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WHEELING - What had been feared by Wheeling Nailers fans became reality Thursday afternoon, as the Pittsburgh Penguins officially announced the end of their nearly 30-year affiliation with the local ECHL franchise. Meanwhile, Nailers officials said Thursday they already were seeking a new NHL affiliation.
The Penguins-Nailers affiliation dates back to 1998. That partnership had been one of the longest active NHL-ECHL affiliations.
"It is only because of very unique circumstances that we must say goodbye at this time," Penguins President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Kyle Dubas said in a statement. "The Nailers have run a first-class operation for many years, and any organization would be fortunate to have them as an affiliate.
"We wish the city of Wheeling, the Nailers, and all of their fans continued success as a great ECHL franchise," the statement read. "From the bottom of our hearts, thank you Wheeling."
Also on Thursday evening, the Penguins announced their new ECHL affiliate, the Florida Everblades. The Everblades were the team that eliminated the Nailers from this year's ECHL playoffs in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Hoffman Family of Companies, which purchased the Penguins in June for a reported $1.7 billion, also owns the Everblades.
"As an organization, our player development system puts a strong emphasis on a three-tiered development model between the NHL, AHL and ECHL, and we feel that Florida's championship pedigree and winning environment will help our players reach their maximum potential," Penguins Assistant General Manager Jason Spezza said in a release announcing the new affiliation. "Under the leadership of Craig Brush and Head Coach Brad Ralph, the Everblades have won four of the last five Kelly Cup championships and our goal to provide Coach Ralph with quality prospects that can continue to help the Everblades bring championship hockey to Southwest Florida."
Word of a possible split began to bubble about a week before the Everblades knocked out the Nailers, as rumors of the Penguins' possible sale circulated. Then, following the sale, David Hoffman, chairman of the Hoffman Family of Companies was quoted in Pittsburgh media saying his desire would be to link together the Penguins and Everblades.
"I think they would run me out of Naples if they're not," Hoffman said. "We already have people wearing Penguins jerseys at our games, so I think the high expectation level is that's going to happen. And we want to do that."
Nailers officials had been quiet about the split until it was made official Thursday. Nailers President/Governor Brian Komorowski released a statement following the announcement.
"We are thankful to the Pittsburgh Penguins for all of the hard work that they did in helping the Wheeling Nailers put a consistent winner on the ice for the past three decades," he said. "We would like to individually thank Kyle Dubas, Jason Spezza and Amanda Kessel, and all of the members of the hockey operations staff who have come to Wheeling and supported our team throughout the years.
"We are sad to see the affiliation end, but understand the lineage of the Hoffman Family of Companies owning the Pittsburgh Penguins and Florida Everblades," Komorowski added. "We have already begun speaking with other NHL teams about our affiliation for the future."
There are three teams currently without an ECHL affiliate - the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Buffalo Sabres and the Utah Mammoth. This isn't the first time a Wheeling ECHL hockey team has changed affiliates. Prior to a partnership with the Penguins, the Wheeling team, then known as the Thunderbirds, were affiliated with the Montreal Canadiens.
In addition, Wheeling will also be in the market for a new head coach as Ryan Papaioannou was under contract with the Penguins and will not return to the Nailers. He has been rumored as a candidate for an AHL position.