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The Kalamazoo Wings, entering their 49th season this fall, have announced a new affiliation with a very familiar organization.
For the fourth time in team history, the K-Wings will be the minor-league affiliate of the NHL Vancouver Canucks. The teams were also partners from 1984-87, 2011-15 and 2017-21. The agreement also includes the Canucks AHL affiliate the Abbotsford Canucks.
“The K-Wings are excited to be working once again with the Vancouver Canucks and their AHL affiliate the Abbotsford Canucks,” said Joel Martin, Kalamazoo Wings Director of Hockey Operations and Head Coach in a statement released by the team. “We’re thankful for the opportunity and belief that Ryan Johnson (Abbotsford Canucks General Manager and Vancouver Canucks Assistant to the General Manager), and the entire Canucks organization, have in us. Most importantly, we look forward to providing their young prospects with everything they need to develop.”
The Canucks are equally excited to be working with the K-Wings organization again.
“Securing a full-time ECHL affiliation is something we have wanted to do for our players and the Abbotsford Canucks,” said Patrik Allvin, Vancouver Canucks General Manager in the press release. “Giving our guys every opportunity to grow, improve and succeed on the ice is extremely important to the hockey club. Having this agreement with Kalamazoo gives our team, and our development staff, another touch point in the long hard journey to becoming a pro hockey player.”
Several players who passed through Kalamazoo during past affiliations worked their way up to play in the NHL, including, Darren Archibald (2013-14, 2017-19), Alexandre Grenier (2015-17), Alex Friesen (2015-16), Jann Sauve (2013-14) and Even McEneny (2016-17).
The emphasis of the partnership, according to Ryan Johnson, is to work together to benefit the players.
“The goal for us is to try and develop players at all levels and having a direct pipeline to the ECHL is extremely important,” Johnson said. “From day one we have talked about how we want to approach the game, our professionalism, our culture and using all available resources. Teaming up with Joel Martin and his staff in Kalamazoo is another key building block in our player development process and will only help make our organization stronger.”
Over their 49-history, the K-Wings have had a variety of affiliations: Detroit Red Wings (1974-1987), Philadelphia Flyers (1984-1987; 2009-2010), Vancouver Canucks (1984-1987; 2011-2015; 2017-2021), Minnesota North Stars (1987-1993), Dallas Stars (1993-2000), San Jose Sharks (2009-2010), New York Islanders (2010-2011), New Jersey Devils (2011-2012), St. Louis Blues (2013-2014), Tampa Bay Lightning (2016-2017), and Columbus Blue Jackets (2014-2016; 2021-2023).
K-Wings News and Notes:
And the winner is: The K-Wings came home with two awards from the annual ECHL meeting in Las Vegas. T.J. Scott was named as the ECHL Sales Rookie of the Year. Scott’s hard work represented 32% of the team’s ticket sales in the FSE category and 34% of the team’s total Group Sales in 2022-23.
The K-Wings also won the ECHL Inclusive Spirit Award. The K-Wings held seven “cause” games over the course of the season, including,Cancer Awareness, Autism Awareness, Black Heritage, LBGTQ+, Hockey for Her, and more this past season. Each initiative was strategically partnered with local nonprofits that aligned with each cause, resulting in nearly $300 thousand raised and returned to the community.
Welcome: The ECHL will add a new team next year in Lake Tahoe, Nevada The team, which will be named later, will be owned by 2007 Heisman Trophy winner, and former National Football League quarterback, Tim Tebow, along with David Hodges, CEO of Hodges Management Group, LLC.
By: Mark C. McGlothlen
