The United Hockey League (UHL), originally known as the Colonial Hockey League from 1991 to 1997 and last known as the International Hockey League from 2007 to 2010, was a low-level
minor 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 ski ...
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 h ...
league, with teams in the United States and Canada. The league was headquartered in
Rochester, Michigan
Rochester is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 12,711 at the 2010 census. It is a northern suburb in Metro Detroit located 20 miles north of the city of Detroit.
Rochester was the first European settlem ...
, and, in its last year, consisted of seven teams. It folded in 2010, with most of its teams joining the
Central Hockey League
The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...
. The Central Hockey League teams still operating in 2014 were then added to
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 ...
. The only former CoHL/UHL/IHL teams still active as of 2022 are the
Fort Wayne Komets
The Fort Wayne Komets are a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This team was previously a member of the Central Hockey League, the original Inte ...
and
Kalamazoo Wings
The Kalamazoo Wings, nicknamed the K-Wings, are a mid-level professional ice hockey team in Kalamazoo, Michigan. A member of the ECHL's Western Conference, Central Division, they play in the 5,113-seat Wings Event Center. They are the affiliate ...
.
History
The UHL was originally formed in 1991 as the Colonial Hockey League and had teams in
Brantford, Ontario
Brantford ( 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by Brant County, but is politically separate with a municipal government of its own that is fully indepen ...
;
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...
;
Flint, Michigan;
St. Thomas, Ontario; and
Thunder Bay
Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario; its population i ...
,
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 C ...
; the avowed goal of the league organizers was to fill the low-level niche in the
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lak ...
area abandoned by the original
International Hockey League as the latter league engaged in upmarket expansion. As time passed, the CoHL moved eastward, into places like Glens Falls, NY; Danbury, CT; Utica, NY; Binghamton, NY; and Richmond, VA. During that expansion, the league was renamed "United Hockey League" (UHL) and the headquarters was moved to
Lake St. Louis, Missouri in 1997.
The
2006–07 season was the last season of play for the league under the UHL name. Following the 2006–07 season, the league lost half of its ten teams. The franchises in Moline and Rockford, Illinois moved to 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 developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...
, the team in Elmira, New York, went to 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 ...
, and the franchises in Chicago, Illinois and Port Huron, Michigan ceased operations. In June 2007, at the league’s annual meeting, the UHL announced that it was changing its name to the "International Hockey League" (IHL). Paul L. Pickard was named the first president and CEO of the new IHL. During that summer, the UHL headquarters moved from
Lake St. Louis, Missouri to
Rochester, Michigan
Rochester is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 12,711 at the 2010 census. It is a northern suburb in Metro Detroit located 20 miles north of the city of Detroit.
Rochester was the first European settlem ...
. The UHL's rebranding was intended to evoke the
original IHL, which had ceased operations in 2001 and covered much of the new IHL's footprint. The
Fort Wayne Komets
The Fort Wayne Komets are a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This team was previously a member of the Central Hockey League, the original Inte ...
were a longtime member of the original league while the
Kalamazoo Wings
The Kalamazoo Wings, nicknamed the K-Wings, are a mid-level professional ice hockey team in Kalamazoo, Michigan. A member of the ECHL's Western Conference, Central Division, they play in the 5,113-seat Wings Event Center. They are the affiliate ...
and
Flint Generals
The Flint Generals were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Flint, Michigan. They were a member of the International Hockey League and played their home games at Perani Arena and Event Center. The Generals won two league championship ...
franchises were revived names of the original
Kalamazoo
Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in the southwest region of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Kalamazoo County. At the 2010 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 74,262. Kalamazoo is the major city of the Kalamazoo-Portage Metropoli ...
and
Flint
Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and sta ...
IHL teams.
On July 13, 2010, the league announced an agreement with the
Central Hockey League
The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...
, the effects of which saw five IHL teams – the
Bloomington PrairieThunder
The Bloomington PrairieThunder were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Bloomington, Illinois. They were a member of the Central Hockey League in the Turner Conference. The team was originally a member of the United Hockey League (later ...
