As we’ve talked about before, the AHL landscape will be much, much different next season as five teams move to California, starting up a Pacific Division in hockey’s top developmental league for the first time in its near-80 year history.
That shakeup means changes to the divisional alignment, even for those teams who will stay put — like the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers.
New AHL alignment. Not that Texas has ever had it easy, but yikes… pic.twitter.com/IjIcsgFq9q
— Travis Hughes (@TravisSBN) May 12, 2015
The league goes from six divisions of five teams each to four imbalanced divisions with either eight teams or seven teams spread across two conferences. The Phantoms move to the new Atlantic Division, where they’ll retain rivalries with teams like the Hershey Bears and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Joining the three Pennsylvania clubs in the Atlantic are all five teams from the New England states of Massachusetts, Maine, Rhode Island and Connecticut.
The AHL’s five New York State teams will join the new North Division, with Toronto jumping from the Western Conference and joining that same division. Also in the North will be the St. John’s Ice Caps, who singlehandedly throw the AHL’s regional alignment out of whack by playing home games in Newfoundland.
Getting the worst deal in this new alignment are the Charlotte Checkers, who have basically always played in the Western Conference and have a totally raw deal. With the Norfolk Admirals moving to San Diego, Charlotte’s nearest opponent is now the Hershey Bears, a solid 7-plus hour drive away. Their nearest divisional opponent is the Lake Erie Monsters, who play their home games in Cleveland, which is nearly eight hours driving from Charlotte.
The Texas Stars and San Antonio Rampage have it the worst, though. They’ll play in the new Pacific Division with the California teams … and they’ll have to fly basically everywhere, with their nearest opponents (aside from one another) at least an 18 hour drive away in either Charlotte or San Diego.
Welcome to the AHL’s new geography. https://t.co/5M0kdJoWje pic.twitter.com/zNmtdYlYyF
— 100 Degree Hockey (@100degreehockey) May 12, 2015
The playoff format for the 2015-16 AHL season will be announced later this summer. Let’s be real, the Phantoms probably don’t need to worry about it.
