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The Portland Pirates announced today a new, long-term affiliation agreement with the Buffalo Sabres effective with the 2008-2009 AHL season. The announcement was made by Pirates Managing Owner/CEO Brian Petrovek, Pirates Chairman/Governor Lyman Bullard, Sabres' Managing Partner Larry Quinn, and Sabres' General Manager Darcy Regier.

"This is an exciting day for fans of hockey throughout our state to partner with an eastern US city with one of the richest histories in professional hockey dating back to the turn of the century. From an initial meeting with Larry and Darcy last fall and our follow-up with Chief Operating Officer Dan DiPofi, we knew this would be a great fit for our fans and our business, one that we expect will bring exciting, championship caliber performances on the ice for years to come, along with a deeply rooted commitment to our community off the ice as well. Today's announcement represents another important building block in our growth and commitment to professional hockey in Maine," said Petrovek and Bullard in a joint statement.

Before teaming up with the Pirates, the Sabres were affiliated with the Rochester Americans for 29 seasons, the longest such partnership in professional hockey between an NHL team and its AHL affiliate. During that span, Rochester had a record of 1,137-932-238-13 in 2,320 regular season games (.593 winning percentage) and made the playoffs 24 out of the 29 seasons. The team won its Division title eight times, advanced to the Calder Cup Finals six times, winning the Calder Cup three of those years in 1983, 1987 and 1996. A number of current Sabres players, including Ryan Miller, Thomas Vanek, Derek Roy, Jason Pominville, and Paul Gaustad, helped Rochester to its best season record in team history when they earned 112 points during the 2004-2005 season.

"We are excited to begin our AHL affiliation with the Portland Pirates and the city of Portland," said Buffalo Sabres Managing Partner Larry Quinn. "I am looking forward to working with Lyman Bullard, Brian Petrovek and Brian Williams, and the entire Pirates organization. I have been impressed with their professionalism from day one and am excited to build our new relationship both personally and professionally."

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Moving the Stars' American Hockey League affiliate to the Austin suburb of Cedar Park makes sense on a business level and performance level, but that doesn't mean it's going to be easy.

When ground is broken today on the Cedar Park Entertainment Center, the Stars have more to do than just construct the 6,800-seat building in time for the start of the 2009-10 season. They have to obtain an American Hockey League affiliate willing to move from its current city, they have to make decisions on where they will put their prospects for next season, and they have to figure out a deal for their two minor league coaches, Dave Allison and Paul Jerrard, who are under contract for next season.

"It's a complicated process, but it's one we believe will be worth it," said Stars co-general manager Les Jackson. "To be able to move the affiliate closer to our team and to an area like Austin, that's going to help us long term."

Finding the right home for the team's affiliate has been a challenge for years. Since they moved to Dallas in 1993, the Stars have been in Michigan, Utah and Iowa. They also split their prospects between Hamilton and Houston in the AHL for one season.

When the Stars announced this season that their intention was to build an arena in Cedar Park and change their affiliation in 2009, the Iowa organization ended the agreement early, sending the Stars looking for a temporary home for next season.

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Team owner Schlegel Sports announced today the new name of Iowa’s AHL hockey team, the “Iowa Chops”. With announcements regarding new, lower ticket prices, a new president, and a new affiliate all occurring within weeks of each other this summer, representatives of Iowa’s AHL hockey team decided the time was right to unveil the team’s new name, logo and colors.

“We really feel this name perfectly represents our vision of the new team,” says team owner Kirby Schlegel, CEO of Schlegel Sports. “It illustrates Iowa’s agricultural heritage while also playing into the definition of ‘chops’, having nerve, resilience and staying power. The word ‘chops’ can mean continually defeating someone, and that is the reputation we expect Iowa’s new team to gain in the league.”

After numerous conversations with Iowans to get a feel for the culture and the passion within the state, the Iowa Chops was ultimately chosen by Schlegel Sports, as it represented the great state of Iowa.