,
Dayton Gems
The Dayton Gems were a minor league ice hockey team based in Dayton, Ohio, and members of the International Hockey League from 1964 to 1977, and 1979–1980.
In the fall of 1964, the lobby of their new arena, Hara Arena, had a natural gas ex ...
,
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 ...
,
Fort Wayne Komets
The Fort Wayne Komets are a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This team was previously a member of the Central Hockey League, the original Inte ...
and
Quad City Mallards
The Quad City Mallards were a minor league professional ice hockey team based in the Quad Cities area of Illinois and Iowa that competed in the International Hockey League, Central Hockey League and ECHL. They were named after the Mallards team ...
– absorbed into the CHL. The remaining two franchises from the league's last season that were not absorbed into the CHL, the Flint Generals and the
Port Huron Icehawks
The Port Huron Icehawks were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Port Huron, Michigan. They were a member of the International Hockey League and played their home games at McMorran Arena from 2007 to 2010.
History
The franchise was ...
, folded.
Governance
Dennis Hextall was named as the president and commissioner of the International Hockey League on September 2, 2009. Hextall was preceded by Paul Pickard, who served as commissioner for the first two years of the renamed league (2007–2009).
Several UHL teams had affiliations with the
National Hockey League
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 ...
,
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). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...
, and the
All American Hockey League.
Teams
Expansion
Timeline
DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy
ImageSize = width:1000 height:auto barincrement:20
Period = from:01/01/1991 till:11/25/2010
TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal
PlotArea = right:30 left:0 bottom:50 top:5
Colors =
id:barcolor value:rgb(0.95,0.5,0.4)
id:line value:black
id:bg value:white
PlotData=
width:15 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s
bar:1 color:barcolor from:07/01/1991 till:06/01/1998 text: Brantford Smoke (1991–1998)
bar:1 color:barcolor from:07/01/1998 till:06/01/2002 text: Asheville Smoke (1998–2002)
bar:2 color:barcolor from:07/01/1991 till:06/01/1993 text: Flint Bulldogs (91–93)
bar:2 color:barcolor from:07/01/1993 till:06/01/1994 shift:(20) text: Utica Bulldogs (1993–1994)
bar:3 color:barcolor from:07/01/1991 till:06/01/1996 text: Michigan/Detroit Falcons (1991–1996)
bar:3 color:barcolor from:07/01/1996 till:06/01/2002 text: Port Huron Border Cats (1996–2002)
bar:4 color:barcolor from:07/01/1991 till:06/01/1999 text: Thunder Bay Thunder Hawks/Senators/Thunder Cats (1991–1999)
bar:4 color:barcolor from:07/01/1999 till:06/01/2007 text:Rockford IceHogs
The Rockford IceHogs are a professional ice hockey team based in Rockford, Illinois. They are members of the American Hockey League (AHL), having begun play in the League starting in the 2007–08 season. The team plays their home games at the ...
(1999–2007)
bar:5 color:barcolor from:07/01/1991 till:06/01/1994 text:St. Thomas Wildcats
The St. Thomas Wildcats were a minor professional ice hockey team in the Colonial Hockey League (CoHL) and played at the St. Thomas-Elgin Memorial Centre in St. Thomas, Ontario. The team was a founding member of the league and was owned by Dou ...
(91–94)
bar:5 color:barcolor from:07/01/1994 till:06/01/1995 text:London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
(94–95)
bar:5 color:barcolor from:07/01/1996 till:06/01/1997 shift:-10 text:Dayton Ice Bandits
The Dayton Ice Bandits were a minor professional Colonial Hockey League team that played from 1996 to 1997 in Dayton, Ohio.
The franchise was originally the St. Thomas Wildcats in St. Thomas, Ontario, one of the original franchises in the Coloni ...
(96–97)
bar:5 color:barcolor from:07/01/1998 till:02/22/2001 shift:20 text: Mohawk Valley Prowlers (1998–2001)
bar:6 color:barcolor from:07/01/1992 till:06/15/1994 shift:-20 text:Chatham Wheels
The Chatham Wheels were a minor professional ice hockey team that played in Colonial Hockey League (CoHL) from 1992 to 1994. Based in Chatham, Ontario, Canada, the team played it homes games in the Chatham Memorial Arena.
