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91-590: Cincinnati has fielded Cyclones teams with three separate franchises in two different leagues: the International Hockey League (1992–2001) and the ECHL (1990–1992, 2001–2004, 2006–present). Together, the franchises have combined to win two Kelly Cups (2008 and 2010), three conference championships (2008, 2010 and 2014), two overall points championships (2008 and 2019), and six division championships (1996, 2008, 2009, 2013, 2019 and 2023). In 2007–08,

182-430: A "C" standing for, Cincinnati. The jersey concepts also changed from being a classic hockey style to a more modern era look. The home, away, and alternate jerseys have red shoulders and red stripes that begin at the elbow area and wrap around to the underside of the wrists. The home jerseys are base white with red trim, the away jerseys are base black with red trim, and the alternates are base grey with black trim. Other than

273-543: A 2–1 victory. Cincinnati drew the Reading Royals in the American Conference Final. The seven-game series was marred by several incidents, both on and off the ice, that resulted in suspensions and fines to players and staff of both organizations. The worst occurred after game six, when Reading's Scott Fletcher allegedly struck a Cincinnati fan with a stick, drawing an indefinite suspension by

364-465: A 3–0 deficit to win a best of seven series. The only goal of the contest was scored by Barret Ehgoetz 13:48 into the game. The Cyclones defeated the Idaho Steelheads in the 2010 Kelly Cup Final , four-games-to-one. Cincinnati scored game-winning goals within the last minute in the first two games, a 3–2 win on a goal by Mark Van Guilder with 49.2 seconds remaining on May 14, and a 1–0 win

455-693: A fifth-place finish in the Eastern Conference. Cincinnati would win three series against the Orlando Solar Bears , Fort Wayne Komets , and Greenville Road Warriors , all in six games, earning their third trip to the Kelly Cup Finals. They faced the Brabham Cup winning Alaska Aces , but would lose the series in six games. Despite the loss in the final, Cincinnati goaltender Rob Madore was named Most Valuable Player of

546-566: A five-game conference final to the top seeded Reading Royals, who would go on to win the Kelly Cup. On July 9, 2013, coach Skalde accepted an assistant's position with the AHL's Norfolk Admirals , becoming the second consecutive Cyclones coach to be promoted to a higher level. Before the 2014–15 season, Skalde was appointed as Norfolk's head coach. Cincinnati came back strong under new head coach Ben Simon in 2013–14, with 41 wins and 91 points for

637-618: A large portion of their roster, the Cyclones went on to post their third lowest points total in franchise history. They were still able to earn a seventh seed in the ECHL playoffs, but lost in the first round to Reading Royals, three-games-to-one. In 2011, the Florida Panthers moved their AHL affiliation to the San Antonio Rampage as well their AHL head coach, Chuck Weber.. Despite heavy support by new AHL affiliate,

728-548: A reason for the team's success, both on the ice and in attendance. During the IHL years, the Cyclones set a team record of eight consecutive 90+ point seasons, ending when the International Hockey League ceased operations in 2001. During the Cyclones' nine years in the IHL, they won their only division and conference regular season championships in the 1995–96 season , but lost in a seven-game semifinal series to

819-585: A result, half of the AHL's teams folded from 1974 to 1977. The league bottomed out in the summer of 1977, with news that the Rhode Island (formerly Providence) Reds – the last remaining uninterrupted franchise from the 1936–37 season, and the oldest continuously operating minor league franchise in North America – had decided to cease operations after 51 years in Rhode Island. The AHL appeared in serious danger of folding altogether if this downward trend

910-766: A shootout against the Lake Erie Monsters before a standing-room crowd of 11,015 fans. A year after their originally scheduled date, the Griffins and Marlies played at Comerica Park on December 30, 2013, and Toronto prevailed in a shootout, 4–3, becoming the first AHL team ever with two outdoor wins. Attendance in Detroit was 20,337. As part of the recent addition of the Pacific Division, the AHL played its first outdoor hockey game in California during

1001-455: A suitable arena; the Bisons' original arena, Peace Bridge Arena , had collapsed the previous season (a new Buffalo Bisons team would return to the league in 1940 after a new arena was constructed for them). The makeshift new I-AHL played out the rest of its first season (as well as all of the next) with just seven teams. At the end of the 1936–37 season, a modified three-round playoff format

