Pros: As with almost all of the teams on this list, theres an NHL presence and potential for partnership; its also close enough to the existing teams to make travel decent enough to be worth it, plus again, built-in fanbase. As college conference realignment and expansion speculation and rumors continue to swirl, take a look at some burning questions facing the Pac-12 Conference and possible answers to those. sphl expansion rumors sphl expansion rumors. I heard from someone (again, dont know how reputable) that Tallahassee was a done deal prior to the pandemic. Id love to see hockey back in Lexington! But while were on the topic of expansion, I think there are a few cities the league could really plant roots in. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 201920 season was curtailed and no champion was named. You are using an out of date browser. Starting from the ground up requires investors, an audience, a city, players, and much more. [13] Voted winner: Draw (50%) - Voted rating: 0 Vote / Details . Also, there isnt really an established market for womens hockey above youth teams, which would make it stand out, but marketing likely a bit more difficult without some help from (maybe) the Red Wings. The Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) is a professional ice hockey independent minor league based in Huntersville, North Carolina, with teams located primarily in the southeastern United States as well as Illinois and Indiana in the midwestern United States. The newest AHL team of Palm Springs, California, is set to officially join the league in 2022-23 and will be the affiliate for Seattle. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. In 2019, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman denied any current efforts to bring a team to the city. Columbus Ledger-Enquirer. Pensacola Rivermen:Alec Hagaman won an SPHL title with Pensacola. Its been a rather predictable start to tournament season but still plenty of time to shake things up. Savannah, Georgia, is already planning its inaugural season after a confirmed expansion bid to start play in 2022-23. Lets take a look at where we could see the leagues next team come from: Weve already heard rumblings of potential expansion to Motor City, although under the potential ownership of someone wed rather not think about right now. Several cities on this list fit that description, as well as a place for some of the immense NCAA and ACHA talent in the Midwest to continue their post-secondary hockey careers. Assume the NHL wants to stay stateside for the foreseeable future. [7], The following players are sorted by points, then goals. Poll; Some of our guys are not decided yet. Following the 2017-18 season, the Mississippi RiverKingssuspended operations while the league searched for new owners. The Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) ann. The Bobcats are solely owned by Ellen Tully, whose family has a long and successful business history in the area. Once we found out that the first U.S. expansion team would potentially be in the Eastern time zone, I was mildly disappointed, but immediately thought we might see the leagues first Pennsylvania team set up shop in the western end. Not only would the team be the third tenant in the building, they'll be competing with FSU football in the fall, successful basketball (men's and women's), and baseball in the spring for the sports dollar. This would make it a fairer playing field, literally, and on top of that the Second City certainly needs a new hockey team to cheer for, so its a perfect fit. Women's Hockey News, Rumors and Analysis | The Ice Garden, The road to expansion: six cities the PHF could put new teams in, The Ice Gardens NCAA Poll: Conference Chalk. The SPHL's history traces back to three other short-lived leagues. The Rivermen turned in their list of protected 13 players for the 2021-22 season, and the league will announce those for all of its teams on Friday. Updated as of April 10, 2022. The Heartland is our home, and we are its people. They started the playoffs and nine days later they were champs. Besides that, I dont have enough info to know which cities have the correct infrastructure to host a team. Odds & lines subject to change. The Peoria Rivermen have also won four William B. Coffey Trophies, while Pensacola has also won four President's Cups. Cons: With Buffalo and Toronto almost directly to the north, could make this corridor a bit cluttered but at least travel would be easy! comments sorted by Best Top New Controversial Q&A Add a Comment . You could possibly move the Atlanta Gladiators to Statefarm Arena and the new team to Infinite Energy Center. A fifth Rivermen player from 2019-20 center Alec Baer also had his rights returned to Peoria after spending last season with Birmingham. Im nothing if not self-serving. 