In its first season ...
(92–94)
bar:6 color:barcolor from:07/01/1994 till:12/19/1999 text: Saginaw Wheels/LumberKings/Gears (1994–1999)
bar:6 color:barcolor from:12/31/1999 till:06/01/2000 text: Ohio Gears (1999–2000)
bar:7 color:barcolor from:07/01/1992 till:06/01/2010 text: Muskegon Fury/Lumberjacks (1992–2010)
bar:8 color:barcolor from:07/01/1993 till:06/01/2010 text:Flint Generals
The Flint Generals were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Flint, Michigan. They were a member of the International Hockey League and played their home games at Perani Arena and Event Center. The Generals won two league championship ...
(1993–2010)
bar:9 color:barcolor from:07/01/1994 till:06/01/1997 shift:0 text:Utica Blizzard
The Utica Blizzard were a professional ice hockey team from Utica, New York, and member of the Colonial Hockey League (CoHL) from 1994 to 1997. The Blizzard replaced the Utica Bulldogs after the team had to be taken over by the league in the midd ...
(94–97)
bar:9 color:barcolor from:07/01/1997 till:06/01/1999 shift:-10 text: W-S IceHawks (97–99)
bar:9 color:barcolor from:07/01/1999 till:06/01/2006 text: Adirondack Frostbite/IceHawks (1999–2006)
bar:10 color:barcolor from:07/01/1995 till:06/01/1999 text:Madison Monsters
The Madison Monsters were a minor professional ice hockey team in the United Hockey League (UHL) based in Madison, Wisconsin, with home games in the Dane County Memorial Coliseum. The city of Madison was granted the franchise before the 1995†...
(1995–1999)
bar:10 color:barcolor from:07/01/1999 till:06/01/2002 text: Knoxville Speed (1999–2002)
bar:11 color:barcolor from:07/01/1995 till:06/01/2007 text:Quad City Mallards
The Quad City Mallards were a minor league professional ice hockey team based in the Quad Cities area of Illinois and Iowa that competed in the International Hockey League, Central Hockey League and ECHL. They were named after the Mallards team ...
(1995–2007)
bar:12 color:barcolor from:07/01/1997 till:06/01/2002 text: B.C. Icemen (1997–2002)
bar:13 color:barcolor from:07/01/1999 till:06/01/2010 text:Fort Wayne Komets
The Fort Wayne Komets are a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This team was previously a member of the Central Hockey League, the original Inte ...
(1999–2010)
bar:14 color:barcolor from:07/01/1999 till:06/01/2000 shift:-35 text:Madison Kodiaks
The Madison Kodiaks were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Madison, Wisconsin, during the 1999–2000 United Hockey League season. Affiliated with the AHL Milwaukee Admirals, the Kodiaks were an expansion team that filled the void ...
(99-00)
bar:14 color:barcolor from:07/01/2000 till:06/01/2009 shift:35 text:Kalamazoo Wings
The Kalamazoo Wings, nicknamed the K-Wings, are a mid-level professional ice hockey team in Kalamazoo, Michigan. A member of the ECHL's Western Conference, Central Division, they play in the 5,113-seat Wings Event Center. They are the affiliate ...
(2000–2009)
bar:15 color:barcolor from:07/01/1999 till:06/01/2006 text:Missouri River Otters
The Missouri River Otters were a minor professional ice hockey team based in St. Charles, Missouri. They played in the United Hockey League from 1999 to 2006. They played their home games at the St. Charles Family Arena, which also opened in Octo ...
(1999–2006)
bar:16 color:barcolor from:07/01/2000 till:06/01/2007 text:Elmira Jackals
The Elmira Jackals were a professional minor league ice hockey team based in Elmira, New York. They were members of the United Hockey League from 2000 to 2007 and the ECHL from 2007 to 2017. The Jackals played their home games at First Arena.
On ...
