Nashville Predators Renew Affiliation With Cincinnati Cyclones

The Nashville Predators are the latest NHL club to keep their ECHL team on board. The Preds have announced they will be keeping the Cincinnati Cyclones around as their Double A affiliate for the 2015-2016 ECHL and NHL season.

Just two days ago, the Dallas Stars announced they were renewing their deal with the Idaho Steelheads. Nashville has been affiliated with the Cyclones for the past eight seasons.

The Cyclones are Kelly Cup champions from the 2008 and 2010 seasons, and have reached the playoffs for the past seven out of eight seasons they have been associated with the Predators. They have also claimed three division titles.

The relationship with the Predators has been a good one, as five former Cyclones have made it to the NHL with the Predators.

“We look forward to continuing to work with such a class organization that creates a winning environment for our players to develop,” Predators Assistant General Manager Paul Fenton said in a press release. “Led by President Ray Harris, the Cyclones have been a model of consistency the past eight seasons and have been critical to the success of the Milwaukee Admirals and the Nashville Predators.”

The Cyclones founded in 1990 as a part of the International Hockey League. They played in that league until 2001 until they joined the ECHL. They had two seasons of no activity, where it looked like the team might become dormant for good, until they started play again and have become one of the league’s most successful teams.

The Cyclones are accepted as a big part of Cincinnati sports, with their stadium located in the same complex as the Major League Baseball Cincinnati Reds and National Football League Cincinnati Bengals.

Last season, seven Predators prospects played for the Cyclones. The Cyclones also work closely with the Milwaukee Admirals, the American Hockey League club affiliated with the Predators.

It has been an active week for the Predators minor league clubs, with the renewal of the Cyclones and the overhaul of the Admirals uniform and logo. Nashville has done a terrific job developing young talent over the past few seasons, and the Cyclones have been a part of it.