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1092-688: A viable option. The two leagues' eight surviving clubs began joint play in November 1936 as a new two-division "circuit of mutual convenience" known as the International-American Hockey League. The four Can-Am teams became the I-AHL East Division, with the IHL quartet playing as the West Division. The IHL also contributed its former championship trophy, the F.G. "Teddy" Oke Trophy , which would go to

1183-413: Is Scott Howson . A player must be at least 18 years of age to play in the AHL or not currently be beholden to a junior ice hockey team. The league limits the number of experienced professional players in a team's lineup during any given game; only five skaters can have accumulated more than 260 games played at the professional level (goaltenders are exempt from this rule). The annual playoff champion

1274-471: Is an annual invitational tournament featuring teams from leagues around Europe and the world. The participation of the AHL in future Spengler Cups has been discussed by both the tournament organizers and league leadership. In 2014, Swedish club Färjestad BK met the Toronto Marlies as part of a visit to Canada that included its participation in the 2014 AHL All-Star Classic. In February 2018,

1365-717: Is awarded the Calder Cup , named for Frank Calder , the first President (1917–1943) of the NHL. The defending champions following the 2023–24 season are the Hershey Bears , winning their 13th Calder Cup in franchise history. The AHL traces its origins directly to two predecessor professional leagues: the Canadian-American Hockey League (the "Can-Am" League), founded in 1926, and the first International Hockey League , established in 1929. Although

1456-548: Is one more than South Carolina (23) had in its title run in 2009. Rookie Cyclones goaltenders Robert Mayer and Jeremy Smith were named co-winners of the Kelly Cup playoffs MVP. Cincinnati finished with a total record of 59–32–4. The Cyclones underwent several changes before the 2010–11 season when assistant coach Dean Stork became the head coach of the Greenville Road Warriors in June and head coach Chuck Weber

1547-816: The 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, the Adirondack Red Wings hosted exhibition games against the national teams from the United States , West Germany , Sweden and Finland . Team USA also played exhibitions against AHL teams leading up to the 1994 Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway. The Rochester Americans participated in the 1996 and 2013 editions of the Spengler Cup , held in Davos , Switzerland . The Spengler Cup

1638-412: The 2011–12 season would still be unsuccessful. The Cyclones had a slow start to the season and while they stayed competitive throughout the rest of the season, they earned only 35 wins and 79 points. Cincinnati would finish tenth in the conference, marking only the third time in their 20-season history that they did not make the playoffs. The Cyclones made a complete turnaround the next season, beginning

1729-432: The 2014 Kelly Cup playoffs , becoming the first player from the losing team to win the award in the ECHL's 26-year history, and the fourth Cincinnati goaltender to either win the trophy outright or share the trophy. Madore earned the award after leading the ECHL with all 14 of Cincinnati's playoff wins, 1,493 minutes of play, and a Cincinnati record 756 saves while playing every second of Cincinnati's 24 playoff games. After

1820-592: The 2024–25 AHL season , all 32 NHL teams held affiliations with an AHL team. Historically, when an NHL team does not have an AHL affiliate, its players are assigned to AHL teams affiliated with other NHL franchises. Twenty-six AHL teams are located across the United States whereas the remaining six are situated in Canada. The league offices are located in Springfield, Massachusetts , and its current president

1911-796: The Binghamton Dusters , while the Firebirds crossed over to the AHL from the NAHL. The Dusters and Firebirds, together with the Hampton Gulls (who had joined the league from the Southern Hockey League ), boosted the AHL to nine member clubs as the 1977–78 season opened. Hampton folded on February 10, 1978, but was replaced the next year by the New Brunswick Hawks . With franchise stability improving after

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2002-686: The Buffalo Bisons , Syracuse Stars , Pittsburgh Hornets , and Cleveland Falcons . With both leagues down to the bare minimum number of teams to be viable, the governors of both leagues recognized the need for action to assure their member clubs' long-term survival. Their solution was to play an interlocking schedule. While the Can-Am was based in the Northeast and the IHL in the Great Lakes , their footprints were close enough for this to be

2093-825: The Elmira Jackals to win the North Division playoff title. However, the Cyclones would be swept by the South Carolina Stingrays in the American Conference Finals. The 2009–10 season proved to be more successful with 44 wins and 91 points, the wins total being the most in the American Conference. Despite that, the Cyclones finished second in the North Division to the Kalamazoo Wings and fifth in