(2000–2007)
bar:17 color:barcolor from:07/01/2000 till:06/01/2002 text:New Haven Knights
The New Haven Knights were a minor professional ice hockey team and members of the United Hockey League from 2000 to 2002. They played in New Haven, Connecticut, at the New Haven Coliseum
New Haven Coliseum was a sports and entertainment arena ...
(2000–2002)
bar:18 color:barcolor from:07/01/2002 till:06/01/2005 text:Port Huron Beacons
The Port Huron Beacons were a minor league professional ice hockey team in the United Hockey League (UHL) that played from 2002 to 2005. The team was based in Port Huron, Michigan, and played at the McMorran Arena.
The team's first head coach was ...
(02-05)
bar:18 color:barcolor from:07/01/2005 till:06/01/2006 text: Roanoke Valley Vipers (2005–2006)
bar:19 color:barcolor from:07/01/2003 till:01/19/2004 text: Columbus Stars (2003–2004)
bar:20 color:barcolor from:07/01/2003 till:06/01/2006 text:Richmond RiverDogs
The Richmond RiverDogs were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Richmond, Virginia, that played at the Richmond Coliseum from 2003 to 2006.
The RiverDogs were formed during an expansion of the United Hockey League (UHL) in the fall o ...
(03-06)
bar:20 color:barcolor from:07/01/2006 till:06/01/2007 text: Chicago Hounds (2006–2007)
bar:21 color:barcolor from:07/01/2004 till:06/01/2006 text:Danbury Trashers
The Danbury Trashers were a United Hockey League (UHL) professional ice hockey team located in Danbury, Connecticut, first established in 2004 as an expansion team. The team was named for its owner's business in waste management; James Galante ...
(2004–2006)
bar:22 color:barcolor from:07/01/2004 till:06/01/2005 text: Kansas City Outlaws (2004–2005)
bar:23 color:barcolor from:07/01/2004 till:06/01/2006 text:Motor City Mechanics
The Motor City Mechanics were a minor professional ice hockey team in the United Hockey League. The Mechanics played two seasons from 2004 to 2006 at Great Lakes Sports City Superior Arena in Fraser, Michigan.
History
The team got a major boost ...
(2004–2006)
bar:24 color:barcolor from:07/01/2005 till:06/01/2007 text:Port Huron Flags
The Port Huron Flags were a minor league professional ice hockey team located in Port Huron, Michigan. The Flags competed in the International Hockey League between 1962 and 1981. For three of those seasons from 1971 to 1974, Port Huron was a fa ...
(2005–2007)
bar:25 color:barcolor from:07/01/2006 till:06/01/2010 text:Bloomington PrairieThunder
The Bloomington PrairieThunder were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Bloomington, Illinois. They were a member of the Central Hockey League in the Turner Conference. The team was originally a member of the United Hockey League (later ...
(2006–2010)
bar:26 color:barcolor from:07/01/2007 till:06/01/2010 text:Port Huron Icehawks
The Port Huron Icehawks were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Port Huron, Michigan. They were a member of the International Hockey League and played their home games at McMorran Arena from 2007 to 2010.
History
The franchise was ...
(2007–2010)
bar:27 color:barcolor from:07/01/2009 till:06/01/2010 shift:-75 text:Dayton Gems
The Dayton Gems were a minor league ice hockey team based in Dayton, Ohio, and members of the International Hockey League from 1964 to 1977, and 1979–1980.
In the fall of 1964, the lobby of their new arena, Hara Arena, had a natural gas ex ...
(2009–2010)
bar:28 color:barcolor from:07/01/2009 till:06/01/2010 shift:-105 text:Quad City Mallards
The Quad City Mallards were a minor league professional ice hockey team based in the Quad Cities area of Illinois and Iowa that competed in the International Hockey League, Central Hockey League and ECHL. They were named after the Mallards team ...
(2009–2010)
LineData =
at:06/15/1997 color:black width:1
at:06/15/2007 color:black width:1
ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:1 start:01/01/1991
History of teams
*
Adirondack Frostbite
The Adirondack Frostbite were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Glens Falls, New York, and were a member of the United Hockey League (UHL). They played their home games at the Glens Falls Civic Center.
