Let's continue our look at Division I baseball with the SEC, which has been the powerhouse baseball conference as of late. They are also the first conference we are going to look at in which every school plays varsity baseball. There is one thing I didn't note in the other conferences that maybe I should. If it wasn't clear, I have been measuring conference championships based on current association. That is going to deflate some championships totals for teams that have realigned recently. It shouldn't be a huge thing, but keep that mindful if you feel like your team is missing some championships (looking at you, Missouri and Texas A&M). It's the way I've started counting championships, and I feel like I'm too deep into it to change things now. Alabama Crimson TideStadium: Sewell-Thomas Stadium Capacity: 5800 Opened: 1948 Dimensions: 320 LF, 390 CF, 320 RF Surface: Grass SEC Championships: 14 (1934, 1935, 1936, 1938, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1947, 1950, 1955, 1968, 1983, 1996, 2006) SEC Tournament Championships: 7 (1983, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2002, 2003) National Championships: 0 Arkansas RazorbacksStadium: Baum-Walker Stadium Capacity: 11,531 Opened: 1996 Dimensions: 320 LF, 400 CF, 320 RF Surface: Bermuda Grass SEC Championships: 5 (1989, 1990, 1999, 2004, 2021) SEC Tournament Championships: 2 (1985, 2021) National Championships: 0 Auburn TigersStadium: Plainsman Park Capacity: 4096 Opened: 1950 Dimensions: 315 LF, 385 CF, 331 RF Surface: Grass SEC Championships: 11 (1905, 1916, 1920, 1928, 1931, 1937, 1958, 1963, 1967, 1976, 1978) SEC Tournament Championships: 3 (1978, 1989, 1998) National Championships: 0 Florida GatorsStadium: Condron Ballpark Capacity: 4700 Opened: 2021 Dimensions: 330 LF, 400 CF, 330 RF Surface: Grass SEC Championships: 15 (1952, 1956, 1962, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1988, 1996, 1998, 2005, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2017, 2018) SEC Championships Tournament: 7 (1981, 1982, 1984, 1988, 1991, 2011, 2015) National Championships: 1 (2017) Georgia BulldogsStadium: Foley Field Capacity: 2760 Opened: 1966 Dimensions: 350 LF, 404 CF, 314 RF Surface: Grass SEC Championships: 9 (1908, 1914, 1919. 1933, 1953, 1954, 2001, 2004, 2008) SEC Tournament Championships: 0 National Championships: 1 (1990) Kentucky WildcatsStadium: Kentucky Proud Park Capacity: 5000 Opened: 2019 Dimensions: 335 LF, 400 CF, 320 RF Surface: AstroTurf SEC Championships: 1 (2006) SEC Tournament Championships: 0 National Championships: 0 LSU TigersStadium: Alex Box Stadium Capacity: 10,326 Opened: 2009 Dimensions: 330 LF, 405 CF, 300 RF Surface: Grass SEC Championships: 17 (1939, 1943, 1946, 1961, 1975, 1986, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2003, 2009, 2012, 2015, 2017) SEC Tournament Championships: 12 (1986, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 2000, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2017) National Championships: 6 (1991, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2009) Ole Miss RebelsStadium: Swayze Field Capacity: 12,152 Opened: 1988 Dimensions: 330 LF, 390 CF, 330 RF Surface: Grass SEC Championships: 7 (1959, 1960, 1964, 1969, 1972, 1977, 2009) SEC Tournament Championships: 3 (1977, 2006, 2018) National Championships: 1 (2022) Mississippi St. BulldogsStadium: Dudy Noble Field Capacity: 15,000 Opened: 1967 Dimensions: 330 LF, 390 CF, 305 RF Surface: Bermuda Grass SEC Championships: 17 (1909, 1911, 1918, 1921, 1922, 1924, 1948, 1949, 1965, 1966, 1970, 1971, 1979, 1985, 1987, 1989, 2016) SEC Tournament Championships: 7 (1979, 1985, 1987, 1990, 2001, 2005, 2012) National Titles: 1 (2021) Missouri TigersStadium: Taylor Stadium Capacity: 3331 Opened: 2022 Dimensions: 340 LF, 400 CF, 340 RF Surface: Baby Bermuda infield, Kentucky Bluegrass outfield SEC Championships: 0 SEC Tournament Championships: 0 National Titles: 1 (1954) South Carolina GamecocksStadium: Founders Park