The Stockton AHL franchise, owned by the Calgary Flames, announce the five names that have made the final cut from the “Name the AHL Team” contest. The American Hockey League franchise will be known as the Stockton Blaze, Stockton Fire, Stockton Heat, Stockton Inferno or the Stockton Scorch.
The winning name, which will be selected by the Calgary organization, will be announced soon and the winning fan will be awarded the grand prize of season tickets for the inaugural AHL season.
“We were simply blown away by the amount of names submitted,” Team President Dave Piecuch said. “We received thousands of submissions from all over the Central Valley, and even a few from Alberta, and it seems that the overwhelming majority would like to see the AHL team branded similar to that of the parent Calgary Flames hockey club.”
The Flames name was originally used in Atlanta for the expansion Atlanta Flames NHL club back in 1971. When the team moved to Calgary in 1980 the name was retained and the flaming “C” has been the trademark ever since.
Throughout the Flame’s history, the team’s AHL affiliation tends to play off the big club’s moniker, being known as the St. John Flames from 1993-2003, the Quad City Flames in 2007-09, the Abbotsford Heat from 2009-14 and currently the Adirondack Flames.
Fans can reserve their seats for the first season of AHL hockey in Stockton by calling (209) 373-1500. For more information, visit
StocktonThunder.com/ahl.