Icemen Join Sabres Organization As ECHL Affiliate

Back in June the Jacksonville Icemen of the ECHL hinted at news revolving around changes coming to their NHL/AHL affiliate partnerships. On Friday, news out of the Buffalo area suggested that the Icemen were expected to partner with the Buffalo Sabres franchise for the upcoming season, with the Rochester Americans serving as the teams’ AHL affiliate. Today at a press conference in Jacksonville, that news was confirmed.

Sabres General Manager Kevyn Adams reacted to the news saying “This partnership marks an exciting new chapter for both organizations and further emphasizes our commitment to the growth and development of our players and staff.” It’s not the first time the teams have connected, with current Sabres assistant coach Jason Christie arriving in Buffalo in 2021 after leading the Icemen during their first four seasons. Icemen CEO Andy Kaufmann said today “Our on ice goal remains, that while maintaining our commitment to developing players that can contribute and excel both in the AHL and NHL, we can take steps forwards towards our ultimate on ice goal which is to win the Kelly Cup. We believe this is a big and exciting step towards that goal – the goal of winning the Kelly Cup.”

The new development pipeline for the Sabres’ organization begins in Jacksonville, with the Rochester Americans serving as the midway stop to Buffalo. Americans General Manager, Jason Karmanos, spoke at the press conference today about the testament of having a good partnership at the ECHL level when it comes to player development, and to the Icemen’s commitment of establishing a solid hockey presence in the community. “This organization is run with a level of class and detail that is exciting to see. It’s a great day in terms of taking a step forward in the process of becoming the organizations we all want to be.”

The change at the affiliate level comes after the Icemen served as an ECHL affiliate for another team in New York, the New York Rangers. Jacksonville now takes the fire within from Manhattan to Upstate. Making the announcement today, the Icemen declared “the ice is colder on this side of New York.” The Icemen will be back on the ice on October 21st to kick off the 2023-24 season. Rochester’s season begins October 13th against the Bridgeport Islanders, and the Sabres’ season gets rolling on October 12th against the Rangers at Madison Square Garden.