The Chicago Wolves are the most unique AHL team, as they are a fully independent organisation without an NHL parent club, as of the 2023-24 season.
They were founded in 1994 and played in the IHL (International Hockey League) until 2001, when the IHL folded. Their first NHL affiliation was the Atlanta Thrashers, who were the Wolves’ parent team from 2001 to 2011, when the Thrashers were relocated to Winnipeg. They then acted as the Vancouver Canucks’ AHL affiliate for two seasons, before becoming the St Louis Blues’ affiliate in 2013 until 2017.
In 2017, they became the first ever AHL affiliate for the brand new NHL expansion team, the Vegas Golden Knights. They remained with the Golden Knights until 2020, when the Golden Knights purchased their own AHL team (the San Antonio Rampage) to move to Nevada and become the Henderson Silver Knights. The 2020-21 season was the first season they had dual affiliation, as in September they became the farm team for the Carolina Hurricanes, before agreeing to be a temporary home for the prospects of the Nashville Predators, whose own AHL team had opted out of the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
They remained the Hurricanes affiliate until the end of the 2022-23 season, where they announced they would be operating as a fully independent team for the 2023-24 season, without any NHL affiliation.
The Wolves most recently won the Calder Cup in the 2021-22 season, defeating the Springfield Thunderbirds 4-1 in the finals. They have three Calder Cups in total, winning in their inaugural season (2001-02) and again in 2007-08.
After back to back seasons finishing first in the Central Division, the Wolves finished the 2022-23 season with a 35-29-5-3 record, sixth in the Central. They did not make the Calder Cup Playoffs.
Their current head coach is Bob Nardella, their current GM is Wendell Young, and they play out of the Allstate Arena.
Notable former Chicago Wolves include Eddie Lack, Zach Whitecloud, Vince Dunn, Andrew Poturalski, and Shea Theodore.