2184-703: The Hershey Bears , 4–3, in overtime before 45,653 fans at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia , as the final event of the week-long activities associated with the 2012 NHL Winter Classic , which also included a game between the Philadelphia Flyers and the New York Rangers on Jan 2 and an alumni game between retired players (including eight honored members of the Hockey Hall of Fame ) of those two clubs on December 31, 2011. The contest

2275-813: The Laval Rocket in 2017. The Binghamton Senators were also purchased by the Ottawa Senators and were relocated to Belleville, Ontario , to become the Belleville Senators while the New Jersey Devils ' owned Albany Devils were relocated to become the Binghamton Devils . For the 2018–19 season , a 31st team joined the league with the Colorado Eagles as the NHL's Colorado Avalanche affiliate. With

2366-736: The Montreal Voyageurs hosted the Canadian National Team in Winnipeg. Several club teams from the Soviet Union toured the United States and Canada during the 1970s and 1980s and played exhibitions against AHL clubs, including the Soviet Wings (1974–75), HC Spartak Moscow (1976, 1986), Moscow Khimik (1976), HC Dynamo Moscow (1977–78), Traktor Chelyabinsk (1978–79) and Sokil Kyiv (1989). Prior to

2457-509: The Ontario Reign hosted and defeated the DEL's Eisbären Berlin , 6–3, in a friendly matchup organized by Anschutz Entertainment Group , the owner of both teams. The formation of an American Hockey League Hall of Fame was announced by the league on December 15, 2005, created to recognize, honor and celebrate individuals for their outstanding achievements and contributions specifically in

2548-471: The Orlando Solar Bears . In 1997, the Cyclones' lease agreement with the Cincinnati Gardens came to an end when the two sides were unable to reach an agreement for a new contract. Team owner, Doug Kirchhofer, purchased what then was known as Riverfront Coliseum in downtown Cincinnati, renamed it The Crown and renovated the arena. During the seven seasons the Cyclones were in the arena, the venue

2639-660: The Pensacola Ice Pilots at U.S. Bank Arena with a score of 3–1. Head coach Chuck Weber was the runner-up for the ECHL's Coach of the Year award for 2006–07 and was re-signed for the 2007–08 season . In addition to the Montreal/Hamilton affiliation, the Cyclones added the NHL's Nashville Predators and the AHL's Milwaukee Admirals as affiliates in 2007. The Cyclones' 2007–08 season saw the club break numerous franchise and league records. Through 50 games,

2730-637: The San Antonio Rampage franchise was bought and relocated by the NHL's Vegas Golden Knights for the 2020–21 season as the Henderson Silver Knights and was moved to the Pacific Division. For the 2021–22 season , the Vancouver Canucks relocated their franchise from Utica to Abbotsford while the Utica Comets agreed to relocate and operate the franchise that was operating as the Binghamton Devils . On May 23, 2022, it

2821-786: The South Carolina Stingrays , 2–1 in overtime, to claim the American Conference Championship in five games. With their victory, Cincinnati also claimed the E.A. "Bud" Gingher Memorial Trophy. The Cyclones then defeated the National Conference Champion Las Vegas Wranglers in the Kelly Cup Finals, clinching their first championship in team history in six games. After splitting the first two games in Cincinnati (Cincinnati 4–3 and Las Vegas 1–0),

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2912-750: The Springfield Falcons franchise was purchased by the Arizona Coyotes and relocated to become the Tucson Roadrunners and join the one-year-old Pacific Division. The Falcons were subsequently replaced by the Springfield Thunderbirds , the relocated Portland Pirates franchise under a new ownership group. The Montreal Canadiens -owned IceCaps relocated to the Montreal suburb of Laval, Quebec , and became

3003-687: The Whale Bowl , the AHL's second outdoor game held on February 19, 2011, as part of a 10-day Whalers Hockey Fest at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut . Attendance for Connecticut's game against the Providence Bruins was announced at 21,673, the largest in AHL history to that point. Providence won, 5–4, in a shootout. On January 6, 2012, the largest crowd in AHL history saw the Adirondack Phantoms defeat

3094-567: The 1941–42 season as a fundraiser for American Red Cross and Canadian Red Cross efforts during World War II . Players from the Eastern Division faced off against players from the Western Division at Cleveland Arena. The event was not played again until the 1954–55 season, and was then held annually until the 1959–60 season. These six annual games pitted a team of all-stars against the defending Calder Cup champions (with

