from Elliott Teaford of the Daily Breeze at the LA Daily News,

The westward migration of the AHL, hockey’s top minor league, has been every bit the rousing success the Ducks, Kings, Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers and San Jose Sharks hoped it would be. Above all, the NHL teams and their AHL clubs are better connected than in the past.

“It’s been excellent,” Ducks general manager Bob Murray said. “We’ve had good crowds, the people are excited and it’s a decent hockey team, so that part of it. As far as our organization is concerned, it’s working well. The teams are competitive. I’ve seen everybody. It’s pretty good so far.”

The Ducks are now entrenched in San Diego after many seasons in Norfolk, a six-hour flight from Orange County with a connection. The Kings moved from Manchester to Ontario. The Flames went from Glens Falls, N.Y., to Stockton. The Oilers shifted from Oklahoma City to Bakersfield.

Perhaps shrewdest of all, the Sharks swapped far-flung Worcester, Mass., for San Jose’s SAP Center, where players walk from one dressing room to another depending on whether they’ve been recalled to the NHL club or reassigned to the AHL one.

“The travel is a little difficult, for us at least,” Gulls right wing Tim Jackman said. “The closest bus trip is Ontario, but the other places we’ve played, Bakersfield and San Jose, we’ve had some long bus trips. But it’s good bonding. We’ve watched some movies and there’s been some laughs.”

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