The ECHL tries to sell itself as a double A hockey league even though no one uses those terms for hockey farm teams. Double A in baseball is a training league to develop players going to the majors.
On the current Vancouver Canucks, there is a single player that has played in the ECHL - Alexandre Burrows. He was in the ECHL because he went undrafted, not because he was being groomed to be a player in the NHL. He did part of a season in the ECHL once he signed with the Canucks.
Meanwhile 21 current Canucks have spent some time in the AHL, 12 in Major junior hockey and 7 in Junior A.
With the WHL you are watching the next generation of NHL players, you are watching the future stars. In the 1980s the Victoria Cougars had several players graduate to be career NHLers
- Geoff Courtnall
- Russ Courtnall
- Barry Pederson
- Paul Cyr
- Greg Adams
There were also another dozen or so that played some time in the NHL. The other WHL teams that came to town had some of the biggest NHL stars of the last 20 years on them.
Remember, this was an era where the ownership of the Victoria Cougars seemed to be trying to kill the team.
I see no serious path for players to go from the ECHL to the AHL and then to the NHL. I really would like to see Victoria move away from this backwater of the hockey world and re-enter the mainstream.
4 comments:
You are absoulutly right. I followed the cougars since they joined the whl and the old barn on blanshard was filled every saturday nite. The only reason the crowds were down was they played down the team so people wouldnt come then they had the excuse to move to prince george. If they had tried to win they would still be here today.
I have no doubt that the whl would be a fantastic success in victoria.
who wants to watch the echl only because there is no whl thats the only reason people go to those games
I even find the grizzlies more entertatining than the echl salmon kings.
I think you are wrong.
EVERY ECHL player has been drafted by an NHL team.
Very few players from each WHL team will ever be drafted, few will ever play a pro game, let alone an NHL game.
Yes, there is the odd Sidney Crosby you'll get to see in junior, but they are few and far between. I'd rather see a team full of talented players, rather than a few gems playing among a bunch of duds.
It's comparing men and boys - and I'll pay money only to see men play hockey.
The one thing that I found with the men in the echl is that it is so close checking that there doesnt seem to be the excitement of Junior when no lead is safe and the young enthusiusm leads to an exciting brand of hockey. But everyone likes something different so if one likes to watch the close checking style thats fine enjoy.
Many ECHL players were never drafted by an NHL or have never been signed by an NHL team. Alexandre Burrows was playing undrafted in the ECHL when he was signed by Vancouver
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