American Hockey League (AHL)
The AHL (American Hockey League) is a North American professional hockey league which serves as the primary developmental institution for the National Hockey League (NHL). All of the NHL's 30 clubs have affiliation agreements in place, either exclusively or shared, with one or more of the AHL's 27 teams. Although a minor league in every meaningful sense, the AHL is looked upon as second only to the NHL in quality and standing of North American professional hockey and sustains a storied history and legacy in its own right.
The genesis of the AHL can be traced to the 1930s, when two earlier minor leagues, the Canadian-American (Can-Am) Hockey League and the International Hockey League decided to play an interlocking schedule with each other in order to mitigate the effects of significant defections in both leagues. Calling itself the International-American Hockey League, the circuit established a new championship trophy, the Calder Cup. In 1940, the association renamed itself the American Hockey League, and despite weathering several highs and lows since that time, the league has survived and today is as strong as ever. The Calder Cup has survived as well, and today is second only to the NHL's Stanley Cup in terms of both longevity and prestige among pro hockey awards. Following is a brief synopsis of the AHL and a listing of all AHL teams:
AHL At-A-Glance
- Season: October through April. Each team plays a schedule consisting of 80 games.
- Teams (2007): 27 (14 Eastern Conference, 13 Western Conference).
- Hall Of Fame: AHL Hall Of Fame
- Championship: Calder Cup
- Current champion: 2005/2006 - Hershey Bears
Eastern Conference
- Atlantic Division
- Hartford Wolfpack (N.Y. Ranger affiliate) - Hartford, CT
- Lowell Devils (N.J. Devils affiliate)) - Lowell. MA
- Manchester Monarchs (L.A. Kings affiliate) - Manchester, NH
- Portland Pirates (Anaheim Mighty Ducks affiliate) - Portland, ME
- Providence Bruins (Boston Bruins affiliate) - Providence, RI
- Springfield Falcons (Tampa Bay Lightning affiliate) - Springfield, MA
- Worcester Sharks (San Jose Sharks affiliate) - Worcester, MA
- East Division
- Albany River Rats (Carolina Hurricanes/Colorado Avalanche affiliate) - Albany, NY
- Binghamton Senators (Ottawa Senators affiliate) - Binghamton, NY
- Bridgeport Sound Tigers (New York Islanders affiliate) - Bridgeport, CT
- Hershey Bears (Washington Capitals affiliate) - Hershey, PA
- Norfolk Admirals (Chicago Blackhawks affiliate) - Norfolk, VA
- Philadelphia Phantoms (Philadelphia Flyers affiliate) - Philadelphia, PA
- Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (Pittsburgh Penguins/Edmonton Oilers affiliate) - Wilkes-Barre, PA
Western Conference
- North Division
- Grand Rapids Griffins (Detroit Red Wings/Edmonton Oilers affiliate) - Grand Rapids, MI
- Hamilton Bulldogs (Montreal Canadiens/Edmonton Oilers affiliate) - Hamilton, Ontario
- Manitoba Moose (Vancouver Canucks affiliate) - Winnipeg, Manitoba
- Rochester Americans (Buffalo Sabres/Florida Panthers affiliate) - Rochester, NY
- Syracuse Crunch (Columbus Blue Jackets affiliate) - Syracuse, NY
- Toronto Marlies (Toronto Maple Leafs affiliate) - Toronto, Ontario
- West Division
- Chicago Wolves (Atlanta Thrashers affiliate) - Rosemont, IL
- Houston Aeros (Minnesota Wild affiliate) - Houston, TX
- Iowa Stars (Dallas Stars/Edmonton Oilers affiliate) - Des Moines, IA
- Milwaukee Admirals (Nashville Predators/Edmonton Oilers affiliate) - Milwaukee, WI
- Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights (Calgary Flames affiliate) - Omaha, NE
- Peoria Rivermen (St. Louis Blues affiliate) - Peoria, IL
- San Antonio Rampage (Phoenix Coyotes affiliate) - San Antonio, TX
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