lightning-morning-news-crunch-owner-comments-on-the-extension-of-partnership-with-tampa-bay
Raw Charge
A week ago, the Tampa Bay Lightning and Syracuse Crunch announced an extension of their affiliation which dates back to 2012. The four-year deal will carry them through the 2029-30 season and continue the longest, and most successful, partnership in Lightning franchise history. On Wednesday, Syracuse Crunch owner Howard Dolgon released a statement about the deal on social media:
<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> <div class="embed-x"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A letter from owner Howard Dolgon about our four-year affiliation extension with the <a href="https://x.com/TBLightning?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TBLightning</a>. ⚡️👊<a href="https://x.com/hashtag/TampaCuse?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TampaCuse</a> <a href="https://t.co/gQEOMMDHit">pic.twitter.com/gQEOMMDHit</a></p>— Syracuse Crunch (@SyracuseCrunch) <a href="https://x.com/SyracuseCrunch/status/2079920148907962433?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 22, 2026</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div> </div></figure>
<p>Dolgon alludes to Syracuse as a town that was once referred to as a “hockey graveyard” yet that the Crunch have not only survived as an independently-owned AHL franchise for 33 years, but has thrived, especially since linking up with the Lightning in 2012. As he points out, the Crunch have been to the Calder Cup Final twice, made the playoffs almost every season, and have had a stream of future NHL hall of famers (and one head coach) roll through the Upstate Medical Arena at The Oncenter War Memorial.</p>
<p>In all, 104 players have suited up for the Lightning and the Crunch, including Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Gabriel Dumont, and Daniel Walcott. Some have spent several seasons in Syracuse before getting the call, others, like Charle-Edouard D’Astous and Dominic James, have spent just a handful of games there before heading to the NHL.</p>
<p>One thing that players who have spent time in both cities have mentioned during the affiliation with the Lightning, is how professional the set-up in Syracuse is. The workout facilities mirror what is in Tampa, which isn’t always the case with AHL teams. The Crunch have done their part as well, with players who get called up able to jump into the line-up right away and make an impact. </p>
<p>Having a tight relationship with an affiliate is important to a NHL team as it helps create stability in the organization and level sets expectations for the players as they move through the organization and makes it easier for the parent club to monitor their prospects. While the Lightning have dipped into the AHL well a little more than Syracuse has anticipated over the last few seasons, they’ve never ignored the needs of the Crunch. Julien BriseBois and Joel Bouchard have worked well together to make sure Syracuse has what it needs to be competitive in a tough AHL North Division.</p>
<p>It is also worth noting that Dolgon mentioned the possibility of a new “state of the art” facility for the team. It is worth noting that the Oncenter was built in 1951, which in terms of modern sports facilities basically puts it closer in relevance to the Colosseum in Rome than Benchmark International Arena. </p>
<p></p>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Hockey News</h2>
<p></p>
<p><strong>How Tampa Bay inspired Stephen Gionta’s transition to scouting </strong>[<a href="https://www.nhl.com/lightning/news/scouting-report-how-tampa-bay-inspired-nhl-alum-stephen-gionta">Tampa Bay Lightning</a>]</p>
<p>It’s not always easy to transition to a post-NHL career. For Stephen Gionta, the prospect of working in one of the league’s top organizations was too big of a draw to ignore when the Lightning’s current Director of Personnel, Jamie Pushor, called him about a scouting job back in the summer of 2019. </p>
<p><strong>Living Sisu Hockey League</strong> [<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABlLU66sEL8">La Poche Bleue YouTube</a>]</p>
<p>Have you missed live hockey with professional players? Well, if you need your fix, it’s summer hockey league season. Here is some 3-on-3 action. Jeffrey Veal is on one of the teams. Andre Roy is one of the broadcasters. </p>
<p><strong>Delving into a Nikita Kucherov extension</strong> [<a href="https://www.rawcharge.com/delving-into-a-nikita-kucherov-extension-tampa-bay-lightning-free-agency-new-contract/">Raw Charge</a>]</p>
<p>We try and predict how much it’s going to cost the Lightning to sign Nikita Kucherov. The best we can figure is – a lot. There aren’t many players in the league that are in the situation that Kucherov is in, that makes things a little difficult.</p>
<p><strong>Jeffrey Viel ready to embrace Lightning-Panthers rivalry</strong> [<a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/tampa-bay-lightning/latest-news/jeffrey-viel-ready-to-embrace-lightning-panthers-rivalry-after-joining-tampa-bay">The Hockey News</a>]</p>
<p>The good news is that the Lightning’s newest grit-guy will have some time to get his feet wet before the Lightning and Panthers meet in the regular season in late November. Then again, they’ve had some festive pre-season games over the last few years and they meet two times this September before the season gets underway. </p>
<p><strong>“It’s just business”</strong> [<a href="https://www.milehighhockey.com/colorado-avalanche-feature-stories/65434/its-just-business-how-the-nhls-favorite-phrase-shields-organizations-but-buries-players">Mile High Hockey</a>]</p>
<p>The Lightning aren’t the only team trying to sign a generational talent to a new contract. Out in the thin air of Denver, Colorado Cale Makar needs a new deal, and there is a chance it could be a record breaker. Adrian Hernandez expresses some thoughts on the new player empowerment era.</p>
<p><strong>Thoughts on whatever the hell is going on with the Red Wings</strong> [<a href="https://www.wingingitinmotown.com/thoughts-on-whatever-the-hell-is-going-on-with-the-red-wings-steve-yzerman-dylan-larkin-nhl/">Winging it in Motown</a>]</p>
<p>Speaking of thoughts, things might not be going so well for our friends over at WIIM.</p>
- <p></p></p>
-
<p class="card-text"><a href='https://www.rawcharge.com/lightning-morning-news-crunch-owner-comments-on-the-extension-of-partnership-with-tampa-bay/' class="btn btn-secondary">Go to website</a></p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>