3185-621: The 2004–05 season (the franchise was sold in 2006 and returned to the ice in Cleveland in 2007 as the Lake Erie Monsters, now known as the Cleveland Monsters ). The Chicago Wolves ( 2002 , 2008 , 2022 ), Houston Aeros ( 2003 ), Milwaukee Admirals ( 2004 ), and Grand Rapids Griffins ( 2013 , 2017 ) have all won Calder Cup titles since joining the AHL from the IHL. Chicago and Milwaukee have also made multiple trips to

3276-471: The 2015–16 season, called the Golden State Hockey Rush. On December 18, 2015, the Stockton Heat defeated the Bakersfield Condors , 3–2, at Raley Field in West Sacramento, California . For the second consecutive season, the AHL played an outdoor game in California as the Bakersfield Condors hosted the Condorstown Outdoor Classic against the Ontario Reign on January 7, 2017, at Bakersfield College 's Memorial Stadium . Despite sometimes heavy rain during

3367-415: The AHL's 2001 expansion was that the league had two teams with the same nickname: the Milwaukee Admirals and the Norfolk Admirals . The latter team transferred to the league from the mid-level ECHL in 2000. This situation lasted until the end of the 2014–15 season when the Norfolk team moved to San Diego and was replaced by another ECHL team with the same name. The Utah Grizzlies suspended operations after

3458-422: The Calder Cup Finals, and Houston made their second Finals appearance in 2011. The Manitoba Moose moved to St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador in 2011 and were renamed the St. John's IceCaps after the NHL's Atlanta Thrashers moved to Winnipeg as the second incarnation of the Winnipeg Jets . In 2013, Houston moved to Des Moines, Iowa to become the Iowa Wild . This left Chicago, Grand Rapids and Milwaukee as

3549-430: The Can-Am League never operated with more than six teams, the departure of the Boston Bruin Cubs after the 1935–36 season reduced it down to just four member clubs: the Springfield Indians , Philadelphia Ramblers , Providence Reds , and New Haven Eagles for the first time in its history. At the same time, the then-rival IHL lost half of its eight members after the 1935–36 season, leaving it with just four member teams:

3640-420: The Cyclones announced that they would participate in the upcoming 2006–07 ECHL season . They returned to play their home games at U.S. Bank Arena, joining their two ECHL, Ohio rivals, the Dayton Bombers and Toledo Storm . They then obtained an affiliation with the Montreal Canadiens of the NHL and the Hamilton Bulldogs of the AHL . The Cyclones won their first game back in the ECHL on October 20 against

3731-414: The Cyclones voluntarily suspended operations for the 2020–21 ECHL season . Prior to the start of the 2021–22 season , head coach Thomas was hired by the AHL's Providence Bruins as an assistant coach and the Cyclones named Jason Payne as the next head coach. After introducing their current mascot, Twister, in 1995, the Cyclones had always included him in their uniform design. In fact, from 1996 to 2014 he

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3822-515: The Cyclones were 31 games over .500. Attendance at games had increased nearly 40% over 2006–07 and the club had already surpassed their win total from 2006 to 2007 (37). They achieved this mark in 24 fewer games. On February 22, 2008, the Cyclones tied the ECHL record for a single-season winning streak of 14 consecutive games, defeating the Johnstown Chiefs 5–2 in Cincinnati. On February 23, 2008, David Desharnais recorded two assists, extending his streak of games with at least one assist to 18, breaking

3913-471: The ECHL ended the team's streak of 90+ point seasons with the Cyclones finishing just 12 points shy despite a 10-game fewer season length. Former Cyclones player Paul Lawless became head coach, as a mid-season replacement for Ray Edwards. Before the start of the 2003–04 season former Cyclones player and assistant coach Chris Cichocki left the Arkansas RiverBlades in order to return as the Cyclones head coach. Despite his success with Arkansas, Cichocki led

4004-399: The Hershey Bears and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins met outdoors at Hersheypark Stadium in Hershey, Pennsylvania with the Penguins earning a 2–1 overtime victory in front of 17,311 fans. The Rochester Americans hosted an outdoor game in 2013–14, the Frozen Frontier , which was held at Frontier Field in Rochester, New York , on December 13, 2013. The Americans took a 5–4 decision in

4095-422: The I-AHL renamed itself the American Hockey League . It generally enjoyed both consistent success on the ice and relative financial stability over its first three decades of operation. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, however, the cost of doing business in professional ice hockey began to rise sharply with NHL expansion and relocation (the NHL placed teams in Pittsburgh and Buffalo, forcing two long-time AHL clubs,

