Quote:
Originally Posted by Cleveland Steam Whistle
What's everyones thoughts on an Alaskan based affiliate? I realize it's ECHL, but I can't imagine the possibility of being assigned way up north helps the organizations "appeal" factor to potential prospects we may want to sign.
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Anchorage actually has slightly warmer winters than Calgary. The extremely short daylight hours would be a drag, of course, but not much worse than Stockholm, St. Petersburg, or Helsinki. The real problem with being 'way up north' is the travel. The ECHL seems to have that worked out OK, since the Aces have been in Anchorage for 24 years now.
Anyway, I doubt the average prospect thinks twice about the location of the franchise's ECHL affiliate. Getting demoted to the ECHL is the hockey equivalent of Siberia, no matter where the team plays. Any prospect worth his salt will be focused on making the NHL, not on getting sent down.