Capacity: 6600 Opened: 2009 Dimensions: 325 LF, 390 CF, 325 RF Surface: Bermuda Grass SEC Championships: 3 (2000, 2002, 2011) SEC Tournament Championships: 1 (2004) National Titles: 2 (2010, 2011) Tennessee VolunteersStadium: Lindsey Nelson Stadium Capacity: 4387 Opened: 1993 Dimensions: 320 LF, 390 CF, 320 RF Surface: FieldTurf SEC Championships: 4 (1951, 1994, 1995, 2022) SEC Tournament Championships: 4 (1993, 1994, 1995, 2022) National Titles: 0 Texas A&M AggiesStadium: Olsen Field Capacity: 6100 Opened: 1978 Dimensions: 330 LF, 400 CF, 330 RF Surface: Bermuda Grass SEC Championships: 0 SEC Championships: 0 National Titles: 0 Vanderbilt CommodoresStadium: Hawkins Field
Capacity: 3700 Opened: 2002 Dimensions: 310 LF, 400 CF, 330 RF Surface: AstroTurf SEC Championships: 10 (1910, 1912, 1921, 1973, 1974, 1980, 2007, 2011, 2013, 2019) SEC Tournament Championships: 3 (1980, 2007, 2019) National Titles: 2 (2014, 2019) Well, I (softly) committed to this yesterday, so I guess we're going to do this. Let's swing around to the ACC today. The only team in the ACC not to sponsor baseball is Syracuse. They had varsity baseball a two different points. First from 1870 to 1921, then again from sometime in the 1940's to 1972. They made one appearance in the College World Series during their existence, in 1961 when Syracuse was independent. They did well, too, getting all the way to the semifinals, losing twice to Oklahoma St. That leaves us with 14 ACC schools still playing baseball, and they typically play it pretty well. That said, I was surprised to find that the ACC only has a couple more national championships than the Big Ten does, 6 to 4. Still, the ACC has seen significant more success in general in the national tournament, having numerous runners-up, whereas the Big Ten hasn't had a team finish in the top two since the 60's. Boston College EaglesStadium: Eddie Pellagrini Diamond Capacity: 1000 Opened: 2018 Dimensions: 330 LF, 403 CF, 330 RF Surface: AstroTurf ACC Championships: 0 ACC Tournament Championships: 0 National Championships: 0 Clemson TigersStadium: Doug Kingsmore Stadium Capacity: 6272 Opened: 1970 Dimensions: 320 LF, 400 CF, 330 RF Surface: Grass ACC Championships: 22 (1954, 1958, 1959, 1967, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1995, 2006, 2018) ACC Tournament Championships: 10 (1976, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1994, 2006, 2016) National Championships: 0 Duke Blue DevilsStadium: Jack Coombs Field* Capacity: 2000 Opened: 1931 Dimensions: 325 LF, 400 CF, 335 RF ACC Championships: 3 (1956, 1957, 1961) ACC Tournament Championships: 1 (2021) National Championships: 0 *Weekend games played at Durham Bulls Athletic Park Florida State SeminolesStadium: Dick Howser Stadium Capacity: 6700 Opened: 1983 Dimensions: 340 LF, 400 CF, 315 RF Surface: Grass ACC Championships: 9 (1996, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2012) ACC Tournament Championships: 8 (1995, 1997, 2002, 2004, 2010, 2015, 2017, 2018) National Championships: 0 Georgia Tech Yellow JacketsStadium: Russ Chandler Stadium Capacity: 4157 Opened: 1930 Dimensions: 328 LF, 400 CF, 334 RF Surface: Grass ACC Championships: 7 (1987, 1993, 1997, 2000, 2004, 2005, 2011) ACC Tournament Championships: 9 (1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2012, 2015) National Championships: 0 Louisville CardinalsStadium: Jim Patterson Stadium Capacity: 4000 Opened: 2005 Dimensions: 330 LF, 402 CF, 330 RF Surface: FieldTurf ACC Championships: 5 (2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2022) ACC Tournament Championships: 0 National Championships: 0 Miami HurricanesStadium: Alex Rodriguez Park Capacity: 5000 Opened: 1973 Dimensions: 330 LF, 400 CF, 330 RF Surface: Grass ACC Championships: 3 (2008, 2014, 2016) ACC Tournament Championships: 1 (2008) National Championships: 4 (1982, 1985, 1999, 2001) NC State WolfpackStadium: Doak Field Capacity: 2500 Opened: 1966 Dimensions: 320 LF, 400, CF, 330 RF Surface: Grass ACC Championships: 4 (1968, 1975, 1981, 1986) ACC tournament Championships: 4 (1973, 1974, 1975, 1992) National Championships: 0 North Carolina Tar HeelsStadium: Boshamer Stadium Capacity: 4100 Opened: 1972 Dimensions: 335 LF, 400 CF, 355 RF Surface: Grass ACC Championships: 16 (1901, 1922, 1933, 1934, 1948, 1960, 1964, 1966, 1969, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1989, 1990, 2013, 2018) ACC Tournament Championships: 8 (1982, 1983, 1984, 1990, 2007, 2013, 2019, 2022) National Championships: 0 Notre Dame Fighting IrishStadium: Frank Eck Stadium Capacity: 2500 Opened: 1994 Dimensions: 330 LF, 400 CF, 330 RF Surface: FieldTurf ACC Championships: 1 (2021) ACC Tournament Championships: 0 National Championships: 0 Pitt PanthersStadium: Charles L. Cost Field Capacity: 900 Opened: 2011 Dimensions: 300 LF, 405 CF, 300 RF Surface: FieldTurf ACC Championships: 0 ACC Tournament Championships: 0 National Championships: 0 Virginia CavaliersStadium: Davenport Field Capacity: 4825 Opened: 2002 Dimensions: 332 LF, 404 CF, 332 RF Surface: Bermuda Grass ACC Championships: 3 (1972, 2010, 2011) ACC Tournament Championships: 3 (1996, 2009, 2011) National Championships: 1 (2015) Virginia Tech HokiesStadium: English Field Capacity: 1132 Opened: 1989 Dimensions: 330 LF, 400 CF, 330 RF Surface: AstroTurf ACC Championships: 7 (1954, 1981, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2022) ACC Tournament Championships: 0 National Championships: 0 Wake Forest Demon DeaconsStadium: David F. Couch Ballpark
Capacity: 3823 Opened: 1956 Dimensions: 310 LF, 400 CF, 300 RF Surface: AstroTurf ACC Championships: 0 ACC Tournament Championships: 6 (1962, 1963, 1977, 1998, 1999, 2001) National Championships: 1 (1955) It's coming up on college baseball season, so I decided I should do another stadium tour. I've already done the Big Ten and NCAC, though, so it's time to branch out. I don't really have a good explanation, but I decided to look at the Big East. I think it's just because you don't typically hear a lot about those schools' baseball teams. Out of eleven schools, eight of them play baseball. DePaul does not have a team, probably because their campus doesn't really lend itself to hosting any athletic facilities. Marquette does not have a team, I'm guessing because the state of Wisconsin just hates baseball. That seems to be the only excuse for Marquette and Wisconsin to both shun baseball. And Providence doesn't play baseball, and I don't have a good excuse for them. Especially when it's a pretty short trip to McCoy Stadium, where the Pawtucket Red Sox used to play. That seems like a stadium in need of a tenant, and Google Maps tells me it's only a four mile trip from campus to the stadium. Nobody asked me, though. In any case, here are the stadiums of the eight schools that do play baseball, like any good American school should. Butler BulldogsStadium: Bulldog Park Capacity: 500 Opened: 1991 Dimensions: 330 LF, 400 CF, 330 RF Surface: Grass Big East Championships: 0 Big East Tournament Championships: 0 National Championships: 0 Connecticut HuskiesStadium: Elliot Ballpark Capacity: 1351 Opened: 2021 Dimensions: 330 LF, 400 CF, 330 RF Surface: AstroTurf Big East Championships: 3 (2011, 2021, 2021) Big East Tournament Championships: 5 (1990, 1994, 2013, 2021, 2022) National Championships: 0 Creighton BluejaysStadium: Charles Schwab Field Capacity: 24,505 Opened: 2011 Dimensions: 335 LF, 408 CF, 335 RF Surface: Kentucky Bluegrass Big East Championships: 2 (2014, 2019) Big East Tournament Championships: 1 (2019) National Championships: 0 Georgetown HoyasStadium: Shirley Povich Field Capacity: 800 Opened: 1999 Dimensions: 330 LF, 375 CF, 330 RF Surface: Bermuda grass Big East Championships: 0 Big East Tournament Championships: 0 National Championships: 0 St. John's Red StormStadium: Jack Kaiser Stadium Capacity: 3500 Opened: 2000 Dimensions: 325 LF, 390 CF, 325 RF (Measured with Google Maps) Surface: Grass Big East Championships: 