Syracuse Crunch

About

As many teams choose franchise names through a public vote, Syracuse denizens chose 'Crunch' when the team was established in 1995. The club is affiliated with the Tampa Bay Lightning, but it has held affiliations with the Vancouver Canucks, Anaheim Ducks and the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Crunch also have the distinction of playing in the first AHL game outdoors, when they lost to the Binghamton Senators in front of a record attendance crowd of 21,508. Additionally, the franchise won its first ever Eastern Conference title in 2013, then played the Grand Rapids Griffins for the Calder Cup, losing in six games 2-4.