The Adirondack IceHawks UHL te ...
2004–2006
*
Adirondack IceHawks
The Adirondack Frostbite were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Glens Falls, New York, and were a member of the United Hockey League (UHL). They played their home games at the Glens Falls Civic Center.
The Adirondack IceHawks UHL ...
1999–2004, later
Adirondack Frostbite
The Adirondack Frostbite were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Glens Falls, New York, and were a member of the United Hockey League (UHL). They played their home games at the Glens Falls Civic Center.
The Adirondack IceHawks UHL te ...
*
Asheville Smoke 1998–2002
*
Arctic Xpress 2000–2001 (did not play), later
Canton Xpress
*
B.C. Icemen 1997–2002
*
Bloomington PrairieThunder
The Bloomington PrairieThunder were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Bloomington, Illinois. They were a member of the Central Hockey League in the Turner Conference. The team was originally a member of the United Hockey League (later ...
(2006–10), merged into
Central Hockey League
The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...
*
Brantford Smoke 1991–1998, later
Asheville Smoke
*
Canton Ice Patrol
The Saginaw Gears were a minor professional ice hockey franchise that played in the United Hockey League (UHL), formerly known as the Colonial Hockey League. The Gears existed for five seasons and part of one other, from 1994 to December 19, 19 ...
2002 (did not play)
*
Canton Xpress 2001 – January 28, 2002 (did not play), later
Canton Ice Patrol
The Saginaw Gears were a minor professional ice hockey franchise that played in the United Hockey League (UHL), formerly known as the Colonial Hockey League. The Gears existed for five seasons and part of one other, from 1994 to December 19, 19 ...
*
Chatham Wheels
The Chatham Wheels were a minor professional ice hockey team that played in Colonial Hockey League (CoHL) from 1992 to 1994. Based in Chatham, Ontario, Canada, the team played it homes games in the Chatham Memorial Arena.
In its first season ...
1992–1994, later
Saginaw Wheels
*
Chicago Hounds 2006–2007
*
Columbus Stars 2003 – January 9, 2004
*
Danbury Trashers
The Danbury Trashers were a United Hockey League (UHL) professional ice hockey team located in Danbury, Connecticut, first established in 2004 as an expansion team. The team was named for its owner's business in waste management; James Galante ...
2004–2006
*
Dayton Gems
The Dayton Gems were a minor league ice hockey team based in Dayton, Ohio, and members of the International Hockey League from 1964 to 1977, and 1979–1980.
In the fall of 1964, the lobby of their new arena, Hara Arena, had a natural gas ex ...
2009–2010, merged into
Central Hockey League
The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...
*
Dayton Ice Bandits
The Dayton Ice Bandits were a minor professional Colonial Hockey League team that played from 1996 to 1997 in Dayton, Ohio.
The franchise was originally the St. Thomas Wildcats in St. Thomas, Ontario, one of the original franchises in the Coloni ...
1996–1997, later
Mohawk Valley Prowlers
*
Detroit Falcons 1992–1996
*
Elmira Jackals
The Elmira Jackals were a professional minor league ice hockey team based in Elmira, New York. They were members of the United Hockey League from 2000 to 2007 and the ECHL from 2007 to 2017. The Jackals played their home games at First Arena.
On ...
2000–2007, moved to
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 ...
*
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 ...
2010, merged into
Central Hockey League
The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...
*
Flint Bulldogs 1991–1993, later
Utica Bulldogs
*
Flint Generals
The Flint Generals were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Flint, Michigan. They were a member of the International Hockey League and played their home games at Perani Arena and Event Center. The Generals won two league championship ...
1993–2010
*
Fort Wayne Komets
The Fort Wayne Komets are a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This team was previously a member of the Central Hockey League, the original Inte ...
1999–2010, merged into
Central Hockey League
The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...
*
Kalamazoo Wings
The Kalamazoo Wings, nicknamed the K-Wings, are a mid-level professional ice hockey team in Kalamazoo, Michigan. A member of the ECHL's Western Conference, Central Division, they play in the 5,113-seat Wings Event Center. They are the affiliate ...