4186-406: The IHL, Cincinnati failed to qualify for the postseason, which would be the first of only two seasons in which they did not qualify. Paul Lawless , who would eventually be head coach and vice president of player development and have his number retired, began his first of several stints with the team in the 1992–93 season . On April 2, 2004, during his number retirement ceremony, he was singled out as

4277-477: The NHL parent club wished to make call-ups from the AHL more practical by having closer affiliates. In January 2015, the AHL announced the relocation of five existing AHL franchises— Adirondack , Manchester , Norfolk , Oklahoma City , and Worcester —to California as the basis for a new "Pacific Division" becoming Stockton , Ontario , San Diego , Bakersfield , and San Jose respectively. The relocated teams were all affiliated and owned or purchased by teams in

4368-451: The NHL planning to expand to 32 teams in 2021 with the Seattle Kraken , the Seattle ownership group was approved for a 2021 AHL expansion team, later announced to be the Coachella Valley Firebirds based in Palm Springs, California , following the construction of a new arena . The original plans for the new arena was eventually cancelled and the team postponed their launch by a year while new arena plans were developed. In February 2020,

4459-399: The NHL's Pacific Division . The franchise movements continued with two more relocations involving Canadian teams with the St. John's IceCaps going back to Winnipeg as the Manitoba Moose and the Hamilton Bulldogs becoming another iteration of the IceCaps to fulfill the arena contract in St. John's. In the following seasons, more NHL organizations influenced league membership. In 2016,

4550-418: The Nashville Predators and Milwaukee Admirals ended their affiliation with the Cyclones prior to the 2017–18 season . The Cyclones then found affiliations with the Buffalo Sabres and Rochester Americans . This is the second time Buffalo has affiliated with a Cincinnati hockey team, after the Sabres' affiliation with the Cincinnati Swords in the 1970s. Prior to the 2018–19 season , head coach Matt Mcdonald

4641-401: The Pittsburgh Hornets and Buffalo Bisons, to fold) and especially the 1972 formation of the World Hockey Association (WHA), which forced the relocation and subsequent folding of the Cleveland Barons , Baltimore Clippers , and Quebec Aces . The number of major-league teams competing for players rose from six to thirty in just seven years. Player salaries at all levels shot up dramatically with

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4732-434: The Year, and the Leading Scorer award with 29 goals and 77 assists for 106 points. In addition, Chad Starling won the award for the highest plus/minus rating. The Cyclones entered the playoffs and defeated the Johnstown Chiefs four games to none. The Cyclones moved on to take on the Reading Royals , Cincinnati took the series in seven games to claim their second ever North Division playoff title. The Cyclones then defeated

4823-408: The admission of the then two-time defending Eastern Amateur Hockey League (EAHL) champion Hershey Bears . The Bears remain the only one of these eight original I-AHL/AHL franchises to have been represented in the league without interruption since the 1938–39 season. The newly merged circuit also increased its regular-season schedule for each team by six games from 48 to 54. After the 1939–40 season

4914-415: The change in color, all three jerseys are similar. This is a partial list of the last ten seasons completed by the Cincinnati Cyclones. For the full season-by-season history, see List of Cincinnati Cyclones seasons * – Denotes honorary number. International Hockey League (1945%E2%80%932001) Too Many Requests If you report this error to the Wikimedia System Administrators, please include

5005-409: The conference. This led to a rematch with fourth seeded, and defending champion, South Carolina in the first round, where Cincinnati defeated the Stingrays in five games. Veteran captain Barrett Eghotz scored in overtime for the 3–2 win in game five and was the third straight overtime game in the series. The Cyclones then faced the top seeded Charlotte Checkers , defeating the Checkers in game seven with

5096-421: The cross-town, Cincinnati Gardens-based AHL rival, the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks . The Cincinnati Mighty Ducks suspended operations in 2005 after their NHL affiliate, the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim , switched their affiliation to the Portland Pirates . With minor league hockey dormant in Cincinnati for a year, and plans for the proposed AHL Cincinnati RailRaiders franchise scrapped for 2006–07 , on April 21, 2006,

