American Hockey Association

The American Hockey Association was a minor professional hockey league that operated between 1926 and 1942. It had previously operated as the Central Amateur Hockey League (1925-1926), and before that as part of the United States Amateur Hockey Association. The founding president was Alvin Warren, who also owned the St. Paul Saints. 
Other founding owners included William Grant, league secretary and owner of the Duluth Hornets (and Warren's successor as president in 1930), Paul Loudon of the Minneapolis Millers, and William Holmes, owner of the league's only Canadian franchise, the Winnipeg Maroons, and also owner of the Winnipeg Auditorium.
Eddie Livingstone, banished by National Hockey League team owners in 1917, owned the Chicago Cardinals. Eager to sign a new interleague agreement with the NHL in 1927, the AHA revoked Livingstone's franchise after one season when NHL president Frank Calder threatened that no deal would be signed with the league as long as it was associated with Livingstone.
By 1930, some AHA owners, led by Walter Whiteside of the Tulsa Oilers, were questioning the league's relationship with the NHL. They approved the creation of a new Chicago franchise, the Chicago Shamrocks, owned by James E. Norris, bringing the league into an NHL market. Renaming the league the American Hockey League, they also established a franchise in Buffalo, New York, an IHL city, which would have been prohibited under the previous agreement with the NHL. In October 1930, Calder declared the AHL to be an outlaw league and threatened never to allow any AHL players into the NHL. The NHL carried out its threat and denied the applications of former AHL players to join NHL teams for the 1931-32 season. In the fall of 1931, the AHL applied to the Stanley Cup trustees to challenge for the trophy, but was unsuccessful in its attempts to force the NHL into a series.
The AHL struggled through two seasons in opposition to the NHL. The Buffalo Majors folded half-way through the 1931-32 season, leaving 12 players who unsuccessfully tried to sue team owners to recover $12,000 in unpaid salaries. By the summer of 1932, the AHL was willing to sign another affiliation agreement with the NHL and officially return to minor league status. The NHL insisted that the AHL leave Chicago, and the Shamrocks were shut down, despite having won the league championship. Norris was told that he would be welcomed into the NHL and acquired the Detroit franchise in 1933. The AHL went back to being known as the American Hockey Association.
The AHA, led by acting president Lyle Wright of the Omaha Knights, voted to shut the league down in the fall of 1942. It returned after World War II as the United States Hockey League, starting with the 1945-46 season.
==Teams==
Team 	Location 	Arena 	Tenure 	Notes
Chicago Cardinals 	Chicago, Illinois 	Chicago Coliseum 	1926-1927	also known as Chicago Americans folded
Detroit Greyhounds 	Detroit, Michigan 	None-Road team only 	1926-1927	Played road games only as no arena available in Detroit until 1927
Duluth Hornets 	Duluth, Minnesota 	Duluth Amphitheater 	1926-1933	became Wichita Blue Jays mid-season
Minneapolis Millers (AHA)	Minneapolis, Minnesota 	Minneapolis Arena 	1926-1931	rejoined Central Hockey League (1931–1935)
St. Paul Saints 	St. Paul, Minnesota 	St. Paul Hippodrome 	1926-1930	joined Central Hockey League (1931–1935)
Winnipeg Maroons 	Winnipeg, Manitoba 	Shea's Amphitheatre 	1926-1928	withdrew
Kansas City Pla-Mors 	Kansas City, Missouri 	Pla-Mor Ice Palace 	1927-1933	renamed Kansas City Greyhounds
St. Louis Flyers 	St. Louis, Missouri 	St. Louis Coliseum (1928-29), St. Louis Arena (1929-1942)	1928-1942	suspend operations with league; join American Hockey League for 1944-45 season
Tulsa Oilers 	Tulsa, Oklahoma 	Tulsa Coliseum 	1928-1932	moved to St. Paul, Minnesota
Buffalo Majors 	Buffalo, New York 	Buffalo Broadway Auditorium 	1930-1932	Folded February 2, 1932
Chicago Shamrocks 	Chicago, Illinois 	Chicago Coliseum 	1930-1932	Folded when owner purchases NHL's Detroit Falcons
St. Paul Saints 	St. Paul, Minnesota 	St. Paul Auditorium 	1932-1933	
Tulsa Oilers 	Tulsa, Oklahoma 	Tulsa Coliseum 	1932-1942	Suspend operations with league; join USHL for 1945-46 season
Wichita Blue Jays 	Wichita, Kansas 	Wichita Forum 	1932-1933	folded
Oklahoma City Warriors 	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	Stockyards Coliseum 	1933-1936	relocated to Minneapolis, Minnesota mid-season
Kansas City Greyhounds 	Kansas City, Missouri 	Pla-Mor Ice Palace 	1933-1940	renamed Kansas City Americans when sold
Wichita Vikings 	Wichita, Kansas 	Wichita Forum 	1933-1934	disband after 3 games; record removed from standings
Minneapolis Warriors 	Minneapolis, Minnesota 	Minneapolis Arena 	1935-1935	fold at end of season
St. Paul Saints 	St. Paul, Minnesota 	St. Paul Auditorium 	1935-1942	Suspend operations with league; join USHL for 1945-46 season
Wichita Skyhawks 	Wichita, Kansas 	Alaskan Ice Palace 	1935-1940	folded
Minneapolis Millers (AHA)	Minneapolis, Minnesota 	Minneapolis Arena 	1936-1942	Suspend operations with league; join USHL for 1945-46 season
Omaha Knights 	Omaha, Nebraska 	Ak-Sar-Ben Coliseum 	1936-1942	Suspend operations with league; join USHL for 1945-46 season
Kansas City Americans 	Kansas City, Missouri 	Pla-Mor Ice Palace 	1940-1942	folded
Fort Worth Rangers 	Fort Worth, Texas 	Will Rogers Memorial Center 	1941-1942	Suspend operations with league; join USHL for 1945-46 season
==Champions==
The Harry F. Sinclair Trophy was awarded to the league champions.
* 1926-27 — Duluth Hornets
* 1927-28 — Minneapolis Millers
* 1928-29 — Tulsa Oilers
* 1929-30 — Kansas City Pla-Mors
* 1930-31 — Tulsa Oilers
* 1931-32 — Chicago Shamrocks
* 1932-33 — Kansas City Greyhounds
* 1933-34 — Kansas City Greyhounds
* 1934-35 — St. Louis Flyers
* 1935-36 — St. Louis Flyers
* 1936-37 — Minneapolis Millers
* 1937-38 — St. Louis Flyers
* 1938-39 — St. Louis Flyers
* 1939-40 — Omaha Knights
* 1940-41 — St. Louis Flyers
* 1941-42 — Omaha Knights
==External links==
*American Hockey Association 1926-1942, history and standings
Category:Defunct ice hockey leagues
Category:American Hockey Association
Category:Established in 1926
Category:Disestablished in 1942
Category:Ice hockey leagues