By: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings
HARTFORD, CT – Howlings has exclusively learned that New York Rangers will announce on Wednesday that the organization, including The Hartford Wolf Pack, has a new ECHL affiliate after an agreement was reached with the Cincinnati Cyclones to replace the departed Jacksonville Icemen.
In 27 years, the Wolf Pack has now had four affiliate locations. They were with the Charlotte Checkers until they moved up to the AHL. They then moved on to the Greenville Road Warriors (now the Swamp Rabbits) before going to the Maine (Portland) Mariners and finally landing with Jacksonville.
There were strong signs that the professional relationship was ending when no contracted Hartford/Ranger players were on the Icemen’s end-of-season roster.
Jason Payne, the head coach of the Cyclones, is one of the few black head coaches in hockey history. His previous record as an assistant and head coach is 83-48-9-4. They didn’t play in 2020-21.
Last year, the Cyclones’ record of 47-16-6-3 (103 points) was the second-best record in the ECHL.
Payne played on one of the six all-black lines in the entire history of hockey.
He skated with the Flint Generals of the old Colonial Hockey League and is the grandfather of today’s FPHL, as Kahil Thomas, Payne, and Nick Forbes skated together.
His playing time took him to four AHL cities, all defunct places the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks, Carolina Monarchs, Worcester IceCats, and Saint John Flames. Seven ECHL markets Dayton, Arkansas (Little Rock), Florida, New Orleans, Idaho, Reading, and Wheeling.
Only three are left, Florida, who just won the ECHL Kelly Cup Idaho; Reading, and Wheeling,
In all, between juniors and in his 11-year minor pro career, he played in 28 cities.
Cincinnati’s season-ending roster features ex-Pack, Justin Vaive.
For his last three years, he has been in Cincinnati, known as “The Queen City” since 1819, the first two as an assistant coach. His assistant, for now, is Chad MacLeod, as of now.
Jacksonville’s head coach/GM is Nick Lukko, son of OVG co-chairman Peter Lukko and his brother Max is the GM of another OVG facility in the Mullett Arena, temporary home to the NHL Arizona Coyotes still searching for a permanent one and NCAA Division I independent, Arizona State University Sun Devils.
Jacksonville’s assistant coach is ex-CT Whale Brandon Mashinter
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