The Washington Capitals aren’t going to be the only Metropolitan Division team with an ECHL affiliate in South Carolina.

Wednesday, the Carolina Hurricanes announced that they have reached an affiliate agreement with the Greenville Swamp Rabbits.

I’ll repeat that: the Greenville Swamp Rabbits.

“We are excited to begin a new ECHL partnership with the Greenville Swamp Rabbits,” said Waddell. “The affiliation makes competitive and geographic sense for us, and we look forward to working with Greenville to develop our prospects.”

“This a landmark day for our franchise,” said Swamp Rabbits President and CEO Steve Donner. “A year ago, we set out on a goal to find a regional NHL partner to build a relationship with who is committed to development at the AHL and the ECHL level. In partnering with the Hurricanes, we have found that partner for player development with a huge added bonus of marketing synergy in the Carolinas.”

According to the Hurricanes’ release, Greenville, SC is located approximately 100 miles southwest of Charlotte.

The Greenville franchise originally started as the Johnstown Chiefs during the ECHL’s inception in 1988. The team relocated to South Carolina in 2010 and became the Greenville Road Warriors. In 2015, they rebranded into the Swamp Rabbits.

But what, Ian, is a swamp rabbit? I’m glad you asked. A swamp rabbit is an elusive, large cottontail rabbit found in the swamps and wetlands of the southern United States, including as north as South Carolina. One of the key traits of a swamp rabbit is, well, this:

THEY CAN SWIM.

The team’s logo is easily one of the best in all of hockey. It’s a helmet-wearing rabbit holding a hockey stick which is also a carrot.

I love its intensity. Here is a link to their Team Store.

Reader Paul, who is from the area, also pointed out that the area is known for a railroad nicknamed the Swamp Rabbit. After being abandoned, it eventually turned into a trail.

The affiliation agreement is only for one year.