American Hockey League
The American Hockey League or AHL, is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada. It is considered the farm league of the National Hockey League. The major championship in the AHL that the two winning teams of their conferences play for is the Calder Cup. The oldest current team in the AHL is the Hershey Bears which began play in 1938.
| Current season or competition: 2023–24 AHL season | |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1936 (IHL/C-AHL Interlocking schedules); 1938 (IHL/C-AHL formally merged) |
| No. of teams | 32 |
| Most recent champion(s) | Hershey Bears (12th title) |
| Most championships | Hershey Bears (12)[1] |
| TV partner(s) | Canada (English): Sportsnet/Sportsnet One Canada (French): TVA Sports Europe: Premier Sports United States (English): NHL Network United States (Spanish): ESPN Deportes |
| Official website | www.theahl.com |
Teams
Locations of teams in the AHL as of the 2023–24 season. Dot colors correspond to the divisional alignment
List of teams
- Notes
Timeline
AHL teams of the past and present
- Buffalo Bisons (1) (1936; folded)
- Cleveland Falcons (1936–37; renamed the Cleveland Barons)
- New Haven Eagles (1936–43; folded during World War II resurrected 1945)
- Philadelphia Ramblers (1936–41, renamed Philadelphia Rockets)
- Pittsburgh Hornets (1936–56; went on hiatus to wait for new arena, returned 1961)
- Providence Reds (1936–76; renamed Rhode Island Reds)
- Springfield Indians (1936–42; suspended during World War II; returned 1946)
- Syracuse Stars (1936–40; became Buffalo Bisons)
- Cleveland Barons (1937–1973; became Jacksonville Barons)
- Hershey Bears (1938–present)
- Indianapolis Capitals (1939–52; folded)
- Buffalo Bisons (2) (1940–70; folded)
- Philadelphia Rockets (1941–42; folded)
- Washington Lions (1941–43; folded)
- St. Louis Flyers (1944–53; folded)
- New Haven Eagles (1945–46, renamed New Haven Ramblers)
- Springfield Indians (1946–51; became Syracuse Warriors)
- Philadelphia Rockets (1946–49; folded)
- New Haven Ramblers (1946–50, renamed New Haven Eagles)
- Washington Lions (1947–49; became Cincinnati Mohawks)
- Cincinnati Mohawks (1949–52; transferred to IHL)
- New Haven Eagles (1950–51, folded)
- Syracuse Warriors (1951–54; became Springfield Indians)
- Springfield Indians (1954–67; renamed Springfield Kings)
- Rochester Americans (1956–present)
- Quebec Aces (1959–71; became Richmond Robins)
- Pittsburgh Hornets (1961–67; folded)
- Baltimore Clippers (1962–76; folded)
- Springfield Kings (1967–74; renamed Springfield Indians)
- Montreal Voyageurs (1969–71; became Nova Scotia Voyageurs)
- Nova Scotia Voyageurs (1971–84; became Sherbrooke Canadiens)
- Boston Braves (1971–74; suspended, became Moncton Hawks)
- Cincinnati Swords (1971–74; folded)
- Richmond Robins (1971–76; folded)
- Tidewater Wings (1971–72; played in Norfolk; renamed Virginia Wings)
- Virginia Wings (1972–75; played in Norfolk; became Adirondack Red Wings)
- Jacksonville Barons (1973–74; folded, franchise purchased and became Syracuse Eagles)
- New Haven Nighthawks (1972–92; became New Haven Senators)
- Springfield Indians (1974–94; became Worcester IceCats)
- Syracuse Eagles (1974–75; folded)
- Rhode Island Reds (1976–77; became Binghamton Dusters)
- Hampton Gulls (1977–78; folded midseason)
- Binghamton Dusters (1977–80; renamed Binghamton Whalers)
- Maine Mariners (1977–92; original franchise became Utica Devils; expansion franchise became Providence Bruins)
- Philadelphia Firebirds (1977–79; became Syracuse Firebirds)
- New Brunswick Hawks (1978–82; became St. Catharines Saints)
- Adirondack Red Wings (1979–99; became San Antonio Rampage)
- Syracuse Firebirds (1979–80; folded)
- Binghamton Whalers (1980–90; renamed Binghamton Rangers)
- Erie Blades (1981–82; merged into Baltimore Skipjacks)
- Fredericton Express (1981–88; became Halifax Citadels)
- Baltimore Skipjacks (1982–93; became Portland Pirates)
- Moncton Alpines (1982–84; renamed Moncton Golden Flames)
- Sherbrooke Jets (1982–84; folded)
- St. Catharines Saints (1982–86; became Newmarket Saints)
- Nova Scotia Oilers (1984–88; became Cape Breton Oilers)
- Sherbrooke Canadiens (1984–90; became Fredericton Canadiens)
- Moncton Golden Flames (1984–87; folded)
- Newmarket Saints (1986–91; became St. John's Maple Leafs)
- Moncton Hawks (1987–94; folded)
- Utica Devils (1987–93; became Saint John Flames)
- Cape Breton Oilers (1988–96; became Hamilton Bulldogs)
- Halifax Citadels (1988–93; became Cornwall Aces)
- Binghamton Rangers (1990–97; became Hartford Wolf Pack)
- Capital District Islanders (1990–93; became Albany River Rats)
- Fredericton Canadiens (1990–99; became Quebec Citadelles)
- St. John's Maple Leafs (1991–2005; became Toronto Marlies)
- Providence Bruins (1992–present)
- Hamilton Canucks (1992–94; became Syracuse Crunch)
- New Haven Senators (1992–93; became Prince Edward Island Senators)
