Lightning Could Have New AHL Affiliate

The Tampa Bay Lightning might have a new AHL affiliate next year.

The current Lightning AHL affiliate, the Norfolk Admirals, is in the final year of the 5 year deal that they signed with Tampa Bay.

The Lightning may not resign with Norfolk because the GM Steve Yzerman wanted to make travel easier for the prospects because they have long bus rides to travel for road games.

Syracuse is speculated to be at the top of the Lightning's list of new affiliates if they don't resign with Norfolk.

Syracuse Crunch team president, Howard Dolgon recently told reporters that he had a deal in place for a new NHL partnership, but did not name the team.

The assistant GM of the Lightning and GM of Norfolk didn't confirm the rumors of a Tampa Bay-Syracuse deal.

"We have not finalized any plans for next season at this time," BriseBois said in an email.

Nonetheless, a decision is expected to be made soon by Tampa Bay GM Steve Yzerman.

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Syracuse Crunch opts out of Anaheim

The Anaheim Duck's AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch declined to pick up their affiliation agreement with the Anaheim Ducks. This action could lead to the Crunch landing a new parent NHL club.

The Ducks-Crunch deal is in it's second year and according to the Syracuse owner, the Ducks and Crunch agreed on a provision that would extend the deal for another 2 years.

This leaves the Crunch with 2 options. The first one would be to strike a new deal with Anaheim and remain their AHL affiliate. The second one would be to look for a new parent club in the NHL.

Howard Dolgon, the owner of the Syracuse Crunch, didn't hint which option he would choose, but if he chose the second one, the Tampa Bay Lightning would be a viable option.

The Crunch and the Ducks have had their differences in the past like last season, where the Ducks loaned Jason Jaffray to the Manitoba Moose instead of the Crunch because the Moose was willing to pick up part of his salary. The Crunch also did not make the playoffs last year and they don't seem to be near contention for a playoff spot this year.

Overall, the Crunch seemed to be at ends with Anaheim and maybe its best if they went their separate ways. There are always other AHL and NHL affiliates for both of these clubs.