best of five series, which I still vehemently oppose).

It’s going to take some time to sink in, but I think this could be an ok thing…. as long as the schedule (that I’m even MORE anxious for!) is fair to all parties involved.

The one about AHL realignment

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Probably the biggest hot-button topic of those of us who follow the AHL is the idea of realignment. It’s a pretty broad term, and i have no idea what direction the AHL may head. At the minimum, they have to decide what division to put the new team (St. John’s), and if the East and West will remain mostly the same otherwise, but there’s a huge possibility of large-scale realignment, that may include moving from the current four-division format to a six-division format that mirrors the NHL. The difference, of course, is that the NHL has teams with unlimited travel budgets, charter planes, and the teams are more evenly distributed throughout the US and Canada.

The AHL as it stands now with four divisions and two conferences

Now, I must preface my thoughts with the fact I’m not an expert on this, at all.  I’m a new AHL fan, and I admittedly have a most vested interest in the Charlotte Checkers, but I have a pretty good grasp (I think) on the AHL structure, and how they do things, right or wrong.  As I sat down to write this, I thought I had an opinion on realignment, and what I thought the solution would be.  Now that I’ve read some of the data I dug up, I’m even more perplexed as to what the solution might be.  I guess I’m lucky that I’m an unpaid writer, and not someone who has to know how to fix it, because I’m still pretty lost.  Like any good student and writer, the first thing I did was research.  And when I say research, I mean spend hours compiling spreadsheets and comparing and contrasting different teams travel schedules.  I didn’t do all 30 teams… but I did try and pick one from each major region of the AHL to illustrate the variety of schedules.

The rationale behind four divisions has long been a playoff format that facilitates the first two rounds being divisionally based is outdated for the current AHL.  Charlotte, in all three rounds of the playoffs, still had to fly to their opponent’s city, despite the AHL’s setup that allows teams to play teams “close to home.”  Six divisions would eliminate the division-based playoffs, and may benefit a formula of who plays who like you see in the NHL, but otherwise, I’m not sure if I can see a huge benefit to it.

As it stands now, while there are four divisions and two conferences, for the most part, teams are given some freedom in determining their schedule.  There aren’t rules as far as how many times each team must play others in their division or conference, unlike in the NHL where there is a black and white formula of division teams are played six times, conference (but non-division) are four times, and opposite conference are played two times, plus three wild-card games.  It’s easy to figure out, and makes sense for the NHL, however It is NOT a formula that the AHL could easily adopt.

The problem with the AHL is you’ve got over half of the league in a tiny geographic region (New England, New York, PA and the edge of Ontario.  There are about 13 other teams spread from Abbotsford, B.C., to Texas, to North Carolina, to St. John’s, NL and of course the Illinois/Milwaukee pocket of teams.  A formula doesn’t work.  I think the focus needs to be less on division alignment and more on a better dispersal of road games that balances out the travel burden a bit more efficiently.

Some teams are more willing to travel out of choice, and not just necessity.  Basically, a team can say “Sure, we’ll fly 3,000 miles to play out of our division” and it can happen.  For example, the Penguins played a number of Western Conference teams in 2010/11, including Abbotsford, Manitoba, Toronto and Rochester. Honestly though, when you look at the big picture, two games in Manitoba and two in Abbotsford really just amounted to two major plane trips, because the vast majority of the rest of their games were accessible via bus, including the games in Toronto and Rochester of the Western Conference.

Some teams played almost exclusively in their geographic area, regardless of what conference or division they were in.  Connecticut is an example of a team with one of the easiest travel schedules.  While they did play Western teams (two teams with four games total), it was only Toronto and Hamilton, which are about 45 minutes apart, and would easily be knocked out on one roadtrip.  They traveled to Charlotte twice, which was the farthest place they played during the season.  They played Bridgeport, Springfield and Providence 10 times each, and for all of those games, it’s unlikely the teams would even require a hotel the travel time is so minuscule between the home and away games.

Rochester is a team that has been begging the AHL to move to the Eastern conference for years.  Geographically speaking, it makes sense they would want the East, but they had a pretty nice schedule last season.  Half of their games were against Eastern Conference teams, including 10 games alone vs. Syracuse.  They had 1-2 hour drives to Hamilton and Toronto, and Lake Erie wasn’t too much of a hike, either, so for a Western Conference team that never had to play the three teams in Texas, Oklahoma City, Chicago, Peoria or Rockford, I’m not sure why they were complaining!

I could cut and paste all of the data I compiled yesterday, because the statistics don’t lie, but the bottom line is this: How many divisions there are in the AHL is not going to fix anything.  They wouldn’t hurt the situation, necessarily, but it’s not going to help it, either.    The rumors we’ve been hearing place Charlotte in the West, in a division with the Texas teams and Oklahoma city.  While I’d love the variety of maybe getting to see teams in the West, I hate the idea of playing those Texas teams 40 times next year.

Here are the highlights from my “research.”  It’s interesting to see how there is absolutely no consistency among divisions, regions, or anything else.

Team In-Division In-Conference Out of Conference Notes
Abbotsford 36 32 12
Adirondack 54 12 14
Charlotte 52 28 0
Connecticut 54 18 4
Grand Rapids 34 46 0
Hamilton 50 18 12
Milwaukee 56 24 0
Rochester 40 0 40 *Did not face Texas, San Antonio, Houston, Oklahoma City, Peoria, Chicago or Milwaukee
San Antonio 58 20 2
Wilkes-Barre 56 10 14

What I want to see is more parity and more variety.  Charlotte faced Norfolk 12 times this year, the rationale I’m sure was they were our closest rival.  But a six-hour bus ride is hardly a close neighbor.  The Checkers also didn’t face a single team outside of our Eastern conference.  When you look at the map of the AHL, a trip to Texas is really no further than one to New England where we faced Portland and Manchester, so if we do end up in the West, I’m not going to panic.  There is no way to make travel completely equal for all of the franchises… teams like Charlotte, Abbotsford and St. John’s are always going to travel farther distances, I just wish the teams such as Springfield, Connecticut and Bridgeport were required to do as many long-distance trips as the rest of the league, because the return favor enables a team like Abbotsford or Texas or Oklahoma City to make a road trip where they can hit three cities in a small travel time, after the flight, of course.  I think variety is good for the fans, and good for the league as a whole.

 

I’m anxious to see what the Board of Governors decides this week in Hilton Head, and how they propose to fix the alignment, and balance out the travel schedule.  If only I could be a fly on the wall!  What I hope we see, first and foremost, is a bit more equality, and looking out for the teams that do have the hardest schedule.  Clearly, with Rochester’s schedule (where they don’t even face half the teams in the West, their own conference!) the AHL knows how to play the favoritism game.  I just hope that can be spread out a little so the other guys on the fringes have the same opportunities.  I know we have a great thing in Charlotte, and players WANT to be here (they told me this time and time again last season, even though it meant tougher travel, and more nights on the road), but I do want what is best for our franchise and our city, and will help us be the most competitive team possible.

 

Lets Go Checkers!