American League Finalizes New Divisions for 2015-16
By Ryan Pike
8 years agoAll the shuffling and franchise moves are now complete, and things look a lot more clear for the 2015-16 American Hockey League season.
And now we know which teams will be joining the new Calgary Flames’ affiliate, the Stockton Heat, in the AHL’s Pacific Division.
| Pacific Division (Western Conference) | |
| Bakersfield Condors | Edmonton |
| Ontario Reign | Los Angeles |
| San Antonio Rampage | Colorado |
| San Diego Gulls | Anaheim |
| San Jose Barracuda | San Jose |
| Stockton Heat | Calgary |
| Texas Stars | Dallas |
| Central Division (Western Conference) | |
| Charlotte Checkers | Carolina |
| Chicago Wolves | St. Louis |
| Grand Rapids Griffins | Detroit |
| Iowa Wild | Minnesota |
| Lake Erie Monsters | Columbus |
| Manitoba Moose | Winnipeg |
| Milwaukee Admirals | Nashville |
| Rockford Ice Hogs | Chicago |
| North Division (Eastern Conference) | |
| Albany Devils | New Jersey |
| Binghamton Senators | Ottawa |
| Rochester Americans | Buffalo |
| St. John’s Ice Caps | Montreal |
| Syracuse Crunch | Tampa Bay |
| Toronto Marlies | Toronto |
| Utica Comets | Vancouver |
| Atlantic Division (Eastern Conference) | |
| Bridgeport Sound Tigers | NY Islanders |
| Hartford Wolf Pack | NY Rangers |
| Hershey Bears | Washington |
| Lehigh Valley Phantoms | Philadelphia |
| Portland Pirates | Florida |
| Providence Bruins | Boston |
| Springfield Falcons | Arizona |
| Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins | Pittsburgh |
SO, WHAT CHANGED?
Here’s a brief summary of a wooly few months of moves and affiliation swaps.
- Edmonton’s AHL team in Oklahoma City moved to Bakersfield (the previous ECHL team moved to Norfolk)
- Calgary’s AHL team in Adirondack moved to Stockton (the previous ECHL team moved to Adirondack)
- Los Angeles’ AHL team in Manchester moved to Ontario (the previous ECHL team moved to Manchester)
- Anaheim’s AHL team in Norfolk moved to San Diego
- San Jose’s AHL team in Worcester moved to San Jose
- Winnipeg’s AHL team in St. John’s moved to Winnipeg (Manitoba)
- Montreal’s AHL team in Hamilton moved to St. John’s
- Colorado changed affiliates from Lake Erie to San Antonio
- Columbus changed affiliates from Springfield to Lake Erie
- Florida changed affiliates from San Antonio to Springfield
So yes, a third of the AHL will have new teams in new markets in 2015-16. Fun, eh?
The league schedule and playoff format are expected to be available later in the summer.
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