9 (1987, 1991, 1992, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2012, 2015, 2018) Big East Tournament Championships: 9 (1985, 1986, 1988, 1993, 1997, 2010, 2012, 2015, 2018) National Championships: 0 Seton Hall PiratesStadium: Owen T. Carroll Field Capacity: 261 Opened: 1907 Dimensions: 315 LF, 395 CF, 328 RF Surface: FieldTurf Big East Championships: 1 (1990) Big East Tournament Championships: 3 (1987, 2001, 2011) National Championships: 0 Villanova WildcatsStadium: Villanova Ballpark at Plymouth Capacity: 750 Opened: 2003 Dimensions: 330 LF, 405 CF, 330 RF Surface: Grass Big East Championships: 3 (1988, 1993, 1996) Big East Tournament Championships: 2 (1989, 1991) National Championships: 0 Xavier MusketeersStadium: J. Page Hayden Field
Capacity: 500 Opened: Circa 1926 Dimensions: 310 LF, 380 CF, 310 RF Surface: Grass Big East Championships: 2 (2008, 2016) Big East Tournament Championships: 4 (2009, 2014, 2016, 2017) National Championships: 0 This doesn't really count as a real post, but I have to point out something I noticed today. After years of bugging Google about it, they have finally updated the satellite images for Columbian Park! Street view still shows the old stadium, but finally the new Loeb Stadium shows up (in 3D, even) on Google Maps. I'm not sure when this happened, but I'm Google Maps a lot, so I would have to imagine it had to have been recent. So, here it is!
It has most certainly been a week. This little project was not supposed to take nearly this long. But, we're going to finish it off now. If you've been doing the math, you will notice that the ECHL only has 28 teams, as opposed to the NHL's 32. The teams without an affiliate here are Nashville Predators, St. Louis Blues, Vancouver Canucks, and Winnipeg Jets. That may change in the near future, but here is the last division for this season. Atlanta GladiatorsFrom: Duluth, GA Population: 31,864 City; 6,144,050 Atlanta Metro Home Arena: Gas South Arena Capacity: 13,100 Built: 2003 Avg. Attendance: 3,780 21-22 Record: 43-24-4, 91 pts. Inaugural Year: 1995 0 Championships Affiliates: Arizona Coyotes, Tucson Roadrunners Florida EverbladesFrom: Estero, FL Population: 36,939 City; 760,822 Cape Coral Metro Home Arena: Hertz Arena Capacity: 7,181 Built: 1998 Avg. Attendance: 5,327 21-22 Record: 42-20-6, 93 pts. Inaugural Year: 1998 2 Championships (2012, 2022) Affiliates: Florida Panthers, Charlotte Checkers Greenville Swamp RabbitsFrom: Greenville, SC Population: 70,720 City; 928,195 Metro Home Arena: Bon Secours Wellness Arena Capacity: 13,951 Built: 1998 Avg. Attendance: 3,088 21-22 Record: 33-29-6, 76 pts. Inaugural Year: 1987 0 Championships Affiliates: LA Kings, Ontario Reign Jacksonville IcemenFrom: Jacksonville, FL Population: 949,611 City; 1,733,937 Metro Home Arena: VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena Capacity: 13,141 Built: 2003 Avg. Attendance: 6,405 21-22 Record: 40-27-3, 85 pts. Inaugural Year: 1992 0 Championships Affiliates: New York Rangers, Hartford Wolf Pack Norfolk AdmiralsFrom: Norfolk, VA Population: 238,005 City; 1,725,246 Metro Home Arena: Norfolk Scope Capacity: 8,701 Built: 1971 Avg. Attendance: 2,702 21-22 Record: 29-37-3, 64 pts. Inaugural Year: 1995 0 Championships Affiliates: Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Wolves Orlando Solar BearsFrom: Orlando, FL Population: 307,573 City; 2,691,925 Metro Home Arena: Amway Center Capacity: 17,353 Built: 2010 Avg. Attendance: 5,120 21-22 Record: 33-31-6, 73 pts. Inaugural Year: 2012 0 Championships Affiliates: Tampa Bay Lightning, Syracuse Crunch South Carolina StingraysFrom: North Charleston, SC Population: 114,852 City; 799,636 Metro Home Arena: North Charleston Coliseum Capacity: 10,537 Built: 1993 Avg. Attendance: 3,334 21-22 Record: 28-38-6, 62 pts. Inaugural Year: 1993 3 Championships (1997, 2001, 2009) Affiliates: Washington Capitals, Hershey Bears I didn't mean to go this long between updates. It has just been quite a