Florida Panthers Announce ECHL Affiliation with Savannah Ghost Pirates

Ghost Pirates will serve as ECHL affiliate for the Panthers and the Charlotte Checkers (AHL)

SUNRISE, Fla. – The Florida Panthers announced today that the club has entered a multi-year affiliation agreement with the Savannah Ghost Pirates of the ECHL. The Ghost Pirates will serve as the ECHL affiliate for the Panthers as well as its American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers.

“We are very excited to welcome the Savannah Ghost Pirates to the Panthers organization today, extending our development pipeline through our AHL affiliate, Charlotte Checkers,” said Senior Vice President, Hockey Operations Paul Krepelka. “We want to thank and congratulate the Florida Everblades for two great seasons, each culminating in a Kelly Cup championship. We look forward to the development of our prospects in both Savannah and Charlotte.”

“We are thrilled to be partnering with the Florida Panthers,” said Savannah Ghost Pirates owner and CEO Andy Kaufmann. “We believe they can help us maintain an exciting brand of hockey that will make Savannah proud, and we look forward to helping them continue their recent success by getting their prospects to the next level.”

The Ghost Pirates are based out of Enmarket Arena in Savannah, Georgia. Officially approved as an expansion franchise in January of 2021, the Ghost Pirates are the newest franchise in the ECHL’s Eastern Conference, owning a 58-68-16-2 record over two seasons.

As a member of the ECHL’s Eastern Conference and South Division, the Ghost Pirates routinely face off against regional clubs including the Orlando Solar Bears, Jacksonville Icemen, Atlanta Gladiators, South Carolina Stingrays, Greenville Swamp Rabbits and the Florida Everblades.

The 2024-25 ECHL regular season will commence on Friday, October 18, 2024, when the Ghost Pirates host the Indy Fuel at Enmarket Arena.

The ECHL is the leading professional developmental league for the American Hockey League and the National Hockey League. The league began in 1988-89 with five teams in three states and now spans coast-to-coast, with 29 teams playing in 22 states and provinces. There have been more than 750 former ECHL players who have gone on to play in the NHL after playing in the ECHL, including Panthers skaters Ryan Lomberg (Adirondack, 2016-17), Carter Verhaeghe (Missouri, 2015-16 to 2016-17) and Steven Lorentz (Florida (2017-18 to 2018-19).

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