Trenton Titans return to ECHL, will affiliate with Flyers for 2011-12 season

by Travis Hughes on Jul 28, 2011 3:09 PM EDT in Philadelphia Flyers Farm System

In 2007, the New Jersey Devils bought the Trenton Titans. In a continued effort to stretch their brand south towards Philadelphia Flyers territory in the state, they renamed the team the Trenton Devils and began what would be a four year experiment in the city.

The results were less than pretty. As has been the case in a million other places where the Devils have set up their minor league shop, they proved that they didn't really care about the team winning on the ice, nor did they necessarily care about the fans. (See: Devils, Lowell.)

The Titans had been one of the most successful franchises in the ECHL, both in terms of on-ice success and fan support, prior to the Devils taking over operations in '07.

Affiliated with the Philadelphia Flyers and Phantoms (and the New York Islanders briefly as part of a dual affiliation) from 1999 to the sale in '07, the Titans finished first in their division twice, lost in the Kelly Cup Finals once and won the Kelly Cup one time in their first eight seasons. They only missed the playoffs once during that period.

When the Devils stepped in, everything fell apart. Fans of the team, primarily located in Flyers country (albeit on the Northern reaches of it), were alienated by the Devils name and the tossing out of the old Titans brand they had learned to love. More importantly, the product on the ice quickly fell from first-class to something much less, and the team missed the playoffs in three of the four years under Devils control.

As was the case in Lowell (and as could be the ultimate case in Albany, N.Y. with the Devils current AHL affiliate), attendance dwindled and fan support evaporated. The team officially ceased operations following the 2010-11 season, in which they finished dead last in the 19-team league. The Devils said in making the announcement that they lost money in every season they owned the team. In other words, they ran a proud franchise into the ground.

ECHL hockey will stay alive in Trenton thanks to a new local ownership group called Blue Line Sports, run by a couple from Lawrenceville, and they'll of course be called the Titans. Once again, they'll be affiliated with the Flyers organization. Last year, the Flyers sent ECHL players to Greenville, S.C. as part of a dual affiliation with the New York Rangers. Less than ideal, to say the least.

The Titans roster will be filled out by Flyers ECHL-level prospects, as well as players on contract with the Titans, and hockey operations will be out of the hands of the Devils organization. Just like the good old days of Titans hockey. Fans in Trenton are surely just happy to have hockey to watch this fall, but who knows? Maybe it'll be winning hockey as well.

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A much shorter ride for the BSH Mast Head Road Trip.

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@boknows71

by boknows71 on Jul 28, 2011 3:48 PM EDT reply actions

How does one get to own a hockey team?

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by Cillo stache on Jul 28, 2011 4:00 PM EDT reply actions

1st you get the sugar, then you get the money, then you get the power.

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@boknows71

by boknows71 on Jul 28, 2011 5:01 PM EDT up reply actions

Thought it was first you get the khakis, then…

G, the second coming of Foppa.

by JerseyDriver on Jul 28, 2011 8:33 PM EDT up reply actions

You don’t need much money to own an ECHL team

On the Mike Weber bandwagon!
I hate Christian Ehrhoff because he should have been Tomas Kaberle.

by Ubiquitous on Jul 29, 2011 8:47 AM EDT up reply actions

Bridge Jersey

If they bring back that red third jersey with the capitol dome logo and the bridge pattern on the shoulders, I very well might buy one. If they make it old school Flyers orange, and come up with a better logo that the grey dude popping a squat, I’ll have to buy one

Flyers, Phillies, Eagles, Union, Phantoms, Wings.

by Pelti on Jul 28, 2011 4:31 PM EDT reply actions

Dark Jersey

I always liked their alternate dark jersey which I guess became their primary dark jersey. While I agree that Clash isn’t the best logo for the team, changing the team colors would be disastrous. I think the reds, blacks, and grays represent that industry and factories that were once located in Trenton perfectly. Bring back everything you can from the original stint of the Titans as they were the hip thing to do on Friday nights.

VIVA LA TITANS!

by ov3rl0rdl on Jul 29, 2011 8:26 AM EDT up reply actions

this is the one I liked: http://www.bdhhfamily.com/40163329.beedle_4221.jpg

Flyers, Phillies, Eagles, Union, Phantoms, Wings.

by Pelti on Jul 29, 2011 9:14 AM EDT up reply actions

I loved that one too.

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by Travis Hughes on Jul 29, 2011 10:17 AM EDT up reply actions

that’s actually awesome.

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by Val_d'Or on Jul 29, 2011 4:21 PM EDT up reply actions

Not a surprise a devils minor league organization failed. My dad tried sponsoring the team in Albany a few years back before the hurricanes moved in, it was just brutal. It was even more evident in Lowell, but now in their second incarnation in Albany, the team is bad and the ownership is bad. I remember some years when the River Rats would lose what seemed like every single game for a week.

by ryan1 on Jul 28, 2011 4:53 PM EDT via mobile reply actions

so, what’s this mean exactly? in terms of roster stuff? can the Phantoms call up guys from the Titans?

by Jazzy85 on Jul 28, 2011 5:16 PM EDT reply actions

We have our huge pool of players. Some of those guys will play in the ECHL, and if they do, they’ll play in Trenton. Trenton will also sign other players to ECHL contracts to fill out their roster. Those players aren’t under Flyers control and can’t be moved around by the Flyers organization.

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by Travis Hughes on Jul 28, 2011 5:19 PM EDT up reply actions

Does the AHL do this as well?

6/23/11- It will only be known as Black Thursday

by goldomatic on Jul 28, 2011 7:41 PM EDT up reply actions

Yes. A guy like Denis Hamel on the Phantoms isn’t under Flyers control, but he’s under contract with the Phantoms. The Flyers can’t call him up (unless they sign him to a contract of their own).

It’s to a lesser extent in the AHL than the ECHL because parent clubs have more AHL-caliber players in their system than ECHL-caliber players (because as an NHL team, why would you want to control a bunch of guys playing at such a low level?), but the leagues work the same way.

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by Travis Hughes on Jul 28, 2011 7:53 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions

Yeah, and there weren’t many Flyers prospects in the ECHL last year. Other than Brian Stewart, Nic Riopel, and Shane Harper, they didn’t have many (if any other) guys down there.

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by Geoff Detweiler on Jul 28, 2011 9:23 PM EDT up reply actions

A couple of guys were there for short stints (2-10 games). But there seems to be a lot of variance from year to year, so I don’t know if we can predict how many or how few Flyers prospects will show up there this year.

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by DragonGirl0583 on Jul 28, 2011 10:02 PM EDT up reply actions

Andrew Rowe, Bourdon, and Stef Legein all spent some time down there. I think Rowe is the only guy from last years squad that would be in the ECHL next year.