The Central Hockey League has today announced the conference and divisional alignment for the upcoming season of play. The two-conference, four-division alignment format adopted for the 01-02 season remains in place for the fifth consecutive season. The expansion Youngstown SteelHounds will open up the new Youngstown Convocation Center this fall, and join the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs, Fort Worth Brahmas and Memphis RiverKings in the Northeast Division, while the defending Ray Miron Presidents Cup champion Colorado Eagles will head up the Northwest Division along with the Oklahoma City Blazers, Tulsa Oilers and Wichita Thunder.
The CHLs Southeast Division remains unchanged, comprised of the Austin Ice Bats, Corpus Christi Rayz, Laredo Bucks and Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees, while the Amarillo Gorillas, Lubbock Cotton Kings and Odessa Jackalopes form the three-team Southwest Division. The New Mexico Scorpions will return to the ice for the 2006-2007 season, playing home games in the to-be-constructed Rio Rancho Events Center.
The CHLs playoff format, featuring eight clubs (each of the four division winners and two wild-card teams from each conference) also remains in place, with the eventual champions again needing to win three best-of-seven series to claim the 05-06 Ray Miron Presidents Cup.
The CHL regular season will begin Friday, October 21st, and run through Sunday, March 26th, 2006, extended an additional week to accommodate each clubs 64-game schedule. In mid-January, the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees and the City of Hidalgo will host the 2006 CHL All-Star Game at the Dodge Arena, with the complete CHL regular season schedule released in the coming weeks.
The Central Hockey League enters its 14th season of play having led all North American AA leagues in average attendance for four consecutive seasons, while also serving as the only AA circuit to welcome over 4,000 fans per contest for each of the last four regular and playoff seasons.