2000–2009, Wings moved to
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 ...
*
Kansas City Outlaws 2004–2005
*
Knoxville Speed 1999–2002
*
Lehigh Valley Xtreme 2000 (did not play)
*
London Wildcats 1994–1995, later
Dayton Ice Bandits
The Dayton Ice Bandits were a minor professional Colonial Hockey League team that played from 1996 to 1997 in Dayton, Ohio.
The franchise was originally the St. Thomas Wildcats in St. Thomas, Ontario, one of the original franchises in the Coloni ...
*
Madison Kodiaks
The Madison Kodiaks were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Madison, Wisconsin, during the 1999–2000 United Hockey League season. Affiliated with the AHL Milwaukee Admirals, the Kodiaks were an expansion team that filled the void ...
1999–2000, later
Kalamazoo Wings
The Kalamazoo Wings, nicknamed the K-Wings, are a mid-level professional ice hockey team in Kalamazoo, Michigan. A member of the ECHL's Western Conference, Central Division, they play in the 5,113-seat Wings Event Center. They are the affiliate ...
*
Madison Monsters
The Madison Monsters were a minor professional ice hockey team in the United Hockey League (UHL) based in Madison, Wisconsin, with home games in the Dane County Memorial Coliseum. The city of Madison was granted the franchise before the 1995†...
1995–1999, later
Knoxville Speed
*
Michigan Falcons
The Detroit Falcons were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Fraser, Michigan, from 1991 to 1996. For the 1991–92 season, they were known as the Michigan Falcons. They were a member of the Colonial Hockey League, and served as an af ...
1991–1992, later
Detroit Falcons
*
Missouri River Otters
The Missouri River Otters were a minor professional ice hockey team based in St. Charles, Missouri. They played in the United Hockey League from 1999 to 2006. They played their home games at the St. Charles Family Arena, which also opened in Octo ...
1999–2006
*
Mohawk Valley Prowlers 1998–February 2001
*
Motor City Mechanics
The Motor City Mechanics were a minor professional ice hockey team in the United Hockey League. The Mechanics played two seasons from 2004 to 2006 at Great Lakes Sports City Superior Arena in Fraser, Michigan.
History
The team got a major boost ...
2004–2006
*
Muskegon Fury 1992–2008, rebranded as Lumberjacks
*
Muskegon Lumberjacks
The Muskegon Lumberjacks are a Tier I junior ice hockey team in the Eastern Conference of the United States Hockey League. They play in Muskegon, Michigan, at Mercy Health Arena. The Lumberjacks replaced the International Hockey League franchi ...
2008–2010, later
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 ...
*
New Haven Knights
The New Haven Knights were a minor professional ice hockey team and members of the United Hockey League from 2000 to 2002. They played in New Haven, Connecticut, at the New Haven Coliseum
New Haven Coliseum was a sports and entertainment arena ...
2000–2002
*
Ohio Gears December 20, 1999 – 2000, later
Arctic Xpress
*
Port Huron Beacons
The Port Huron Beacons were a minor league professional ice hockey team in the United Hockey League (UHL) that played from 2002 to 2005. The team was based in Port Huron, Michigan, and played at the McMorran Arena.
The team's first head coach was ...
2002–2005, later
Roanoke Valley Vipers
*
Port Huron Border Cats 1996–2002
*
Port Huron Icehawks
The Port Huron Icehawks were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Port Huron, Michigan. They were a member of the International Hockey League and played their home games at McMorran Arena from 2007 to 2010.
History
The franchise was ...
2007–2010
*
Port Huron Flags
The Port Huron Flags were a minor league professional ice hockey team located in Port Huron, Michigan. The Flags competed in the International Hockey League between 1962 and 1981. For three of those seasons from 1971 to 1974, Port Huron was a fa ...
2005–2007
*
Quad City Mallards
The Quad City Mallards were a minor league professional ice hockey team based in the Quad Cities area of Illinois and Iowa that competed in the International Hockey League, Central Hockey League and ECHL. They were named after the Mallards team ...
