SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Springfield Thunderbirds announced Friday they have signed a seven-year extension to their affiliation agreement with the St. Louis Blues through the 2030-31 season.

An ongoing partnership with the NHL team since 2020, Thunderbirds President Nathan Costa credits the hockey club's appearance in the Calder Cup Finals in 2022 among other key factors.

"We kicked it off with our Calder cup run, and we've had such an impact on St. Louis and they love this facility and this area as a partner," said Costa.  "And on both sides, we wanted to get this done and have a long-term deal because now our fans can look forward to seven years of hockey at least and much more as we go forward."

The Thunderbirds have seen an rise in fan attendance for eight straight years. 

Last season, the team sold out a franchise-record 20 games including a 14-game sellout streak to end the year.

Costa said it's been a mission of the program to involve the community as much as possible.

"We're a pro hockey team, but we're much more than that," said Costa. "It's an experience coming to our games, and that's what we've really focused on. Providing kids with experience at games you're not going to get anywhere else. Making them a part of our game night experience and bringing a whole new generation of kids into this arena to be fans long term."

MGM Springfield President Louis Theros said the casino has been a sponsor for the Thunderbirds for years and says the team staying in Springfield is a great benefit for the Western Mass economy.

"All the sudden you have 50-60 people who are ushers who are concessioners, etc..," said Theros. "Second of all it does have a great economic impact to the surrounding communities. So restaurants who might not be busy on a Tuesday Night or Sunday afternoon. All of sudden they've got a game going- So it really does drive business even in these hard times."

The Thunderbirds will open the 2024-25 regular season at home next Saturday night.

Costa said the goal of the new extension will be to continue building a winning program.

"We're going to continue to invest in our product. Hand over fist. The experience, the promotions, the giveaways, the themes. All the fun stuff that fans are taking part of in addition to the first class hockey is going to continue and we're going to keep pushing the envelope to be the best in the league."