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After its only season, the ACHL dissolved with member teams forming the nucleus for two rival leagues, the South East Hockey League and the World Hockey Association 2. With rumors of a stagnant salary cap, big names in need of new contracts across the league, expansion requirements, and free agency, Seattle is joining the league at a fun and opportune time. A subreddit hub for the fans of the SPHL to get everything about whats happening in the league all in one place. You got it and its full of girls and womens hockey at all levels. SPHL commissioner Doug Price said the teams that opted out of the 2020-21 season were permitted to take back the rights to players that were on their protected 13-player list last summer, or signed to a tryout agreement heading into last fall. On October 20th, 2015 the Southern Professional Hockey League announced the move of the Mississippi Surge to Roanoke, VA, who will return to the ice for the 2016-2017. The format eventually saw the Bakersfield Condors crowned as the 2021 champions, defeating the Henderson Silver Knights in their inaugural season. He is on the Rivermen protected list, too. Between that and a pretty clear statement by the commissioner that nothing is happening, this rumor seems dead. Of course, with that optimism comes a dose of concern. Following the lead of Vegas and Seattle, it might be a city where minor league hockey was successful in the past. We are confident that Ellen will continue the rich hockey tradition fans in Danville and the surrounding communities have come to enjoy over the years.. The divisions bottom four teams faced off in a single-elimination play-in series format, followed by two best-of-three series. By no means is the NHL playing copycat, but until another league shows it can support more than 32 teams, I dont expect the NHL to experiment. 1 Pd 0:49. Vermilion County has a lengthy hockey history dating back to mid-1970s with a fantastic fan base and strong commitment to its communities. At a press conference held this morning at the Berglund Center, which will be the home of the team, SPHL President Jim Combs confirmed the team . Following the 201718 season, the Mississippi RiverKings suspended operations while the league searched for new owners. Fayetteville, N.C- The Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) on Tuesday announced the results of the expansion draft held for the Birmingham Bulls. Chris Hunt vs. Preston Kugler Watch. And should Seattle see immediate success like 2017 Vegas, expansion bids could continue to come the NHLs way (see Quebec, CAN, or Houston, TX). As of 2022, the Knoxville Ice Bears are the most successful team in SPHL history, having won five William B. Coffey Trophies as the regular season champions and four President's Cup playoff championships. HUNTERSVILLE, NC The Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) today announced that it will be expanding to Danville, IL following a unanimous vote of approval by the board of the David S. Palmer Arena and the SPHL Board of Governors. Prior to the Golden Knights and Kraken franchise, the NHL last expanded in 2000 with the addition of the Columbus Blue Jackets and if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'thehockeywriters_com-medrectangle-3','ezslot_1',823,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-thehockeywriters_com-medrectangle-3-0');Minnesota Wild. From U12 to U19 teams, college club teams in nearby Maryland, and the Mid-Atlantic Womens Hockey League, its a safe bet youll get some instant fans and also be able to cultivate some homegrown talent. Fr nhere Informationen zur Nutzung Ihrer Daten lesen Sie bitte unsere Datenschutzerklrung und Cookie-Richtlinie. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. Now, he wants one for Peoria, The Peoria Rivermen are shut down. The Silver Knights, aptly affiliated with the NHLs Vegas Golden Knights, went 25-13-0-1 in their inaugural season as the Pacific Division regular-season champions. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. No one (well, mostly no one) wants to see this league fold like so many others before it, and part of that means tempering high hopes with realistic goals. Its hard to predict exactly where their next team would go. No curvature of stick limitations as in the NHL, AHL, and ECHL. State of the Fed: Wolves capture FHL Commissioner's Cup; wild off-season set to begin. Replies 221 Views 5K. A team may dress eighteen regular players to a game. Also, when it comes to this pandemic, which sadly doesnt look to have an end in sight currently, despite the actions of people who wish to pretend otherwise. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. At the end of the 201516 season, the Louisiana IceGators announced a one-year leave of absence for renovations to their arena but never returned. [1], After playing a shortened 202021 season with only five teams, the league returned with all ten clubs from the 201920 season and added an expansion team, the Vermilion County Bobcats. March 10, 2021 PHN Staff Report with official press release HUNTERSVILLE, NC - The Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) today announced that it will be expanding to Danville, IL following a unanimous vote of approval by the board of the David S. Palmer Arena and the SPHL Board of Governors. Replies 36 Views 2K. But expansion wont stop there. With the Canadian dollar weaker than the United States dollar, its not the optimal business situation for the NHL to expand north of the border. 3 Pd 11:50. [5], GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes, The following goaltenders with a minimum 660 minutes played lead the league in goals against average. Obviously this was going to come up if we were going to mention the Midwest. By Darragh McDonald | February 27, 2023 at 5:42pm CDT. The NHLs upcoming offseason will be full of headlines. Im getting excited just thinking about some of those games, and we dont even know if itll ever happen yet. Series format, followed by two best-of-three series rather predictable start to tournament season still... Atlanta Gladiators to Statefarm Arena and the new team to Infinite Energy Center consent. Poll ; some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business without! 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