- Albany River Rats (1993–2010; became Charlotte Checkers)
- Portland Pirates (1993–2016, became Springfield Thunderbirds)
- Prince Edward Island Senators (1993–96; became Binghamton Senators)
- Saint John Flames (1993–2003; became Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights)
- Cornwall Aces (1993–96; dormant until 1999 and became Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins)
- Springfield Falcons (1994–2016; became Tucson Roadrunners)
- Syracuse Crunch (1994–present)
- Worcester IceCats (1994–2005; became Peoria Rivermen)
- Baltimore Bandits (1995–97; became Cincinnati Mighty Ducks)
- Carolina Monarchs (1995–97; became Beast of New Haven)
- Philadelphia Phantoms (1996–2009; became Adirondack Phantoms)
- Hamilton Bulldogs (1996–2015; became second version of the St. John's IceCaps)
- Kentucky Thoroughblades (1996–2001; became Cleveland Barons)
- Cincinnati Mighty Ducks (1997–2005; became Rockford IceHogs)
- Beast of New Haven (1997–99; folded)
- Hartford Wolf Pack (1997–2010, 2013–present; became Connecticut Whale from 2010–13)
- Lowell Lock Monsters (1998–2006; became Lowell Devils)
- Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (1999–present)
- Louisville Panthers (1999–2001; became Iowa Stars)
- Quebec Citadelles (1999–2002; merged with Hamilton Bulldogs)
- Norfolk Admirals (2000–15; became the San Diego Gulls)
- Bridgeport Sound Tigers (2001–2021; became Bridgeport Islanders)
- Chicago Wolves (2001–present)
- Grand Rapids Griffins (2001–present)
- Houston Aeros (2001–13; became Iowa Wild)
- Manchester Monarchs (2001–15; became the Ontario Reign)
- Milwaukee Admirals (2001–present)
- Cleveland Barons (2001–06; became Worcester Sharks)
- Manitoba Moose (2001–11, 2015–present; were the St. John's IceCaps from 2011–2015)
- Utah Grizzlies (2001–05; became Lake Erie Monsters)
- Binghamton Senators (2002–17; became the Belleville Senators in 2017)
- San Antonio Rampage (2002–20; became Henderson Silver Knights)
- Toronto Roadrunners (2003–04; split from Hamilton Bulldogs, became Edmonton Road Runners)
- Edmonton Road Runners (2004–05; dormant 2005–2010, became the Oklahoma City Barons)
- Iowa Stars (2005–08; became Iowa Chops)
- Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights (2005–07; became Quad City Flames)
- Peoria Rivermen (2005–13; became Utica Comets)
- Toronto Marlies (2005–present)
- Lowell Devils (2006–10; became Albany Devils)
- Worcester Sharks (2006–15; became the San Jose Barracuda)
- Lake Erie Monsters (2007–16; renamed Cleveland Monsters)
- Quad City Flames (2007–09; became Abbotsford Heat)
- Rockford IceHogs (2007–present)
- Iowa Chops (2008–09; became Texas Stars)
- Adirondack Phantoms (2009–14; became Lehigh Valley Phantoms)
- Texas Stars (2009–present)
- Abbotsford Heat (2009–14; became Adirondack Flames)
- Albany Devils (2010–17; became the Binghamton Devils in 2017)
- Charlotte Checkers (2010–present)
- Oklahoma City Barons (2010–15; became the Bakersfield Condors)
- Connecticut Whale (2010–13; reverted to Hartford Wolf Pack)
- St. John's IceCaps (2011–17; original franchise became the Manitoba Moose in 2015, second franchise became the Laval Rocket in 2017)
- Iowa Wild (2013–present)
- Utica Comets (2013–present; original franchise relocated to Abbotsford in 2021)
- Adirondack Flames (2014–15; became the Stockton Heat)
- Lehigh Valley Phantoms (2014–present)
- Bakersfield Condors (2015–present)
- Ontario Reign (2015–present)
- San Diego Gulls (2015–present)
- San Jose Barracuda (2015–present)
- Stockton Heat (2015–22; became the Calgary Wranglers)
- Cleveland Monsters (2016–present)
- Springfield Thunderbirds (2016–present)
- Tucson Roadrunners (2016–present)
- Belleville Senators (2017–present)
- Binghamton Devils (2017–21; became second version of the Utica Comets)
- Laval Rocket (2017–present)
- Colorado Eagles (2018–present)
- Henderson Silver Knights (2020–present)
- Abbotsford Canucks (2021–present)
- Bridgeport Islanders (2021–present)
- Calgary Wranglers (2022–present)
- Coachella Valley Firebirds (2022–present)
American Hockey League Media
The alternate logo of the AHL
A June 29, 1938 Associated Press article in The Philadelphia Record announcing the formation of the Hershey Bears in Hershey, Pennsylvania
American Hockey League's 50th anniversary logo
The Lehigh Valley Phantoms host the Hartford Wolf Pack at PPL Center in Allentown, Pennsylvania, December 2019
Cheerleader cheering at the All-Star Game, 2018
An AHL record crowd of 45,653 watched the Adirondack Phantoms defeat the Hershey Bears, 4–3 in overtime at the 2012 AHL Winter Classic at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia
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References
- ↑ "Calder Cup Record Book" Archived January 25, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, theahl.com
- ↑ "Colorado Eagles moving to AHL to become top Avalanche affiliate". Fort Collins Coloradoan. October 10, 2017.