Chirps from Center Ice

What has been known for months was finally made official today as the Tampa Bay Lightning announced an affiliation agreement with the Syracuse Crunch.

It’s kind of a kick in the pants to a Norfolk Admirals fan because instead of trying to defend the Calder Cup with the same NHL partner, you have to essentially start over with a yet to be named NHL partner. But, these plans that were unveiled today were in the works well before the playoffs started and probably well before the Admirals went on there 28 game winning streak. But it still hurts if you are an Admirals fan.

I have been asked on Twitter what this means for both sides. If a player was under contract to Norfolk (on an AHL contract) they could return to Norfolk. If the player was under contract to Tampa Bay (on an NHL contract) they will end up in Syracuse if they don’t stick in Tampa Bay. The coaches will shift from Norfolk to Syracuse.

It is anticipated that Anaheim’s affiliation will end up in Norfolk, but that has not been announced yet.

My blog pals at Chairman How’s Glorious Army have reaction on their new affiliation partners.

Elsewhere:

–> Not all is lost for Norfolk fans, as the AHL PR department chimed in with this:

–> Mattias Modig, who was under contract with Pittsburgh as a restricted free agent and never played a single game for Wilkes-Barre, signed with Växjö in a Swedish league. I updated the 2012 Offseason Moves list and have the link taking you to the team website in Swedish over there.

–> Penguins Season in Review is up for March.

But for news on Friday, have a great weekend!