The Rochester Americans are the second oldest team in the American Hockey League, second only to the Hershey Bears in terms of having a continuous presence in the league. The Americans were awarded a franchise in 1956 when the Pittsburgh Hornets were forced to suspend operations indefinitely, leaving an open spot for the team. Rochester has won six Calder Cups and been to the final round 16 times in their history and currently serve as the AHL affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres.
The history of hockey in Rochester predates the Americans with roots going back as far as 1906 with college hockey. In a city as cold as Rochester, New York, outdoor hockey kept the tradition going and eventually led to the one-year term of the Rochester Cardinals, who struggled on the ice and off of it. The community continued to support hockey, selling out an exhibition game between the Montreal Canadiens and the AHL’s Buffalo Bisons on November 21, 1955. One year later, the Amerks would officially join the league and continue to play in Rochester to this day.
It’d take less than a decade for the Americans to capture the Calder Cup, taking the hardware home in 1965 as well as in 1966, 1968, 1983, 1987, and 1996. Their last trip to the Finals was back in the year 2000, where they lost in six games to the Hartford Wolf Pack.
In the 2022-23 season, the Americans finished third in the North Division with a record of 36-27-6-3 and went to the Eastern Conference Finals where they lost to the Hershey Bears in six games.
Their current head coach is Seth Appert, their current general manager is Jason Karmanos, and their home arena is the Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial.
Notable former Reign include Martin Biron, Rob Ray, Linus Ullmark, and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.