1995–2007
*
Quad City Mallards
The Quad City Mallards were a minor league professional ice hockey team based in the Quad Cities area of Illinois and Iowa that competed in the International Hockey League, Central Hockey League and ECHL. They were named after the Mallards team ...
2009–2010, merged into
Central Hockey League
The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...
*
Richmond RiverDogs
The Richmond RiverDogs were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Richmond, Virginia, that played at the Richmond Coliseum from 2003 to 2006.
The RiverDogs were formed during an expansion of the United Hockey League (UHL) in the fall o ...
2003–2006, later
Chicago Hounds
*
Roanoke Valley Vipers 2005–2006
*
Rockford IceHogs
The Rockford IceHogs are a professional ice hockey team based in Rockford, Illinois. They are members of the American Hockey League (AHL), having begun play in the League starting in the 2007–08 season. The team plays their home games at the ...
1999–2007, assets bought out by
Rockford IceHogs
The Rockford IceHogs are a professional ice hockey team based in Rockford, Illinois. They are members of the American Hockey League (AHL), having begun play in the League starting in the 2007–08 season. The team plays their home games at the ...
of
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). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...
*
Saginaw Gears 1998 – December 19, 1999, later
Ohio Gears
*
Saginaw LumberKings 1996–1998, later
Saginaw Gears
*
Saginaw Wheels 1994–1996, later
Saginaw LumberKings
*
St. Thomas Wildcats
The St. Thomas Wildcats were a minor professional ice hockey team in the Colonial Hockey League (CoHL) and played at the St. Thomas-Elgin Memorial Centre in St. Thomas, Ontario. The team was a founding member of the league and was owned by Dou ...
1991–1994, later
London Wildcats
*
Thunder Bay Senators
The Thunder Bay Thunder Cats was a minor professional ice hockey team based in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and a member of the United Hockey League. The team went through a number of different names prior to being the Thunder Cats, including th ...
1993–1996, later
Thunder Bay Thunder Cats
The Thunder Bay Thunder Cats was a minor professional ice hockey team based in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and a member of the United Hockey League. The team went through a number of different names prior to being the Thunder Cats, including th ...
*
Thunder Bay Thunder Cats
The Thunder Bay Thunder Cats was a minor professional ice hockey team based in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and a member of the United Hockey League. The team went through a number of different names prior to being the Thunder Cats, including th ...
1996–1999, later
Rockford IceHogs
The Rockford IceHogs are a professional ice hockey team based in Rockford, Illinois. They are members of the American Hockey League (AHL), having begun play in the League starting in the 2007–08 season. The team plays their home games at the ...
*
Thunder Bay Thunder Hawks
The Thunder Bay Thunder Cats was a minor professional ice hockey team based in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and a member of the United Hockey League. The team went through a number of different names prior to being the Thunder Cats, including th ...
1991–1993, later
Thunder Bay Senators
The Thunder Bay Thunder Cats was a minor professional ice hockey team based in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and a member of the United Hockey League. The team went through a number of different names prior to being the Thunder Cats, including th ...
*
Utica Bulldogs 1993–1994
*
Utica Blizzard
The Utica Blizzard were a professional ice hockey team from Utica, New York, and member of the Colonial Hockey League (CoHL) from 1994 to 1997. The Blizzard replaced the Utica Bulldogs after the team had to be taken over by the league in the midd ...
1994–1997, later Winston-Salem IceHawks
*
Winston-Salem IceHawks
The Winston-Salem IceHawks were a minor professional ice hockey team in the United Hockey League (UHL) based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The franchise was relocated from Utica, New York, in 1997 and played for two seasons in North Carolina b ...
1997–1999, later
Adirondack IceHawks
The Adirondack Frostbite were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Glens Falls, New York, and were a member of the United Hockey League (UHL). They played their home games at the Glens Falls Civic Center.
The Adirondack IceHawks UHL ...
Colonial/Turner Cup champions
The Colonial Cup was the league's championship trophy. The name was changed to the Turner Cup in 2007 to reflect the original IHL's championship trophy, also named the
Turner Cup
The Turner Cup was the championship trophy of the International Hockey League from 1945 to 2001 and the renamed United Hockey League from 2007 to 2010. The Cup was named for Joe Turner, a goaltender from Windsor, Ontario. Turner became professi ...
