The Chicago Shamrocks were an

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 ...

team based in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, that played 2 seasons in the old American Hockey Association league from 1930 to 1932. They were owned by

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 ...

James E. Norris James E. Norris (December 10, 1879 – December 4, 1952) was a Canadian-American businessman, operating companies in the grain and cattle industries, and owner of the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League. He also had significant owne ...

. In 1930, Norris pursued the

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

for rights to a second NHL team in Chicago, but was spurned by the league who supported the NHL

Chicago Blackhawks The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division i ...

concerns regarding competition for fan base. He turned to the American Hockey Association who gave him rights to an expansion team in Chicago. The league had renamed itself the

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 Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...

and declared itself a major league, to the anger of NHL president

Frank Calder Frank Sellick Calder (November 17, 1877 – February 4, 1943) was a British-born Canadian ice hockey executive, journalist, and athlete. Calder was the first president of the National Hockey League (NHL), from 1917 until his death in 1943. He ...

, who branded the league an outlaw league. In 1931–32 season, their second, the Shamrocks won the league championship. Convinced they should be given a chance to play for the

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...

, they petitioned the Cup trustees for that opportunity. However the trustees would have to convince the NHL to accept that challenge and the NHL would not. Perhaps frustrated by this, Norris once again looked to join the NHL. In May 1932, the Detroit Falcons of the NHL declared bankruptcy, and Norris used that opportunity to convince the NHL he could take over the team. The NHL agreed on the condition that he disband the Shamrocks who were a thorn in the side for the Chicago Blackhawks. So he disbanded the Shamrocks and took three of the best players with him to Detroit. He renamed the Detroit team to the Red Wings. The American Hockey League reverted to the American Hockey Association after this and once again demoted itself to minor league status.

Notable players and coaches

* Ralph Taylor *

Eddie Wiseman Edward Randall Wiseman (December 28, 1911 – May 6, 1977) was a Canadian ice hockey forward. He was born in Newcastle, New Brunswick, but grew up in Regina, Saskatchewan. Wiseman started his National Hockey League career with the Detroit Red ...

* Art Smith * Jack Riley *

Corbett Denneny Charles Corbett "Corb" Denneny (January 25, 1894 – January 16, 1963) was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played professionally from 1912 to 1931, including nine seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Toronto Arenas, ...

Mike Karakas Michael George Karakas (November 13, 1910 – May 2, 1992) was an American professional ice hockey goaltender in the National Hockey League (NHL). He was the league's first American-born and -trained goaltender and the first player of Greek ...

* Don McFadyen *

Walter Buswell Walter Gerard Buswell (November 6, 1907 — October 16, 1991), was a Canadian ice hockey defenceman who played eight seasons in the National Hockey League between 1932 and 1940 for the Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens The Montreal ...

* Cecil "Babe" Dye, Head Coach American Hockey Association (1926–1942) teams Defunct ice hockey teams in Illinois Shamrocks {{Chicago-stub