WORCESTER — This city's form of government is defined as Plan E, and its professional hockey team has become Plan B.



The San Jose Sharks, owners of the American Hockey League team of the same nickname that has played at the DCU Center since 2006-07, will move the team out west as part of an exodus of AHL teams if a variety of factors come together.

WORCESTER — This city's form of government is defined as Plan E, and its professional hockey team has become Plan B.

The San Jose Sharks, owners of the American Hockey League team of the same nickname that has played at the DCU Center since 2006-07, will move the team out west as part of an exodus of AHL teams if a variety of factors come together.

Jon Gustafson, the Sharks' executive who oversees the team's business operations in Worcester, said that specifically this week for the first time. Previously, the San Jose front office had been reluctant to go beyond saying that nothing was imminent in terms of rumors of the AHL's possible relocation.

"Our desire, much like everyone else on the West Coast," said Gustafson, "is to move our minor league operations out west and have the same amenities and advantages as our brethren back east. We'll work with the AHL and our partners toward that and see where it lands.

"Nothing has been finalized, and we're continuing talks with (AHL president) Dave Andrews."

Worcester will retain its AHL team for at least the duration of this season in accordance with the lease currently in place. That lease included an option for San Jose to leave after the 2014-15 season if certain economic benchmarks were not met, and they were not.

However, the NHL Sharks have notified DCU Center general manager Sandy Dunn that they would like to talk about a possible extension.

According to multiple league sources, the move west hinges upon the AHL's ability to form at least a four-team division out there. Anything less, and there are no relocations.

Through the end of last season, the league had a team on the West Coast, but it was the Canadian West Coast in Abbotsford, British Columbia, a city near Vancouver.

That team moved to Glens Falls, New York, for this season. Abbotsford, while in the west, is about 800 miles north of the San Francisco Bay area and more than 1,000 miles from Los Angeles, so even if that city had stayed in the league, it would not have been exactly a day trip from its nearest AHL neighbors.

If the AHL can find four teams that want to go west, it also would have to find four cities to play in. The easiest transition would be having Manchester move to Ontario, California, since both teams are owned by the parent L.A. Kings. The most logical spot for San Jose to place an affiliate would be nearby Stockton, but that city has an existing ECHL team under private ownership.

The Sharks would have to buy that team in some form, and one possibility might be to buy it and move it to Worcester if the ECHL is interested in the city as a possible market. While the ECHL is a coast-to-coast league, it has never had a team in New England.

"This will all play out," Gustafson said. "If the West Coast (relocation) doesn't take place, then nothing has changed."

This will be Worcester's 20th season in the AHL with a one-year hiatus between the IceCats (1994-2005) and the Sharks, who arrived in 2006. Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce CEO Tim Murray was mayor of Worcester when the Sharks moved here from Cleveland and does not want to see the city without pro hockey.

"The AHL, both the IceCats and the Sharks, have been part of the fabric of the city for 20 years," he said, "and they've been an economic driver. Hockey is important to us, and we hope the Sharks stay here. If they don't, we have to look at what other options there are.

"They are still here, and they still need our support."

In the meantime, training camps will open this month, and the Sharks begin their ninth season in town on Oct. 11.

"We're excited about the schedule," Gustafson said. "It benefits both the business side and hockey side. We've got five fewer three-in-threes that last year, and all six of our Providence games are on Saturday nights. We've got a solid, committed ticket base, but we can always use more."

The AHL's Board of Governors meets later this month. Perhaps after that the area's hockey fans will know how much longer their commitments have to run.

Contact Bill Ballou at wballou@telegram.com.