The 1938–39 AHL season was the
third season of the International-American Hockey League, known in the present day as the
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...
. It was also the first season that the I-AHL played as a fully unified league. For the previous two seasons, the
International Hockey League and
Canadian-American Hockey League
Canadian Americans () are American citizens or in some uses residents whose ancestry is wholly or partly Canadian, or citizens of either country who hold dual citizenship. Today, many Canadian Americans hold both US and Canadian citizenship.
T ...
had played as a "circuit of mutual convenience" with an interlocking schedule. However, on June 29, 1938, the IHL and C-AHL formally merged into a single circuit under the I-AHL name.
Eight teams played 54 games each in the schedule. The
Hershey Bears
The Hershey Bears are a professional ice hockey team based in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The Bears have played in the American Hockey League (AHL) since the 1938–39 season, making it the longest continuously operating member club of the league still ...
won the
F. G. "Teddy" Oke Trophy as the Western Division champions, while the
Cleveland Barons won the
Calder Cup as league champions.
Team changes
*One of the I-AHL's first acts as a fully merged league was to grant an expansion franchise to the
Hershey Bears
The Hershey Bears are a professional ice hockey team based in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The Bears have played in the American Hockey League (AHL) since the 1938–39 season, making it the longest continuously operating member club of the league still ...
, based in
Hershey, Pennsylvania
Hershey is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Derry Township, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is home to the Hershey Company, which was founded by candy magnate Milton S. Hershey ...
. The Bears transferred from the
Eastern Amateur Hockey League to the I-AHL's West Division. The Bears have been in the I-AHL/AHL ever since, without relocating or renaming. As of the end of the
2016–17 season, they are the oldest team in the league, and the seventh oldest team in all of professional hockey (behind only the NHL's
Original Six) still playing in its current city and under its current name.
Final standings
''Notes: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GP = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points;''
Scoring leaders
''Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes''
Calder Cup playoffs
See also
*
List of AHL seasons
References
AHL official siteAHL Hall of FameHockeyDB
{{DEFAULTSORT:1938-39 AHL season
American Hockey League seasons
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