Peter LeBlanc

Hershey Bears forward Peter LeBlanc, right, signed to play in Sweden in 2014-15. Paul Chaplin | pchaplin@pennlive.com

The possibility of an AHL Pacific Division has percolated in recent years.

Based on an appearance by AHL President-CEO Dave Andrews on the "Marek vs. Wyshynski" podcast show, that possibility is moving closer to becoming reality.

Andrews was asked about the speculation that some Western Conference teams want to have their AHL affiliates located closer to them on Wednesday's show, hosted by Jeff Marek and Greg Wyshynski.

"

It's not all poppycock and it's beyond an idea," Andrews said on the show, "but it is still a work in progress and it's an ongoing process between the league and five of the western-based NHL teams, potentially perhaps even more than five.

"

As you can imagine, there are a lot of moving parts to figuring out a way to relocate five teams out to the West Coast. We have essentially agreed with those teams on a framework in which we would see it happen, but there are a number of transactions that have to play out before it's going to happen. In terms of a timeframe, 2015-16 is possible. But a lot has to fall into place before that's going to happen."

Hershey Bears President-GM Doug Yingst declined to comment, deferring to Andrews as the league's spokesman on the matter.

Mayorsmanor.com previously reported that Anaheim, Los Angeles, Calgary, Colorado, Edmonton, Phoenix, San Jose and Vancouver have expressed interest in having their AHL affiliates closer at hand.

Norfolk (Anaheim), Manchester (Los Angeles), Adirondack (Calgary), Lake Erie (Colorado), Oklahoma City (Edmonton), Portland (Phoenix), Worcester (San Jose) and Utica (Vancouver) currently have affiliations with those NHL clubs.

"

It's not an easy project and it's really not a fait accompli as yet," Andrews said on the show. "Some of the terms and conditions are sort of in place, but there's a lot more to be done before it becomes a reality."

NOTEBOOK

Bears forward Peter LeBlanc, a Washington Capitals restricted free agent, signed to play for Rogle BK in Sweden for 2014-15. LeBlanc played 98 games (20-26-46) for Hershey the past two seasons. The 26-year-old made his NHL debut on April 13 in Washington's regular-season finale against Tampa Bay.