week. But, we're already halfway through the ECHL, so I'm not going to leave it undone. Today we're going to start looking at the Eastern Conference, starting with the North Division. There are only six teams in this division, as opposed to the five in every other division. If you're doing the math, that gives you 27 teams in the ECHL, which you may also note is quite a handful under the 32 teams of the NHL. I'd imagine there will be some expansion in the ECHL to get every team their own affiliate, but I don't have any sort of real information or insight into that. There are some markets in the SPHL that very well might be able to handle an ECHL team, but I have serious doubts that Danville will be that market. Adirondack ThunderFrom: Glens Falls, NY Population: 14,830 City; 128,774 Metro Home Arena: Cool Insuring Arena Capacity: 4,794 Built: 1979 Avg. Attendance: 3,266 21-22 Record: 27-40-4, 58 pts. Inaugural Year: 1990 0 Championships Affiliates: New Jersey Devils, Utica Comets Maine MarinersFrom: Portland, ME Population: 68,408 City; 556,893 Metro Home Arena: Cross Insurance Arena Capacity: 6,206 Built: 1977 Avg. Attendance: 2,851 21-22 Record: 33-31-5, 74 pts. Inaugural Year: 1989 0 Championships Affiliates: Boston Bruins, Providence Bruins Newfoundland GrowlersFrom: St. John's, NL Population: 110,525 City; 205,995 Metro Home Arena: Mary Brown's Centre Capacity: 6,287 Built: 2001 Avg. Attendance: 2,261 21-22 Record: 42-20-4, 89 pts. Inaugural Year: 2018 1 Championship (2019) Affiliates: Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Marlies Trois-Rivieres LionsFrom: Trois-Rivieres, QC Population: 141,352 City; 156,042 Metro Home Arena: Colisee Videotron Capacity: 4,390 Built: 2021 Avg. Attendance: 2,900 21-22 Record: 34-29-5, 74 pts. Inaugural Year: 2021 0 Championships Affiliates: Montreal Canadiens, Laval Rocket Reading RoyalsFrom: Reading, PA Population: 95,112 City; 428,849 Metro Home Arena: Santander Arena Capacity: 6,500 Built: 2001 Avg. Attendance: 3,151 21-22 Record: 45-17-7, 99 pts. Inaugural Year: 1991 1 Championship (2013) Affiliates: Philadelphia Flyers, Lehigh Valley Phantoms Worchester RailersFrom: Worchester, MA Population: 206,518 City; 923,672 Metro Home Arena: DCU Center Capacity: 12,135 Built: 1982 Avg. Attendance: 3,968 21-22 Record: 32-32-5, 71 pts. Inaugural Year: 2017 0 Championships Affiliates: New York Islanders, Bridgeport Islanders Since we did the Central Division yesterday, it made sense to me to finish up the Western Conference today with the Mountain Division. Like yesterday, the average attendance is for last season, and I will provide context around the team's inaugural season if it's warranted. Off the top of my head, though, I think this division is full of newer teams, so I don't think there will be as many notes about that as there was yesterday or as we move into the Eastern Conference. Allen AmericansFrom: Allen, TX Population: 104,627 City; 7,637,387 DFW Metro Home Arena: Credit Union of Texas Event Center Capacity: 6,275 Built: 2009 Avg. Attendance: 3,220 21-22 Record: 35-28-8, 79 pts. Inaugural Year: 2009 2 Championships (2015, 2016) Affiliates: Ottawa Senators, Belleville Senators Idaho SteelheadsFrom: Boise, ID Population: 235,684 City; 749,202 Metro Home Arena: Idaho Central Arena Capacity: 5,002 Built: 1997 Avg. Attendance: 5,009 21-22 Record: 36-33-2, 75 pts. Inaugural Year: 1997 2 Championships (2004, 2007) Affiliates: Dallas Stars, Texas Stars Kansas City MavericksFrom: Independence, MO Population: 123,011 City; 2,392,035 Kansas City Metro Home Arena: Cable Dahmer Arena Capacity: 5,800 Built: 2009 Avg. Attendance: 2,966 21-22 Record: 32-33-5, 71 pts. Inaugural Year: 2009 0 Championships Affiliates: Seattle Kraken, Coachella Valley Firebirds Rapid City RushFrom: Rapid City, SD Population: 74,703 City; 144,558 Metro Home Arena: The Monument Capacity: 7,500 Built: 1977 Avg. Attendance: 3,361 21-22 Record: 36-25-6, 83 pts. Inaugural Year: 2008 1 Championship (2010 [CHL]} Affiliates: Calgary Flames, Calgary Wranglers Tulsa OilersFrom: Tulsa, OK Population: 413,066 City; 1,023,988 Metro Home Arena: BOK Center Capacity: 17,096 Built: 2008 Avg. Attendance: 5,834 21-22 Record: 36-30-3, 78 pts. Inaugural Year: 1992 0 Championships Affiliates: Anaheim Ducks, San Diego Gulls Utah GrizzliesFrom: West Valley City, UT Population: 140,230 City; 1,257,936 SLC Metro Home Arena: Maverik Center Capacity: 10,100 Built: 1997 Avg. Attendance: 4,249 21-22 Record: 42-27-2, 87 pts. Inaugural Year: 1981* 0 Championships Affiliates: Colorado Avalanche, Colorado Eagles *There was a Utah Grizzlies hockey team that existed from 1995-2005, but this franchise started in 1981 as the Nashville South Stars. The team moved to Vinton, VA after two seasons and played until 2003 before suspending operations. The team was then bought and moved to Utah to start again in 2005. Wichita ThunderFrom: Wichita, KS Population: 397,532 City; 648,919 Metro Home Arena: Intrust Bank Arena Capacity: 13,450 Built: 2010 Avg. Attendance: 3,913 21-22 Record: 27-36-9, 63 pts. Inaugural Year: 1992 2 Championships (1994 [CHL], 1995 [CHL]) Affiliates: San Jose Sharks, San Jose Barracuda The NHL start for realsies earlier this month, and now the lower leagues are getting going this week. I would have posted about Danville, but, well, the SPHL didn't make any changes as far as I'm aware, so can refer back to that post if you'd like. So, instead, I'm going to look at the other minor league I pay some good attention to, the ECHL. The ECHL is equivalent to AA, if you're looking at it by baseball terms. Unlike AA baseball, though, the ECHL really solidified itself and grew into its position pretty recently. Especially when compared to the AHL, which has been the AAA league for a long time. Thus, the ECHL has quite a few markets that are considerably bigger than their AAA counterparts, as the ECHL had a better chance to fill in some hockey vacuums that more established teams did not. The Blackhawks organization is a prime example of this. Their ECHL affiliate is the Indy Fuel, and their AHL affiliate is the Rockford IceHogs. You probably don't have to go running for a map to know that Indianapolis is a much bigger city than Rockford, IL. It doesn't always work this way, obviously, but you'll see a good handful of examples as we go through this. The ECHL is also a much bigger league than the SPHL or the FPHL, so we're going to break these up into divisions rather than blow through the whole league at once. I am going to privilege the Central Division first, though, because that's the division I most care about. This division is part of the Western Conference. We will get to all the others, though, I promise. Also, the average attendance numbers are based on last season, for whatever that's worth to you. Cincinnati CyclonesFrom: Cincinnati, OH Population: 309,317 City; 2,256,884 Metro Home Arena: Heritage Bank Center Capacity: 14,453 Built: 1975 Avg. Attendance: 5,212 21-22 Record: 36-23-3, 76 pts. Inaugural Year: 1995* 2 Championships (2008, 2010) Affiliates: Buffalo Sabres, Rochester Americans *There were two previous iterations of the Cincinnati Cyclones, one founded in 1990 and sold two years later to become the Birmingham Bulls. The second was founded in 1992 in the IHL, and died in 2001 when that league did. The current Cyclones were founded in 1995 as the Louisville RiverFrogs, then moved to Miami, and then finally back to Cincinnati in 2001. Fort Wayne KometsFrom: Fort Wayne, IN Population: 265,974 City; 423,038 Metro Home Arena: Allen Co. War Memorial Coliseum Capacity: 10,480 Built: 1952 Avg. Attendance: 6,838 21-22 Record: 40-25-6, 87 pts. Inaugural Year: 1985* 3 Championships (2003 [UHL], 2012 [CHL], 2021) Affiliates: Edmonton Oilers, Bakersfield Condors *The original Komets were founded in 1952, but moved to Albany for the 1990 season and immediately folded after one season in New York. This Komets team was bought from Flint to replace the