| Springfield Thunderbirds | |
|---|---|
 | |
| City | Springfield, Massachusetts |
| League | American Hockey League |
| Conference | Eastern |
| Division | Atlantic |
| Founded | 1975 (In theNAHL) |
| Home arena | MassMutual Center |
| Colors | Red, navy blue, sky blue, white, gold |
| Owner(s) | Springfield Hockey, LLC. |
| General manager | Kevin Maxwell[1] |
| Head coach | Steve Konowalchuk |
| Media | The Springfield Republican WHYN NewsRadio 560 CBS 3,22 News ABC 40 AHL.TV (Internet) |
| Affiliates | St. Louis Blues (NHL) Florida Everblades (ECHL) |
| Franchise history | |
| 1975–1982 | Erie Blades |
| 1982–1993 | Baltimore Skipjacks |
| 1993–2016 | Portland Pirates |
| 2016–present | Springfield Thunderbirds |
| Championships | |
| Conference titles | 1 (2021–22) |
| Current uniform | |
 | |
 Current season | |
TheSpringfield Thunderbirds are a professionalice hockey team in theAmerican Hockey League that began play for the2016–17 season. They are the affiliate of theNational Hockey League'sSt. Louis Blues. Based inSpringfield, Massachusetts, the Thunderbirds play their home games at theMassMutual Center.
In May 2016, following the relocation of theSpringfield Falcons toTucson, Arizona, after the team was sold to theArizona Coyotes, the AHL'sPortland Pirates were sold to a Springfield-based group who relocated the franchise to Springfield for the 2016–17 season.[2][3]
The new owners were a consortium of local business interests seeking to keep hockey in Springfield, and included Paul Picknelly, owner of the Springfield Sheraton and member of the family-owningPeter Pan Bus Lines, as well as several local hotel owners.[4] A team from Springfield has taken the ice in the AHL and its predecessors for all but seven years since 1926, and in every season since 1954.
The Thunderbirds inherited theFlorida Panthers' affiliation with the Pirates. The Panthers assigned their assistant general manager, Eric Joyce, to be Springfield's general manager and namedGeordie Kinnear as the new head coach.[5] The Thunderbirds also namedBruce Landon, the Falcons' andIndians' longtime president and general manager, as a consultant, while hiring AHL executive Nathan Costa as their executive vice-president in charge of business operations.[6] The team's new name was announced at a press conference on June 15, 2016. Team management explained that Thunderbirds invokes both themythological Thunderbird and theUnited States Air Force presence in the region, such as theBarnes andWestover Air Reserve Bases.[7]
The Thunderbirds played their first game on October 15, 2016, a 4–2 loss to theLehigh Valley Phantoms.Anthony Greco scored the first goal in team history.[8] On October 22, 2016, the Thunderbirds played their home opener, a 5–4 win, against theSt. John's IceCaps.Dryden Hunt scored the first goal on home ice, andMacKenzie Weegar scored the game-winning goal in overtime in front of a sellout crowd of 6,793.[9] While the inaugural season did not result in a playoff berth, average attendance rose from 3,108 in the Falcons' last season to 4,618 and including three sellouts.
On February 17, 2018, it was announced that the Springfield Thunderbirds and theMassMutual Center would host the 2019 AHL All-Star Classic and Skills contest, to take place on January 27–28, 2019. This marked the first AHL All-Star Game in Springfield since 1959.MGM Springfield served as the host of the event.[10] The Western Conference was victorious in the skills competition, while the Central Division defeated the Atlantic Division in the championship game of the round-robin event. Both events were sold out.
On March 6, 2020, the Springfield Thunderbirds announced a five-year affiliation deal with theSt. Louis Blues of the NHL starting from the 2020–21 season.[11] The affiliation with Florida did not yield any playoff appearances, but saw a number of players recalled to the NHL. The team had seen attendance rise in each of its four seasons.Drew Bannister was announced as the second head coach in team history coming from the Blues' previous affiliate, theSan Antonio Rampage. However, due to the ongoing restrictions during theCOVID-19 pandemic, the Thunderbirds were one of three teams that opted out of the2020–21 AHL season.[12]
In the 2021-22 AHL season, with COVID restrictions lifted and the Thunderbirds having by far their best season, they led the Atlantic Division with a 43-26-4-3 record, with a team record average attendance of 5,375. They made the playoffs for the first time, sweeping theWilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and theCharlotte Checkers in the first two rounds before winning the third against theLaval Rocket in seven games. In the Thunderbirds' firstCalder Cup Finals appearance, they were defeated by theChicago Wolves in five games.
On October 4, 2024, the Thunderbirds renewed their affiliation agreement with the St. Louis Blues through the 2030–2031 season.[13]
The market was previously home to:
| Regular Season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Games | Won | Lost | OTL | SOL | Points | PCT | Goals for | Goals against | Standing | Year | 1st round | 2nd round | 3rd round | 4th round | Finals |
| 2016–17 | 76 | 32 | 33 | 9 | 2 | 75 | .493 | 197 | 206 | 6th, Atlantic | 2017 | Did not qualify | ||||
| 2017–18 | 76 | 32 | 37 | 5 | 2 | 71 | .467 | 210 | 233 | 7th, Atlantic | 2018 | Did not qualify | ||||
| 2018–19 | 76 | 33 | 29 | 9 | 5 | 80 | .526 | 250 | 241 | 7th, Atlantic | 2019 | Did not qualify | ||||
| 2019–20 | 61 | 31 | 27 | 3 | 0 | 65 | .533 | 190 | 186 | 5th, Atlantic | 2020 | Season cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic | ||||
| 2020–21 | Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic | 2021 | Did not participate | |||||||||||||
| 2021–22 | 76 | 43 | 24 | 6 | 3 | 95 | .625 | 233 | 221 | 2nd, Atlantic | 2022 | BYE | W, 3–0,WBS | W, 3–0,CHA | W, 4–3,LAV | L 1–4,CHI |
| 2022–23 | 72 | 38 | 26 | 3 | 5 | 84 | .583 | 230 | 211 | 4th, Atlantic | 2023 | L, 0–2,HFD | — | — | — | — |
| 2023–24 | 72 | 30 | 37 | 3 | 2 | 65 | .451 | 226 | 244 | 7th, Atlantic | 2024 | Did not qualify | ||||
Updated March 28, 2025.[14]
Note: Shore's number was retired by the Springfield Indians, and Murray's by the Springfield Falcons; the Thunderbirds continue to honor both numbers. Former AHL presidentJack Butterfield and vice president Gordie Anziano, longtime Springfield residents, as well as former Indians' general manager and Falcons founderBruce Landon, andWillie O'Ree, the first African American to play in the AHL, have been honored with banners raised with the retired numbers.
Players playing at least 100 games in Springfield and 100 games in major leagues.
| |
| Franchise | |
| History | |
| Personnel |
|
| Arenas | |
| Rivalries | |
| Affiliates | |
| Media |
|
| Culture and lore | |
