Penguins Announce ECHL Affiliation Changes

After 29 years of partnership, the Pittsburgh Penguins are making a change at the ECHL level. In a statement shared this afternoon from general manager Kyle Dubas, the club announced that the Wheeling Nailers will no longer be an affiliate, due to what Dubas called “very unique circumstances”. Just two hours later, the highly successful Florida Everblades were announced as their replacement.

Last month the Chicago-based Hoffmann Group was granted approval to acquire the Penguins, quite the step up from their only other venture into the hockey world, owning the Everblades. Based on that, today’s news was expected, but it is still a tough end for what was the longest ongoing ECHL/NHL partnership in the league. Located just 60 miles away in Wheeling, West Virginia, the Nailers offered a local farm club with a dedicated fan base which Dubas referred to as an “invaluable part of the organization’s player development process”. Penguins fans living close to the border had the option to attend Nailers games nearby and check in on prospects in an environment which brought the typical minor league charm.

NHL teams changing ECHL affiliations is not rare; the Wild, Blues, Jets, and Rangers have all done such in recent months. The Wheeling/Pittsburgh connection was special for how long it lasted, very uncommon in today’s landscape. Even outside of transitioning between teams, unfortunately the past few years have been tough for the ECHL, as last December there was a player strike which was eventually resolved. Needless to say, the stability the Penguins brought to the Nailers will be missed. Now, the Dallas Stars/Idaho Steelheads relationship is bumped to the top, having started theirs in 2005-06.

According to the team, Wheeling has developed more NHL talent than any opponent in the ECHL, with 71 total alums across various roles, 64 of whom were players. Notables include Josh Archibald, Tom Kühnhackl, and Carter Rowney. Dallas Stars netminder Casey DeSmith appeared in 13 games for the Nailers during the 2015-16 season, and one cannot forget prominent media figure Paul Bissonette, the former NHL enforcer playing for the team across 2005-08 and even posting 42 points in 2006-07, his most productive offensive season as a pro by a considerable margin.

Often a league for the less-heralded prospects, bright young goaltender Sergei Murashov and 23-year-old forward Avery Hayes form the next wave of younger talent who wore the Wheeling uniform and took to the ice in West Virginia.

Leaving behind the local organization, the Penguins are joining forces with an ECHL dynasty of sorts down south. The Everblades, based in Estero, Florida, brought home the 2026 Kelly Cup as ECHL Champions. It was their fourth title in the past five years, and fifth overall as a franchise since starting play in 1998. According to a 2025-26 ECHL Attendance Graph put together by Hockeydb.com, the Everblades ranked seventh in league attendance per-game, 6,552, a significant gap higher than Wheeling who ranked toward the bottom at just over 2,500. The two teams clashed in the playoffs this past season in the Eastern Conference Final, with Wheeling, of course, coming up short to the eventual champs four games to one.

As for what comes next for Wheeling, thankfully other nearby teams have ECHL vacancies; the Columbus Blue Jackets, New York Rangers, and Buffalo Sabres. Even if they had to stretch out west, the Utah Mammoth also are without a current partner, per the league’s website. Whatever comes next for them, the Nailers will hope to reach the Kelly Cup Finals for the first time since 2015-16 and one day hang their first banner in the rafters.