ECHL and CHL To Merge...???

((HT: Pro Hockey Talk/Mahiban))

The HQ finds this interesting on a few fronts...

Dhiren Mahiban is rolling off a Tweet from agent Darryl Wolski that says the two leagues are in talk to come together.

Mahiban is maintaining that the Western Division of the ECHL- long an odd situation with regular season and playoffs with their four teams- could be losing them all to the American Hockey League so they could have a true Western Division base.

Which makes sense...

In return, the Central Hockey League, with ten teams of their own could help squinch the geography of the ECHL if they merge leagues.

It would project out to something like this in the ECHL/CHL of 2015-2016.

Northeast Division

Brampton
Reading Royals
Wheeling Nailers
Elmira Jackals
Kalamazoo Wings
Cincinnati Cyclones
Toldeo Walleye

Southeast Division

Fort Wayne Komets
Evansville IceMen
South Carolina Stingrays
Orlando Solar Bears
Greenville Road Warriors
Florida Everblades
Gwinnett Gladiators
Indianapolis (expansion)

Central Division (All CHL)

Allen, Texas
Missouri
Rapid City
Quad City
Tulsa
Wichita
St. Charles

Western Division

Denver
Arizona
Alaska Aces
Utah Grizzlies
Idaho Steelheads
Colorado Eagles

And they'd all be chasing what Alaska did last season
((HT: Alaska Aces their own selves))


This is contingent on the Western Division currently all being taken as a block- leaving the four teams currently in the projected West.

And it also presents an interesting issue when it comes to talent. The Central Hockey League is considered, in some circles to be more like single-A baseball while the ECHL is double-A. How would the ECHL front offices mesh with their triple-A brothers and how would the single-A front offices mesh with their double-A brothers...???

Both financially and in personnel matters...
Food for thought for all of the teams in the three leagues to figure out if this comes to pass...

CHL Comes Down Hard On Spitfires

There had long been back-channel talk about contracts in the CHL and how certain players got to play for the Windsor Spitfires- which led to a certain amount of success on the ice for the franchise...

Apparently, the league brass has had enough of their deals- even if they won't tell us what they exactly did wrong... in two separate investigations...

The team has been fined $400,000 and is losing five draft picks as a result.

Ahem... from the league its own self...

"In 2009 the Board of Governors of the Ontario Hockey League developed the OHL Enforcement Program which is designed to address and attempt to eliminate violations of the rules and impose appropriate penalties if violations occur. The enforcement process is an integral part of the process to ensure integrity and fair play among the member teams. One of the fundamental principles of the enforcement process is to ensure that those member teams that are abiding by the rules are not disadvantaged by their commitment to compliance", stated OHL commissioner David Branch via press release.

"The League conducted two separate investigations led by our Director of Security and Enforcement, and in considering all the facts, I was persuaded that the Windsor Spitfires Hockey Club violated the League's Player Benefit and Recruitment Rules and Policies. While the penalties may appear to be severe, the League and its Member Teams recognize for any such violations of our Recruitment / Benefit Rules and Policies, we must send a strong message to preserve the integrity of our League", concluded Branch.

The Spitfires will forfeit first-round picks in the OHL draft in 2013, 2014 and 2016 as well as second-round selections in 2015 and 2017.

Here's the last time the Spits won the Memorial Cup- 2010
((HT: OpenIceHockey))