5187-506: The demise of the WHA in 1979, the league continued to grow steadily over the years, reaching 20 clubs by the 2000–01 season. In 2001–02, the AHL's membership jumped dramatically to 27 teams, mostly by the absorption of six teams— Milwaukee , Chicago , Houston , Utah , Manitoba , and Grand Rapids —from the International Hockey League . The IHL had established itself as the second top-level minor league circuit in North America, but folded in 2001 due to financial problems. One oddity caused by

5278-434: The details below. Request from 172.68.168.133 via cp1102 cp1102, Varnish XID 539586936 Upstream caches: cp1102 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Thu, 28 Nov 2024 05:51:19 GMT American Hockey League The American Hockey League ( AHL ) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). As of

5369-471: The exception of the 1959-60 event, which featured the Springfield Indians). The modern AHL All-Star Game was reinstituted for the 1994–95 season and a skills competition was introduced in 1995–96, with the two-day event being dubbed the AHL All-Star Classic. The 1995 and 1996 games featured players from teams based in Canada taking on players from teams based in the United States. Beginning in 1997, Canadian-born players faced players born outside Canada (known as

5460-497: The existing ECHL record of 17. In the same game, the Cyclones set a new ECHL record for a single-season winning streak of 15 consecutive wins when the Cyclones defeated the Elmira Jackals in a 5–4 shootout. The team finished the regular season with 115 points, earning them the Brabham Cup regular season championship. Individually, Chuck Weber was named ECHL coach of the year, earning him the John Brophy trophy. David Desharnais claimed three ECHL awards: Most Valuable Player, Rookie of

5551-588: The first period, the game went on as scheduled and the Condors defeated the Reign 3–2 in overtime. Hersheypark Stadium hosted its second outdoor game in 2018. Cleveland's FirstEnergy Stadium became the first National Football League venue to host an AHL outdoor game in 2023, and Truist Field in Charlotte hosted the Queen City Outdoor Classic in 2024. Teams from the AHL have competed against non-North American teams, in both international tournaments and one-off matchups. The first recorded games between an AHL team and international competition took place in 1969, when

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5642-415: The first round of the playoffs in the 1990–91 season. In the 1991–92 season , the Cyclones lost in the Riley Cup semifinals. The team's owner at the time, Doug Kirchhofer, was granted an International Hockey League franchise and chose to move the Cyclones name to that franchise. He then sold the ECHL franchise to Art Clarkson of Birmingham, Alabama , to form the new Birmingham Bulls . The first season in

5733-399: The increased demand and competition for their services. This did not seem to affect the AHL at first, as it expanded to 12 teams by 1970. However, to help compensate for the rise in player salaries, many NHL clubs cut back on the number of players they kept under contract for development, and players under AHL contracts could now also demand much higher paychecks to remain with their clubs. As

5824-401: The league. Nevertheless, the series made ECHL history when, after losing the first two at home, then game three at Reading, Cincinnati posted wins of 6–4, 5–0 and 6–3 to force the team's third winner-take-all game in the 2010 playoffs. In front of 5,340 fans, the Cyclones posted a 1–0 win to become the first team in ECHL history, and the sixth professional hockey team in history, to come back from

5915-425: The left side. In front of yet another ECHL playoff record setting crowd of 13,483 at US Bank Arena in Cincinnati, the Cyclones defeated Idaho in game five, 2–1, to take the championship. With the victory, the Cyclones clinched their second Kelly Cup title in three years. The game was also the Cyclones 24th Kelly Cup playoff game, surpassing the club record of 22 postseason games played by the 2008 championship team and

6006-439: The new AHL city of Portland, Maine both the regular-season and Calder Cup playoff titles in each of that club's first two seasons of operation. The folding of the NAHL, meanwhile, suddenly left two of its stronger teams, the Philadelphia Firebirds and Binghamton, New York -based Broome Dusters , without a league to play in. The owners of the Dusters solved their problem by buying the Reds franchise and moving it to Binghamton as

6097-413: The next night, when Mathieu Aubin netted the only goal in the contest and only with 20.1 seconds remaining in regulation. The series shifted to US Bank Arena and witnessed an Idaho victory within the first minute of the second overtime of game three, as Evan Barlow received a pass at the bottom of the right circle and fired the puck into a largely vacated goal, as Cyclones goalie Robert Mayer had committed to

