San Diego Gulls

For other teams using the San Diego Gulls name please see San Diego Gulls (disambiguation page). The San Diego Gulls are a team in the American Hockey League (AHL) which began play for the 2015-16 season. Based in San Diego, California and affiliated with the National Hockey League's Anaheim Ducks, the Gulls play their home games at the Valley View Casino Center. The team is the fifth San Diego hockey team to use the Gulls nickname (replacing the current junior level WSHL San Diego Gulls who will change their name to the Sabers starting in the 2015-16 season ). It is a relocation of the former Norfolk Admirals AHL franchise, joining several other AHL franchises to form a new AHL Pacific Division in California.

History
On January 29, 2015, the Anaheim Ducks announced that they had purchased their AHL affiliate, the Norfolk Admirals, and would be moving it to San Diego as one of five charter member's of the AHL's new Pacific Division. The team will play at the Valley View Casino Center, becoming the sixth hockey team to play there, following the original San Diego Gulls of the WHL (1966–74), the San Diego Mariners of the WHA (1974–77), the San Diego Hawks/Mariners of the Pacific Hockey League (1977–79), the second San Diego Gulls of the IHL (1990–1995), and the third San Diego Gulls of the West Coast Hockey League and later the ECHL (1995–2006).

The Gulls' nickname, logo and colors were revealed on February 22, 2015 at Hockey Fest. Hockey Fest was deemed a success, drawing over 8,500 enthusiastic hockey fans.