The Kelly Cup Champion Florida Everblades have announced that they have signed a multi-year affiliation deal with the St.Louis Blues to become their new ECHL affiliate beginning in the 2024-25 season. This comes after the Florida Panthers and Everblades decided not to renew their affiliation agreement for a third season, as the Panther recently signed a multi-year agreement with the Savannah Ghost Pirates. For the Blues, this is huge for their organization as this is the first time since 2020, and it will give them another spot in North America to send their prospects and gives them a chance to be part of a team that has run off of success over the past three years.
“Our new affiliation with the Everblades marks a great addition to our organizational system,” said Kevin Maxwell, General Manager of the St. Louis Blues’ AHL affiliate, the Springfield Thunderbirds. “The franchise has captured three consecutive Kelly Cup Championships and will provide an excellent environment for our prospects to continue in their professional development.”
Kevin Maxwell, GM of the Springfield Thunderbirds Thoughts on the New Affiliation
For the Everblades, there’s no question that there will be some changes with the new affiliation, with the team trading away Bobo Carpenter and, like most teams, losing players who have decided to take the overseas. As we’ve learned in years past, regardless of what kind of hand Head Coach Brad Ralph is handed, he always finds a way to put together a successful team, and I wouldn’t expect anything less next year for the Everblades. This will be the sixth different NHL affiliation that the Everblades have had in their franchise history. The Tahoe Knight Monsters are the only team without an NHL affiliate at the moment but they are expected to announce their next Tuesday.
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