SHL - Southern Hockey League (1973-1977)

After the 1972-73 season, the EHL folded when the southern teams withdrew to form their own league, the Southern Hockey League (SHL). The NAHL was created at the same time of the northern based EHL teams. The SHL started with six teams, half of them from North Carolina (Winston-Salem Polar Twins, Greensboro Generals, Charlotte Checkers). The league also had the Roanoke Valley Rebels (VA), Suncoast Suns (FL), and Macon Whoopee (GA). It was an amalgamation of new teams and teams that had left the old EHL. The league would only last four years, as most of the teams in the league would face financial difficulties. The NHL has expanded greatly during the late 60s and 1970s, and along with the WHA helped to saturate the market for hockey in North America. The NAHL would also see the Baltimore Clippers (MD), Hampton Gulls (VA), and Richmond Wildcats (VA) play before the league would fold following the 1976-77 season.