The 2002–03 AHL

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

was the 67th season of 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 ...

. Twenty-eight teams played 80 games each in the schedule. The Hamilton Bulldogs finished first overall in the regular season. The Houston Aeros won their first Calder Cup championship.

Team changes

* The Quebec Citadelles move to

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a 2021 Canadian census, population of 569,353 (2021), and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which encompasses ...

, merging with the Hamilton Bulldogs, operating with as a joint affiliate for the

Edmonton Oilers The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton. The Oilers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. Th ...

and

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal Canadiens (), officially ' ( Canadian Hockey Club) and colloquially known as the Habs, are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal. The Canadiens compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic D ...

. * The dormant Prince Edward Island Senators resume operations as the

Binghamton Senators The Binghamton Senators were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) that played from 2002 to 2017. Nicknamed the B-Sens, they played in Binghamton, New York, at the Floyd L. Maines Veterans Memorial Arena. The B-Sens w ...

, based in

Binghamton, New York Binghamton ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier region near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the c ...

, playing in the east division. * The

Springfield Falcons The Springfield Falcons were a ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) and played in Springfield, Massachusetts, at the MassMutual Center. In 2016, the Falcons' franchise was purchased by the National Hockey League (NHL)'s Arizona Co ...

switch divisions from North to East. * The Providence Bruins switch divisions from East to North. * The Grand Rapids Griffins switch divisions from West to Central. * The San Antonio Rampage join the AHL as an expansion team, based in

San Antonio, Texas San Antonio ( ; Spanish for "Anthony of Padua, Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the List of Texas metropolitan areas, third-largest metropolitan area in Texa ...

, playing in the west division.

Final standings

* ''indicates team clinched division and a playoff spot'' * ''indicates team clinched a playoff spot'' * ''indicates team was eliminated from playoff contention''

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

Scoring leaders

''Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes''
complete list

Calder Cup playoffs

All Star Classic

The 16th AHL All-Star Game was played on February 3, 2003 at the

Cumberland County Civic Center Cross Insurance Arena (formerly Cumberland County Civic Center) is a multi-purpose arena located in Portland, Maine. Built in 1977, at a cost of US$8 million, it is the home arena for the Maine Mariners (ECHL), Maine Mariners of the ECHL. There a ...

Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...

. Team Canada defeated Team PlanetUSA 10-7. In the skills competition held the day before the All-Star Game, Team Canada won 15-13 over Team PlanetUSA

Trophy and award winners

Team awards

Individual awards

Other awards

References

AHL official siteAHL Hall of FameHockeyDB
{{DEFAULTSORT:2002-03 Ahl Season American Hockey League seasons 2002–03 in American ice hockey by league 2002–03 in Canadian ice hockey by league