Springfield Thunderbirds

The Springfield Thunderbirds are an American professional ice hockey team. They began playing in 2016. The team plays in the American Hockey League (AHL). They play their home games in Springfield, Massachusetts at the MassMutual Center. They are the AHL affiliate for the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (AHL).

The team originally played in Portland, Maine as the Portland Pirates from 1993 to 2016. On May 4, 2016, the Pirates announced that we're going to sell the team to announced from outside of Portland. The team would be bought by Springfield Hockey, LLC. and would be relocated to Springfield, Massachusetts before the 2016—17 season.

During the relocation, the Thunderbirds would keep the affiliation with the Florida Panthers. The deal would last until 2020. On March 6, 2020, the team announced that they were going to become the AHL affiliate to the then-recent Stanley Cup winning St. Louis Blues for five years.

In the 2021–22 season, the Thunderbirds would win the Eastern Conference championship and would make it to the Calder Cup finals but would lose to the Chicago Wolves four games to one.

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Category:2016 establishments
Category:2010s establishments in North America
Category:21st-century establishments in the United States
Category:American Hockey League teams
Category:Ice hockey teams in the United States
Category:Springfield, Massachusetts