AHL History: How the American Hockey League Became Hockey's Proving Ground

1936

It started as a survival pact

In 1936, the Canadian-American Hockey League and the International Hockey League were both running out of money. So they did the only thing left: they joined forces and played one schedule as the International-American Hockey League.

Eight teams signed up. Buffalo ran out of money and quit after just 11 games. The other seven refused to quit, and in 1937 the Syracuse Stars became the league's first champions.

1938

And one town held on tighter than anyone

Two years later, the leagues made their merger official and a chocolate town in Pennsylvania joined the fight. By 1940, the name had been cut down to what it is today: the American Hockey League.

The Hershey Bears never moved, never renamed, never left. They own a record 13 Calder Cups, the trophy named for Frank Calder, the NHL's first president. Nearly nine decades later, they are still the heartbeat of the league.

Never moved. Never renamed. Never left.

1945

The league grew up loud

The AHL was never a waiting room. On March 17, 1945, Cleveland beat Pittsburgh 12-10, still the highest-scoring game in league history. The Cleveland Barons became the league's first dynasty, winning nine Calder Cups, the last in 1964.

Johnny Bower spent years stopping pucks in Cleveland and set the AHL record with 359 wins. Toronto finally made him a full-time NHL goalie in 1958, when he was 33. He went on to win four Stanley Cups.

1970s

Then the big leagues came for its cities

In the '70s, NHL and WHA expansion moved into the AHL's best markets. When the NHL's Sabres arrived in Buffalo in 1970, the Bisons were gone. The Baltimore Clippers didn't make it through the decade either.

One by one, teams disappeared. By 1976-77, only six were left. It looked like the end.

1978

So it did what underdogs do

New cities stepped up to save it: Portland, Maine. Binghamton. Moncton. Glens Falls.

The brand-new Maine Mariners won the Calder Cup in each of their first two seasons, 1978 and 1979. No AHL newcomer has done it since. The league didn't just survive. It came back hungry.

1987

That hunger made it hockey's laboratory

A league fighting to matter will try anything. The AHL experimented with a shootout in 1986-87, introduced the point for an overtime loss, tested four-on-four overtime in 1998-99 and added three-on-three in 2014-15, a season before the NHL. If you've ever lost your mind during NHL overtime, the AHL tested it first.

It had its share of strange nights too. On December 5, 1987, Rochester's Darcy Wakaluk became the first AHL goalie credited with a goal.

Along the way, the NHL started trusting the AHL with its future. Today every NHL team has its own AHL club, like the Providence Bruins for Boston. A first-round pick shares the ice with a 29-year-old fighting for his next contract. No runway. No excuses.

1998

Doubt turned into belief

For years, "minor league" sounded like a step down. Getting sent to the AHL felt like your dream slipping away. Then players started proving otherwise.

Martin St. Louis was never drafted. Too small, they said. Calgary signed him anyway and sent him to its AHL team in Saint John, where he played every shift like it was his last chance. Calgary let him go in 2000. Tampa Bay didn't make the same mistake. In 2004 he won the Stanley Cup and the Hart Trophy as league MVP, and in 2018 he went into the Hall of Fame.

2005

Then belief turned into a plan

Anaheim drafted Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry in the first round in 2003, then refused to rush them. Both made their pro debuts in the Calder Cup playoffs with the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks. In 2005-06, the Ducks sent them to the Portland Pirates to grow up together. Same bus, same line, 67 points in 36 games.

Less than two years later, they lifted the Stanley Cup side by side in Anaheim. The AHL wasn't a step down anymore. It was the path.

2026

Now it's simply how hockey works

Getting sent to the AHL isn't a failure anymore. It's how stars are made. Last season, 596 AHL graduates were on NHL opening-night rosters, and 21 of the NHL's 32 head coaches had learned the job behind an AHL bench.

The 2026-27 season opens October 2. The Toronto Marlies defend the Calder Cup they won in June, beating the Chicago Wolves in five games, and Hamilton plays its first season with the brand-new Hammers. Somewhere on a bus tonight is the next Getzlaf.