Oklahoma City lands American Hockey League team
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Published: February 9, 2010
Oklahoma City has landed a hockey team in the American Hockey League franchise.
The AHL on Monday approved the Edmonton Oilers plan to relocate and activate their dormant Edmonton Road Runners franchise in Oklahoma City next season.
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The agreement was officially announced at a press conference Tuesday in Oklahoma City.
That development means the Oilers will allow their affiliation agreement in Springfield, Mass., to expire at the end of this season. The Oilers' intention to let the agreement lapse was confirmed recently by Bruce Landon, one of the men who co-owns the Springfield Falcons.
Landon told The Oklahoman that “as we all know it was speculated for a long time that Edmonton was looking at Oklahoma City."
The Oilers have signed a five-year affiliation agreement with Prodigal Hockey LLC, an Oklahoma City-based company, to establish an AHL franchise in the downtown Cox Convention Center beginning in 2010-11.
Prodigal Hockey is running a name-the-team contest that began Tuesday. Entries can be submitted at ProdigalHockey.com.
Ricky Olczyk, an assistant general manager with the Oilers, said there is a chance Doug Sauter, who was head coach of the Oklahoma City Blazers of the Central Hockey League from 1995 until they folded on July 1, 2009, will return to hockey in that city in a management capacity with the AHL squad.
The Oklahoma City team will be the 30th AHL franchise and will begin playing in October for the 2010-11 season.
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