The Washington Capitals and the South Carolina Stingrays of the ECHL have extended their affiliation agreement through the 2028-29 season, Senior Vice President and General Manager Chris Patrick announced today.
“We are excited to continue our affiliation with the South Carolina Stingrays,” said Patrick. “The Stingrays have maintained a winning culture throughout our partnership, creating an environment that has helped many of our prospects develop and advance in their professional careers. We look forward to building on that success together and continuing to provide our players with an outstanding opportunity to grow both on and off the ice.”
The 2026-27 season will mark the 13th consecutive season that the Capitals and Stingrays have been affiliated. The Capitals were also affiliated with South Carolina from 2004 through 2012. In the 20 total seasons the teams have been affiliated, South Carolina has missed the playoffs just three times. The Stingrays won the Kelly Cup in 2009 – the same year that the Hershey Bears won the AHL’s Calder Cup – and have won three conference championships since 2015. In 2024-25, South Carolina was awarded the Brabham Cup after earning a league-best 109 points in the regular season. Last season, South Carolina finished second in the ECHL’s South Division and third in the Eastern Conference with a 45-23-1-3 record and advanced to the Division Finals of the Kelly Cup Playoffs.
“We’re equally excited to continue this affiliation with the Washington Capitals organization,” said Rob Concannon, President of the South Carolina Stingrays. “This partnership has given us the opportunity to compete at the highest level of the ECHL while providing our fans with an outstanding product night in and night out. Playing at this level gives their prospects invaluable game experience and a strong foundation to learn and grow in the professional game, and we look forward to continuing that tradition together for years to come.”
Two players who appeared in games with the Capitals last season previously played for the Stingrays: Logan Thompson and Clay Stevenson. Thompson, who spent the 2019-20 season with South Carolina, was named to the NHL’s Second All-Star Team in 2025-26 after posting a 31-21-6 record with a 2.44 goals-against average, a .912 save percentage and four shutouts in 58 games played. Stevenson ranked second in the ECHL in goals-against average (2.54) during his lone season with the Stingrays in 2022-23 and went 3-1-0 with a 2.00 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage in four appearances with the Capitals last season.
Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery spent five seasons as head coach and director of hockey operations of the Stingrays from 2011 to 2016. Carbery compiled a 207-115-18-20 record with South Carolina, leading the Stingrays to the Kelly Cup Playoffs in each of his five seasons. Carbery, the 2025 Jack Adams Award winner, won the John Brophy Coach of the Year Award with the Stingrays in 2014.
South Carolina played their 33rd ECHL season in 2025-26 and have qualified for the playoffs in 30 of their 33 seasons. The Stingrays are three-time Kelly Cup Champions (1997, 2001, 2009), which is the second-most championships in ECHL history, and have reached the Kelly Cup Finals six times.