Albany Devils
| Albany Devils | |
|---|---|
 2016–17 AHL season
|
|
 |
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| City | Albany, New York |
| League | American Hockey League |
| Conference | Eastern |
| Division | North |
| Founded | 1998 |
| Home arena | Times Union Center |
| Colors | Red, black, white |
| Owner(s) | New Jersey Devils |
| General manager | Tom Fitzgerald |
| Head coach | Rick Kowalsky |
| Captain | Rod Pelley |
| Media |
Albany Times Union MSG Network ESPN 104.5 The Team |
| Affiliates | New Jersey Devils (NHL) |
| Franchise history | |
| 1998–2006 | Lowell Lock Monsters |
| 2006–2010 | Lowell Devils |
| 2010–present | Albany Devils |
| 2017– | Binghamton Devils |
The Albany Devils are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL). The top AHL affiliate of the National Hockey League (NHL)'s New Jersey Devils, the team plays home games at the Times Union Center in Albany, New York. This is the second time the New Jersey Devils have been affiliated with an Albany-based AHL team; from 1993 to 2006, the Devils used the Albany River Rats as their top minor league team. Unlike the River Rats, the Devils own their Albany affiliate outright.
The current Albany franchise was originally located in Lowell, Massachusetts, from its founding in 1998. It took on the Devils name when the franchise purchased the then-Lowell Lock Monsters in 2006 and retained it when the parent club moved the franchise to Albany in 2010. Beginning in the 2017–18 season, the Devils will relocate to Binghamton, New York, as the Binghamton Devils.
On February 10, 2010, Albany River Rats owner Walter L. Robb sold his team to MAK Hockey LLC, led by Charlotte beer distributor Michael Kahn, owner of the ECHL Charlotte Checkers. It was then announced that the River Rats would play the 2010–11 season as the Charlotte Checkers, and the ECHL franchise was relinquished to the league. Meanwhile, Robb, as well as members of the River Rats and Times Union Center's front office, had already begun looking for an American Hockey League team to replace the River Rats.
On April 26, 2010, the New Jersey Devils sent Albany County a letter of intent to relocate their AHL affiliate to Albany, with a five-year commitment, on the grounds that the arena have specific renovations made. New Jersey Devils General Manager Lou Lamoriello, in a letter to the members of the Lowell Devils Booster Club, stated that changes presented in the lease with Lowell made it "financially impossible" to stay.
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