moved team and adopted the original team's history. Indy FuelFrom: Indianapolis, IN Population: 887,642 City; 2,111,040 Metro Home Arena: Indiana Farmers Coliseum Capacity: 6,200 Built: 1939 Avg. Attendance: 3,481 21-22 Record: 34-33-2, 73 pts. Inaugural Year: 2014 0 Championships Affiliates: Chicago Blackhawks, Rockford IceHogs Iowa HeartlandersFrom: Coralville, IA Population: 22,318 City; 171,491 Iowa City Metro Home Arena: Xtreme Arena Capacity: 5,100 Built: 2020 Avg. Attendance: 1,961 21-22 Record: 29-33-9, 68 pts. Inaugural Year: 2021 0 Championships Affiliates: Minnesota Wild, Iowa Wild Kalamazoo WingsFrom: Kalamazoo, MI Population: 73,598 City; 335,340 Metro Home Arena: Wings Event Center Capacity: 5,113 Built: 1973 Avg. Attendance: 3,367 21-22 Record: 36-35-1, 73 pts. Inaugural Year: 1999 1 Championship (2006 [UHL]) Affiliates: Columbus Blue Jackets, Cleveland Monsters Toledo WalleyeFrom: Toledo, OH Population: 268,508 City; 608,145 Metro Home Arena: Huntington Center Capacity: 7,389 Built: 2009 Avg. Attendance: 7,358 21-22 Record: 49-19-2, 102 pts. Inaugural Year: 1991 0 Championships Affiliates: Detroit Red Wings, Grand Rapids Griffins Wheeling NailersFrom: Wheeling, WV Population: 27,062 City; 145,205 Metro Home Arena: WesBanco Arena Capacity: 5,406 Built: 1977 Avg. Attendance: 1,681 21-22 Record: 37-31-4, 78 pts. Inaugural Year: 1981 0 Championships Affiliates: Pittsburgh Penguins, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins Arby's has tried a lot of things through the years, but it has resisted going to burgers until now. I've never been sold that it was a good idea. Being a more deli-style place made it unique. There aren't any other chains making roast beef and other sliced meat their centerpiece. Hardee's/Carl Jr.'s does offer some sandwiches like that, but it is far from the focus of their menu. Arby's has their own thing going, and I respect them for that. I also happen to like their food, which I've mentioned before. Whether it's the move I would have made or not, we have reached the Burger Era at Arby's. My local Arby's offered two burgers, the Deluxe and the Bacon Ranch. They both are supposedly a blend of American Waygu* beef and traditional hamburger. So, how did they do? *Which is a bit like California champagne, but I'm sure it markets well. I pulled the Deluxe out of the bag first, so that's where I started. You can see how it is dressed in the picture here (which I did not take). Lettuce, tomato, red onion, pickle, and their version of special sauce. Nothing groundbreaking, but that's probably for the best. It does suffer a bit from the pickle problem I talked about yesterday, though I didn't find these pickles as overwhelming as White Castle's. If I ordered it again, I would leave them off, but I didn't find them offensive as I often do on burgers. The special sauce was good, but nothing you haven't experienced before. And I think that's a pretty good summation of this burger. It tastes like a high-end fast food burger, and it is priced accordingly.* It's good, but I don't know if it's good enough for Arby's stray off the path that's got them this far. *Not that Arby's is known for being cheap. After that was the Bacon Ranch burger. And, well, ranch isn't even a top tier salad dressing, you know? Arby's bacon has never been great, either. Passable, but not great. You can see it's otherwise dressed the same as the deluxe burger. But how would you ever know by tasting it? You wouldn't. Everything tastes like ranch. Nothing else comes through. Ranch dressing might have been invented in Alaska, but it has become heavily associated with the Midwest. And I hate it. Like I said, I don't really even like it on salad, but at least it tastes like it belongs there. It's okay as a veggie dip, but that's essentially still just being salad dressing. Outside of that context? Ranch is evil, and it absolutely ruins this burgers. Don't order this, and don't put ranch dressing where it doesn't