2019-20 AJHL Guidebook

HISTORY
AJHL HISTORY
AND FRANCHISE ORIGIN
The Alberta Junior Hockey League
continues to be the premier developmental
League in Canada for student-athletes
striving to capitalize on their athletic and
academic abilities. Each season, over 300
AJHL Alumni compete on College and
University teams across North America
and fill the rosters of NHL teams.
The League was born out of necessity,
in 1963 the Edmonton Oil Kings completely
dominated junior hockey in Alberta and
Western Canada. The only problem was
that few of the Oil Kings were Edmontonians.
But, Jim McAdie, now a member of
the Edmonton Sports Hall of Fame and a
leading force in the organization of the Alberta
Junior Hockey League, said: “there
were 1,000 kids wanting to play junior
hockey in Alberta”.
So, a few enterprising individuals met
and formed the Alberta Junior Hockey
League (AJHL), a five-team league playing
a limited schedule, mainly on weekends.
Other leading lights in the formative
year were Ken Kuchinski of Edmonton, Stu
Peppard of Calgary, Syd Hall and Carl Tentini
of Lethbridge.
The League comprised the Edmonton
Safeway Canadians, the Edmonton Maple
Leafs, the Lethbridge Sugar Kings, Calgary
Cowboys and the Calgary Buffaloes.
None of the charter members are still
in existence unless one wants to include
the Maple Leafs who, through a series of
ownership changes and franchise shifts,
has finally settled in Sherwood Park.
From that humble beginning, the AJHL
has grown into one of the most highly respected
Junior ‘A’ Leagues in Canada, having
nine national champions to its credit.
But, it was not done without a great
deal of difficulty, shifting franchises, new
franchises, new commissioners, etc. It was
done through the conviction of everyone
involved that it was the thing to do.
The League took its first step towards
a truly provincial alignment in 1966-67
when it admitted the Ponoka Stamped-
2018-19 SEASON
The AJHL played host
to the World Junior A
Challenge, CJHL
Prospects Game and
National Junior A
Championship in the
2018-2019 season!
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