6188-493: The only NHL team currently without an AHL affiliate. However, the Hurricanes loaned some players to the Wolves, such as Vasili Ponomaryov and Antti Raanta . On May 2, 2024, the Hurricanes and Wolves committed to a three-year affiliation beginning with the 2024–25 season. Notes Current member Former member Opted out of season due to COVID-19 pandemic Gold star = Won Calder Cup Still-active teams in bold . The American Hockey League first held an All-Star Game in

6279-401: The only ex-IHL teams still in their original cities until the 2015 relocations when the IceCaps moved back to Winnipeg as the Manitoba Moose. Beginning with the 2015–16 season , twelve franchises have since relocated due to NHL parent clubs' influence on their development teams and players. Of the twelve relocated franchises, nine were relocated because they were directly owned by NHL teams and

6370-440: The playoffs by only three points. On February 27, 2016, the Cyclones played in front of their first-ever sellout at US Bank Arena with 16,529 fans were in attendance for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Night and one dollar pizza slices. While the game was a 3–2 shootout loss to the Indy Fuel , the Cyclones set the record for the largest crowd for a professional hockey game in the 41-year history of US Bank Arena. After ten seasons,

6461-536: The regular-season winners of the merged league's West Division until 1952. The Oke Trophy is now awarded to the regular-season winners of the AHL's North Division. A little more than a month into that first season, the balance and symmetry of the new combined circuit suffered a setback when its membership unexpectedly fell to seven teams. The West's Buffalo Bisons were forced to cease operations on December 6, 1936, after playing just 11 games, because of what proved to be insurmountable financial problems and lack of access to

6552-486: The season unbeaten in regulation for the first nine games. Their 42 wins and 92 points won the North Division regular season championship, their third such accolade in six seasons, and placed them second in the Eastern Conference. The season earned head coach Jarrod Skalde Coach of the Year honors. Cincinnati would go on to win a pair of six-game wins against the Toledo Walleye and Gwinnett Gladiators before losing

6643-492: The season, coach Simon accepted a role with the Toronto Marlies , the top affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs . Simon became the third consecutive Cyclones head coach to accept a role in the AHL. Following Simon's promotion, Matt Macdonald became Cincinnati's head coach. In the 2014–15 season , Cincinnati finished fifth in the North Division of the Eastern Conference with a record of 31–30–2–9. The team would miss

6734-558: The series shifted to Las Vegas, where Cincinnati won games three and five to take a 3–2 series lead. In front of a record setting crowd, 12,722 fans, at US Bank Arena in Cincinnati on June 5, the Cyclones defeated Las Vegas in game six, 3–1, to take the championship and their 71st win of the season. Goalie Cedrick Desjardins was named the Kelly Cup Playoff MVP. After the Cyclones cup win, coach Chuck Weber and assistant coach Dean Stork received multi-year extensions. Weber

6825-590: The team had the most successful season in ECHL history with 55 wins, 115 points, and its first conference and league championships. There have been three separate franchises known as the Cincinnati Cyclones, two in the ECHL and one in the IHL. The first franchise to use the name Cincinnati Cyclones was founded in 1990 . The team played their games at the Cincinnati Gardens . They lost in

6916-617: The team moved to Miami as the Miami Matadors . After the lone season in Florida, the franchise eventually came into the ownership of a group in Birmingham, Alabama , and the franchise went into inactive status while ownership looked into locations for their team. Upon the folding of the IHL, the Cyclones name was sold to this ownership group who moved the franchise to Cincinnati to become the new Cyclones. The first year back in

7007-523: The team to their worst season with 54 points and failed to make the playoffs for the second time in team history. Shortly after ending the season without a playoff berth, in April 2004, the Cyclones suspended operations. This suspension was mainly due to lack of revenue and safe access to the arena as it was limited by construction in Downtown Cincinnati. This dormancy left Cincinnati hockey to

7098-456: The top two teams advance to the final game, with the winner declared the challenge champions. The AHL All-Star Classic was postponed in 2021 and 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic . The Laval Rocket , who had been selected to host, ultimately hosted the event in 2023. Since the 2009–10 season, at least one team in the AHL has hosted an outdoor ice hockey game each year. The Syracuse Crunch

7189-635: The “World” team in 1997 and “PlanetUSA” from 1998 to 2010). The format was revamped again in 2011 to pit the Eastern Conference against the Western Conference. In 2014, a team of AHL all-stars hosted the Swedish Hockey League club Färjestad BK . Since 2016, the all-star game has been replaced by the AHL All-Star Challenge, a three-on-three round-robin tournament among teams from the league's four divisions;

