The Wolves will be Carolina’s AHL affiliate for the next three years.
The Carolina Hurricanes announced today that they have come to an agreement with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL. It is a three year agreement which comes into affect next season.
The Canes have been signing several of their top prospects and needed a home for them. Last season the club did not have an AHL affiliate and they were lending players all over the minor leagues, both AHL and ECHL.
Also, some of the European players stayed in Europe last season.
An important stipulation – The Hurricanes will oversee the hockey operation decisions for the minor league club. This seemed to be a hang up in the previous agreement and the Wolves decided to go independent last year.
That decision didn’t work out well as the club failed to make the playoffs while posting a 23-35-7-7 record last season which was good for 31st place in the 32 team league.
They earned the fewest wins in the entire league.
A copy of the press release is below.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – May 2, 2024
‘CANES ANNOUNCE AGREEMENT WITH CHICAGO WOLVES
Chicago to again serve as Carolina’s AHL affiliate, through 2026-27
RALEIGH, N.C. – Don Waddell, President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the team has signed a three-year affiliation agreement with the Chicago Wolves of the American Hockey League. Chicago previously served as Carolina’s AHL affiliate from 2020-23, winning the Calder Cup in 2022. As part of the agreement, the Hurricanes will oversee the Wolves’ hockey operations decisions.
“We’re excited to reestablish our AHL affiliation with Chicago, and thankful that we could find a solution which worked for both clubs,” said Waddell. “Many of our prospects have already had success with the Wolves, both individually and as a team, and we’re happy to have secured a consistent environment for their development.”
Chicago advanced to two of three Calder Cup Finals from 2019-23, and the Wolves have captured five league championships in their history, including three Calder Cups in 2002, 2008 and 2022. Their most recent Calder Cup championship team included current Hurricanes players Jalen Chatfield, Jack Drury, Pyotr Kochetkov and Stefan Noesen. Founded by current owner Don Levin as an International Hockey League (IHL) expansion franchise in 1994, Chicago also won the IHL’s Turner Cup in 1998 and 2000. Since joining the AHL as the top affiliate for the Atlanta Thrashers in 2001, Chicago has also won eight division titles and four conference championships. The Wolves play their home games at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois.
The Hurricanes are set to face the New York Rangers in the 2024 Eastern Conference Second Round. For information about Hurricanes ticket packages, please visit www.CarolinaHurricanes.com/tickets, or call 1-866-NHL-CANES (1-866-645-2263).