To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.

Then come back here and refresh the page.

CHARLOTTE – The Charlotte Checkers announced Wednesday the team will move from the ECHL to AHL and become the top farm team of the Carolina Hurricanes.

Checkers owner Michael Kahn purchased the Albany River Rats, the current American Hockey League affiliate of Carolina, and will move that franchise to the Queen City.

"The level of hockey is so much higher. Statistics say over 85 percent of NHL players played in the AHL at one time,” Kahn said. “The ECHL, they've done a fantastic job, it's a great league; but you know, over 21 years I think 450 players have made it."

The Hurricanes said the decision to have Charlotte as its top minor league affiliate was a no-brainer, since it makes moving players back and forth easier. The organization also sees a great impact beyond what takes place on the ice.

"I really like the fact that we're really growing the sport of hockey in North Carolina,” Hurricanes General Manager Jim Rutherford said. “The more places you are where people are talking about hockey and the Hurricanes and the Checkers and things, the more the sports going to grow."

A new league means new players, a new coach and possibly a new color scheme, but the biggest fans Checkers fans may have is about the ticket price.

"We're going to remain the best entertainment value in the city of Charlotte, from a sports perspective," Kahn said.

The team will play its home games at Time Warner Cable Arena, the current home of the ECHL’s Checkers. It’s just one piece of a changing sports landscape for the Queen City.

"Triple A baseball, we've got Triple A hockey now. We've got two major league teams in basketball and football. It's just a step forward for Charlotte," Carl Scheer, former Checkers owner, said.