SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League today released the complete schedule of games for the 2024-25 regular season, the league’s 89th year of operation. The season, with 32 teams playing 72 games apiece – a total of 1,152 games – begins on Friday, October 11 and concludes on Sunday, April 20.
Of note on the 2024-25 schedule:
• The 2024-25 regular season begins with eight games on Oct. 11, and a total of 29 games over opening weekend.
• The Hershey Bears raise their 13th Calder Cup championship banner when they open the season at Giant Center against their Eastern Conference Finals foe, the Cleveland Monsters, on Oct. 12.
• The two-time Western Conference champion Coachella Valley Firebirds begin their third season in the AHL with a home date against the Bakersfield Condors on Oct. 11.
• The Firebirds also host the 2025 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Spotlight 29 Casino, scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 2 and Monday, Feb. 3 at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, Calif.
• Games scheduled by day of the week: Monday (15), Tuesday (57), Wednesday (197), Thursday (15), Friday (302), Saturday (392), Sunday (174).
The American Hockey League was officially born in 1936 when the Canadian-American Hockey League and the International Hockey League merged to form the International-American Hockey League (the “International” would be dropped from the league’s name in 1940). The AHL continues to serve as the top development league for all 32 National Hockey League teams; nearly 90 percent of today’s NHL players are American Hockey League graduates, and more than 100 honored members of the Hockey Hall of Fame spent time in the AHL in their careers.