The All American Hockey League (AAHL) was a lower level

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

league with teams in the

Midwestern United States The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

. The league suspended operations for the 2011–12 season and subsequently folded.

League history

Inaugural season (2008–09)

The All American Hockey League was formed in 2008 as the All American Hockey Association when the

Battle Creek Revolution The Battle Creek Revolution was a professional ice hockey team which played in the All American Hockey League. The team played its home games at Revolution Arena in Battle Creek, Michigan. The team was initially announced to play in the Mid-Atla ...

and South Shore Shooters (later the Chi-Town Shooters) of the

Mid-Atlantic Hockey League The Mid-Atlantic Hockey League (MAHL) was a minor professional ice hockey league in the Mid-Atlantic and Great Lakes regions of the United States. The league began play in November 2007. The league was a low level league designed to help ex juni ...

banded together with the

Evansville IceMen The Evansville IceMen were a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL in Evansville, Indiana. The franchise was originally a member of the United Hockey League before it merged into the Central Hockey League in 2010. The franchise has won four po ...

and Motor City Gamblers (later the

Detroit Dragons The Detroit Dragons were a professional hockey team based in Fraser, Michigan Fraser is a city in Macomb County Macomb County ( ) is a county located in the eastern portion of the U.S. state of Michigan, bordering Lake St. Clair, and is par ...

) of the Midwest Hockey League. The Detroit Dragons folded mid-season, with the Chicago Blaze joining weeks later to fill the void. (The Blaze were originally going to be an expansion franchise for the 2009–10 season.) On April 5, 2009, the Chi-Town Shooters became the first team to win the Champions Cup by defeating the Battle Creek Revolution in the best-of-five championship series. On April 14, 2009, the AAHA Board of Directors announced a reorganization from an association format to a league format. This resulted in the All American Hockey Association being renamed the All American Hockey League.

Second season (2009–10)

On August 10, 2009, the AAHL announced a merger with the still-unlaunched Midwest Hockey League, absorbing the MWHL's Madison Ice Muskies as well as key MWHL personnel. The merged leagues continued under the AAHL name. During the season, the Madison Ice Muskies and Chicago Blaze ceased operations due to financial problems. Also, the expansion Detroit Hitmen moved west to

Muskegon, Michigan Muskegon ( ') is a city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Muskegon County. Muskegon is known for fishing, sailing regattas, pleasure boating, and as a commercial and cruise ship port. It is a popular vacation destination because of the expa ...

mid-season, and were re-christened the West Michigan Blizzard. On April 15, 2010, the

won the AAHL's Rod Davidson Cup (originally "Champions Cup" during the inaugural AAHA season) by beating the West Michigan Blizzard four games to one.

Third season (2010–11)

In June 2010, the IceMen AAHL franchise suspended operations when Evansville acquired a

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in the CHL. In August 2010, it was announced that the Madison Ice Muskies would be reinstated in the AAHL. In August 2010, it was also announced that the

Queen City Storm The Queen City Storm were a professional hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. Wh ...

were approved for membership in the AAHL as an expansion team. The Chi-Town Shooters left the league in August 2010 with plans to join a junior hockey league for the 2011–12 season. In August 2010, the AAHL granted an expansion team to

Lapeer, Michigan Lapeer ( ') is a City (Michigan), city in the U.S. state of Michigan and is the county seat of Lapeer County, Michigan, Lapeer County. As of the United States Census, 2010, 2010 census, the city population was 8,841. Most of the city was incorporat ...

. A contest decided that Lapeer's team would be named the Lapeer Loggers. On August 31, 2010, the

Troy Bruins The Troy Bruins were an International Hockey League team based in Troy, Ohio that played from 1951 to 1959 at the Hobart Arena. Notable players were Brian Kilrea and Larry King Kwong. Goaltender Bill Tibbs won the James Norris Memorial Troph ...

were officially announced as the sixth expansion team in the 2010–11 season. In September 2010, the West Michigan Blizzard relocated to

Dyer, Indiana Dyer is a town in St. John Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 16,517 at the 2020 census. It is a southeastern suburb of Chicago. Geography Dyer borders Munster to the north, unincorporated St. John Township to ...

, and were renamed the Indiana Blizzard. On October 27, 2010, the Madison Ice Muskies moved to

Wooster, Ohio Wooster ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Wayne County. Located in northeastern Ohio, the city lies approximately south-southwest of Cleveland, southwest of Akron and west of Canton. The population was 27,232 at t ...

, and became the Wooster Korn Kings. On November 17, 2010, the Korn Kings were taken over by the league and ceased operations. On December 29, 2010, it was announced that the Indiana Blizzard were ceasing operations and the Chi-Town Shooters were returning for the remainder of the season, taking over all the Blizzard's players, as well as their current record. Despite keeping the "Chi-Town" moniker, they were based in Dyer, Indiana, instead of Chicago. On January 3, 2011, the Lapeer Loggers were taken over by the league. Within days, the Bruins and Storm both ceased operations. Players from these three teams were brought together under the name Michigan Moose. The Moose, coached by AAHL commissioner Rod Davidson, were based in Battle Creek and played their home games in Revolution Arena, the same arena as the rival Battle Creek Revolution. In February 2011, the Moose ceased operations. In March 2011, the Battle Creek Revolution won their first Rod Davidson Cup.

Affiliations

Over the course of the league's history, various All American Hockey League teams have had affiliations with the

ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The E ...

(higher affiliate), IHL (higher affiliate), CHL (higher affiliate), and

Greater Metro Junior A Hockey League The Greater Metro Junior A Hockey League (GMHL) is a Canadian developmental junior ice hockey league. The league has primarily had teams in the Greater Toronto Area, Central Ontario, Northeastern Ontario, and Quebec. In 2019, they added three t ...

(lower affiliate).

Teams year-by-year

Rod Davidson Cup

The Rod Davidson Cup was awarded to the annual playoff champion. It was known as the "Champions Cup" during the inaugural AAHA season, with the name change coming during the league's first season operating as the AAHL. The winners were: *2009 – Chi-Town Shooters *2010 –

*2011 – Battle Creek Revolution

Hockey Hall of Fame

On February 14, 2009, Kira Hurley of the

became the first female goalie to register a point in a men's professional game. Because of this achievement, Kira is featured in the

Hockey Hall of Fame , logo = Hockey Hall of Fame Logo.svg , logo_upright = 0.5 , image = Hockey Hall of Fame, Toronto.jpg , caption = The Hall's present location on Yonge Street since 1992 , map_type = , former_name = , established = 1943 , location = 30 Y ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. Kira's game memorabilia (goalie stick and game-worn jersey) is on permanent display in the minor league section of the Hockey Hall of Fame, along with the official scoresheet from the historic game.IceMen Woman Into the Hall of Fame

Individual trophies and awards

References

External links

Official AAHL website
{{DEFAULTSORT:All American Hockey League (2008-2011) 2 Minor league ice hockey