belong, which is everywhere except your vegetables. Before I get into this burger, I have to talk about pickles first. And divorce. I was first really exposed to White Castle shortly after my parents separated. My mom had bought some boxes of frozen sliders from Aldi. Back then, I think Aldi was about the only grocery store that sold these, at least in our area. They're everywhere now. In any case, my brother and I were both big fans of these, but if you are familiar with the frozen sliders versus the ones you get at the restaurants, you know that the frozen ones do not have pickles. Even if you didn't know that, you probably aren't terribly surprised to learn that. Freezing pickles and then microwaving them sounds like an awful idea to start with, and that's before you start complicating it with putting them on a burger. So, for years, I wasn't getting the full White Castle experience and was blissfully unaware. I don't think I visited an actual White Castle until college, or at least late into high school. And that's when I discovered sliders were supposed to have pickles. Now, I like pickles. I don't know that I love pickles, but I like them well enough. But I very rarely ever put them on burgers (or any other sandwich, for that matter). I find their flavor is too strong and assertive, it ends up dominating every other ingredient. It doesn't mix with other flavors, it just masks them. I don't find that to be the case with the usual White Castle slider, though. They are there, certainly, but the whole melty-texture of everything (not just the cheese) somehow dulls the pickle. Or maybe White Castle just doesn't use very strong pickles. I don't know, but I don't mind them at all there. Off the top of my head, that is the only exception I can think of where I typically get pickles. Which finally brings me to the 1921 Slider that White Castle has busted out for their birthday celebrations. According to White Castle, this is the original slider recipe the chain started with. Though I have read and watched quite a bit of fast food (and White Castle in particular, actually) history, I actually can't verify that information myself. So I have to take their word for it. But, if this is what they started with, I can definitely see why they took off. The differences are pretty obvious just by looking at the picture. The patty itself is noticeably bigger (as is the box it comes in), and it has lettuce and tomato as well as the usual pickle and onion. The bun I believe is the same, though the consistency is much different. I presume this burger is cooked differently, so this bread is not fused to the burger the same way as a normal slider. As White Castle's site says, this meat is also definitely seasoned differently. The 1921 Slider tastes quite a bit lighter and brighter to me. I think the additional veggies mostly accounted for that, but the bread also did not feel as heavy. The only time things felt heavier is when I would get a bite of pickle. For me, this burger definitely would have benefited from losing the pickle. It dominated every bite I had of it, and it honestly frustrated me a bit, because the bites I got without pickle were just so good. The usual slider, despite its size, has always felt more heavy and greasy. And I'm not complaining about that. Again, I'm a big fan of White Castle. But with having so few toppings and all those toppings being the same consistency, it coats the mouth and is definitely more sour-forward. I didn't really get that with this one. The lettuce and tomato did a better job of complimenting the meat, and the meat itself tasted more like something you might grill at home. Even if you aren't a fan of White Castle, I highly recommend getting one of these and giving it a whirl yourself. Though, if you are like me, you might want to tell them to hold the pickle. Maybe it had a home a century ago, but it felt like an outlier to my 2022 taste buds. |
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