.
* 1992 –
Thunder Bay Thunder Hawks
The Thunder Bay Thunder Cats was a minor professional ice hockey team based in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and a member of the United Hockey League. The team went through a number of different names prior to being the Thunder Cats, including th ...
* 1993 –
Brantford Smoke
* 1994 –
Thunder Bay Senators
The Thunder Bay Thunder Cats was a minor professional ice hockey team based in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and a member of the United Hockey League. The team went through a number of different names prior to being the Thunder Cats, including th ...
* 1995 –
Thunder Bay Senators
The Thunder Bay Thunder Cats was a minor professional ice hockey team based in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and a member of the United Hockey League. The team went through a number of different names prior to being the Thunder Cats, including th ...
* 1996 –
Flint Generals
The Flint Generals were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Flint, Michigan. They were a member of the International Hockey League and played their home games at Perani Arena and Event Center. The Generals won two league championship ...
* 1997 –
Quad City Mallards
The Quad City Mallards were a minor league professional ice hockey team based in the Quad Cities area of Illinois and Iowa that competed in the International Hockey League, Central Hockey League and ECHL. They were named after the Mallards team ...
* 1998 –
Quad City Mallards
The Quad City Mallards were a minor league professional ice hockey team based in the Quad Cities area of Illinois and Iowa that competed in the International Hockey League, Central Hockey League and ECHL. They were named after the Mallards team ...
* 1999 –
Muskegon Fury
* 2000 –
Flint Generals
The Flint Generals were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Flint, Michigan. They were a member of the International Hockey League and played their home games at Perani Arena and Event Center. The Generals won two league championship ...
* 2001 –
Quad City Mallards
The Quad City Mallards were a minor league professional ice hockey team based in the Quad Cities area of Illinois and Iowa that competed in the International Hockey League, Central Hockey League and ECHL. They were named after the Mallards team ...
* 2002 –
Muskegon Fury
* 2003 –
Fort Wayne Komets
The Fort Wayne Komets are a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This team was previously a member of the Central Hockey League, the original Inte ...
* 2004 –
Muskegon Fury
* 2005 –
Muskegon Fury
* 2006 –
Kalamazoo Wings
The Kalamazoo Wings, nicknamed the K-Wings, are a mid-level professional ice hockey team in Kalamazoo, Michigan. A member of the ECHL's Western Conference, Central Division, they play in the 5,113-seat Wings Event Center. They are the affiliate ...
* 2007 –
Rockford IceHogs
The Rockford IceHogs are a professional ice hockey team based in Rockford, Illinois. They are members of the American Hockey League (AHL), having begun play in the League starting in the 2007–08 season. The team plays their home games at the ...
* 2008 –
Fort Wayne Komets
The Fort Wayne Komets are a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This team was previously a member of the Central Hockey League, the original Inte ...
* 2009 –
Fort Wayne Komets
The Fort Wayne Komets are a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This team was previously a member of the Central Hockey League, the original Inte ...
* 2010 –
Fort Wayne Komets
The Fort Wayne Komets are a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This team was previously a member of the Central Hockey League, the original Inte ...
Awards
*
UHL Best Goaltender
See also
*
List of developmental and minor sports leagues
This is a list of developmental and minor sports leagues, two concepts which are largely restricted to North American sports. Note that this does not include teams in leagues that include promotion and relegation.
North America
Baseball
* Minor ...
*
List of ice hockey leagues
This is a list of ice hockey leagues, both professional and amateur, from around the world; parentheses denote year of establishment and, where applicable, year of disestablishment.
North America Major professional
* National Hockey League (1917 ...
*
Minor league
*
Sports league attendances
This article lists the attendance of many sports competitions around the world, based in some cases on the number of tickets sold or given away, rather than people actually present. The list is almost exclusively stadium field and indoor arena b ...
References
External links
Official IHL website
{{Professional Hockey
Defunct ice hockey leagues in the United States
Defunct ice hockey leagues in Canada
Minor league hockey