7280-483: Was also given the title of vice president. On November 29, Weber picked up his 100th professional head coaching victory with a 6–3 win at Johnstown . Cincinnati's 2008–09 season was not as successful as the previous one, but they won 41 games for 87 points, repeating as North Division champions. They won a seven-game series against the Wheeling Nailers , including a double overtime game seven win, and swept

7371-665: Was announced that the Stockton Heat would be relocating to Calgary , Alberta , starting the 2022–23 season . For the 2023–24 season , the Chicago Wolves operated as the league's only unaffiliated team, making them the first team to operate without an NHL partner since the inaugural season of the Worcester IceCats during the 1994–95 season . Consequently, the Carolina Hurricanes became

7462-577: Was devised and a new championship trophy, the Calder Cup , was established. The Syracuse Stars defeated the Philadelphia Ramblers in the final, three-games-to-one, to win the first-ever Calder Cup championship. The Calder Cup continues on today as the AHL's playoff championship trophy. After two seasons of interlocking play, the governors of the two leagues' seven active teams met in New York City on June 28, 1938, and agreed that it

7553-544: Was hired as an assistant with the Grand Rapids Griffins in the AHL. He was replaced by Matt Thomas , who then led the team to the regular season title and second Brabham Cup in franchise history and won the John Brophy Award for coach of the year. Despite the regular season success, the team lost in the division finals four games to one to the Toledo Walleye . Due to the COVID-19 pandemic ,

7644-507: Was not reversed. However, two events in the fall of 1977 helped reverse the trend. The first of these was the decision of the NHL's Philadelphia Flyers to return to the league as a team owner, and the second was the unexpected collapse of the North American Hockey League just weeks before the start of the 1977–78 season. The Flyers' new AHL franchise became the immediately successful Maine Mariners , which brought

7735-613: Was preceded the previous night by a game between Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens alumni. Two outdoor games were announced for the 2012–13 AHL season, but a meeting between the Grand Rapids Griffins and Toronto Marlies at Comerica Park in Detroit as part of the festivities surrounding the NHL Winter Classic was not held because of the cancellation of the NHL Winter Classic. On January 20, 2013,

7826-589: Was promoted to the American Hockey League as head coach of the Rochester Americans on July 27. On August 4, Cincinnati signed a new affiliation agreement with the NHL's Florida Panthers , who used Rochester as their AHL farm team, creating a working relationship between Chuck Weber and his former Cyclones team. On August 12, Cincinnati named Jarrod Skalde as the new head coach. After undergoing this major coaching overhaul and losing

7917-598: Was renamed the Firstar Center and now is known as Heritage Bank Center . The team has since been unsuccessful in reclaiming the higher attendance numbers from the Cincinnati Gardens, until the 2008 Kelly Cup, where they drew 12,722 fans to the last game of the postseason. The third Cyclones franchise started in the 1995 as the Louisville RiverFrogs in Louisville, Kentucky . After three years,

8008-406: Was the centerpiece of the jerseys they wore. However, prior to the 2014–15 season, the organization did a complete revamp of the uniforms and their colors. Twister was removed from the uniform completely along with the color yellow. The shade of red used was also changed from a darker maroon style red to a more bright royal red. The logo now is described as being a twister, or cyclone, in the center of

8099-744: Was the first organization to put on an outdoor game in the AHL on February 20, 2010, building a rink at the New York State Fairgrounds in Syracuse, New York , and packing a record 21,508 fans in for the Mirabito Outdoor Classic against the Binghamton Senators . The contest, which was also televised to an international audience on NHL Network , was won by the Crunch, 2–1. The Connecticut Whale hosted

8190-587: Was the third outdoor game in AHL history and it more than doubled the league's previous single-game attendance mark. On January 21, 2012, the Steeltown Showdown between Ontario rivals, the Toronto Marlies and Hamilton Bulldogs , was held at Ivor Wynne Stadium in Hamilton, Ontario , with the Marlies winning 7–2 in front of 20,565 fans, the largest crowd ever for an AHL game in Canada. The AHL game

8281-524: Was time to formally consolidate. Maurice Podoloff of New Haven, the former head of the Can-Am League, was elected the I-AHL's first president. The former IHL president, John D. Chick of Windsor, Ontario , became vice-president in charge of officials. The new I-AHL also added an eighth franchise at the 1938 meeting to fill the void in its membership left by the loss of Buffalo two years earlier with

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