The Railers and New York Islanders have separated, and it is not on a trial basis.
The Islanders announced Wednesday that they are going to affiliate with the new Trenton team in the ECHL. That move does not leave the Railers without an NHL affiliate. They have an agreement in place but have yet to announce it.
The Islanders and Railers had been partners since Worcester joined the ECHL for the 2017-18 season. Along the way the Railers also had a short half-partnership with St. Louis. As an Islanders affiliate, Worcester made the playoffs in 2017-18 but has not qualified since.
Railers COO Mike Myers was not critical of the New York relationship, but said the nature of the relationship changed somewhat when Garth Snow was replaced as GM by Lou Lamoriello. Still, Myers has mostly good memories of the Islanders years, adding that the Islanders were disappointed affiliation wasn’t extended.
“We had a positive working relationship,” he said, “if you look at it overall. There were never any shouting matches, never any financial disputes. It was very professional. They were good partners and provided a lot of the support that ECHL teams need. The unfortunate part is that there are things you can’t plan for, and that’s the tough part of our league.”
The Islanders decision to move their American Hockey League affiliate from Bridgeport to Hamilton, Ontario was a substantial consideration.
“It’s a big con for me,” Myers said. “They were very convinced that the geography made no difference. They said there are plenty of teams that do this and, yes you can do it. We did it with Worcester (Sharks) and San Jose. You can do it, but it was impactful enough for all of those teams to be uprooted to be closer.
“That has to tell you something. Without a doubt that played into it. It was something that couldn’t be ignored.”
The Islanders’ relationship turned out to be a frustrating one.
The Railers had a couple of lousy teams during those seasons but have been contenders on an annual basis more recently. Still, they only made the playoffs once through all those years. Worcester was especially excited going into last season because New York had made a change at the top.
“With Matt Darche getting hired,” Myers said, “that really changed our thinking. A new general manager, a new world. It was a glimmer of hope for us. We hoped it would create a tangible change but obviously it didn’t.”
That means it will be a different hockey world here when October arrives.
