 | |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
|---|---|
| Competition | ECHL |
| Awarded for | Playoff champions |
| Sponsored by | FLOHOCKEY |
| History | |
| First award | 1997; 27 years ago (1997) |
| First winner | South Carolina Stingrays |
| Most wins | Florida Everblades (4 titles) |
| Most recent | Florida Everblades |
| Website | List of winners |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
|---|---|
| Competition | ECHL |
| Awarded for | Playoff champions |
| History | |
| First award | 1989 |
| Final award | 1996 |
| First winner | Carolina Thunderbirds |
| Most wins | Hampton Roads Admirals Toledo Storm (2 each) |
| Most recent | Charlotte Checkers |
The Patrick J. Kelly Cup goes to the playoff champion of the ECHL. The Kelly Cup has been awarded to teams since 1997. Prior to 1997, the playoff winner was awarded the Riley Cup, named after former American Hockey League president Jack Riley. The current cup is named after Patrick J. Kelly, the league's first commissioner. The cup is loaned to the winning team for one year and is returned at the start of the following year's playoffs,[1] although the trophy itself has been replaced three times with the first two iterations preserved in the Hockey Hall of Fame.[2] The Kelly Cup Playoffs Most Valuable Player award is also given out as part of the Kelly Cup Championship ceremonies. Nick Vitucci, Dave Gagnon and Cam Johnson (ice hockey) are the only players to win the award on multiple occasions, with Johnson the only player to win the award in consecutive years. [3]
Eighteen different teams have won the ECHL Championship, with nine (Alaska, Allen, Cincinnati, Colorado, Florida, Hampton Roads, Idaho, South Carolina, and Toledo) winning multiple times. The Florida Everblades hold the record for most championships won with four.[4] The Colorado Eagles, who won it in 2018 for their second consecutive title, moved to the American Hockey League in 2018–19. In 2019, the Eagles' ownership did not return the Kelly Cup to the ECHL before the playoffs, leading to the league creating a replacement trophy for the 2019 Kelly Cup playoffs.[5][6] The Eagles' ownership eventually returned the cup before the 2019–20 season, and the league returned its status to be the primary trophy.[7][8] The 2019 Kelly Cup was the fourth copy of the trophy, but was allowed to be kept by the Newfoundland Growlers when the previous cup returned to circulation.[2]
On one occasions an ECHL club has won the Kelly Cup coincidentally with its NHL affiliate winning the Stanley Cup: 2023 when the Florida Panthers and their ECHL affiliate, the Florida Everblades both won this also occurred with its AHL affiliate winning the Calder Cup: 2009 when the Hershey Bears and their ECHL affiliate, the South Carolina Stingrays both won.
The Kelly Cup playoffs is an elimination tournament, consisting of four rounds of a best-of-seven series. The format has changed often throughout the years. Since 2016–17, the top four point earners from each division qualify. The first two playoff rounds are played within each division, followed by the conference finals (contested between the four division winners), and ending with the Kelly Cup finals (featuring the two conference champions).
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