Texas

Texas is a state in the south-central United States.

Its population is over 29,000,000.

The capital is Austin and the largest city is Houston.

History of hockey in Texas

On December 17, 1925, the first ice hockey team in Texas practiced at the newly-opened Crystal Palace rink in San Antonio. On January 21, 1926, the first ice hockey game was played in San Antonio, with the Crystal Palace team defeating the Second Army Division 4-3 in double overtime. The Gardener Ice Palace and Polar Wave Ice Palace opened in Dallas and Houston, respectively, in late 1926, and the Dallas Ice Kings and Polar Wave Bears were established at the rinks. The Ice Kings and Bears faced one another, San Antonio, and the visiting St. Paul Millionaires from Minnesota. A senior league was organized in San Antonio, and the first game in El Paso took place at the Arctic Ice Palace on February 23, 1927. The Southern Pacific Trainmen and Fort Bliss Machine Gun Canadians played a three-game series which proved to be very popular among the locals, and the Border Ice Hockey League was soon formed, beginning play in mid-March. The El Paso rink closed after the season, and did not reopen.

In 1927-28, the Ice Kings and Polar Wave Bears both faced the Kansas City Pla-Mors of the American Hockey Association, and also played a series against one another that was referred to as the Southwest Hockey League. The following year, the Dallas Ice Kings and San Antonio Blue Streaks faced one another for the Texas State Championship, the Blue Streaks winning both games. The University of Minnesota visited Dallas in early January 1930, losing 9-4 to the Ice Kings on the 3rd. The Tulsa Oilers of the American Hockey Association also paid a visit to Dallas, splitting the series with the Ice Kings. The teams met again the following year, winning two games each from one another. Hockey returned to Houston in 1930-31, after an absence of several years, the Polar Wave Bears and Baytown Oilers engaging in a series. The Houston City League was established for the 1932-33 season. The Rice University Owls and Houston Junior College Cougars had hockey teams by 1933-34, Rice capturing the Houston City League title in 1937 and 1941. The league lasted until 1943.

Hockey returned to San Antonio for the first time since 1931-32 in 1934-35, the South Texas Ice Hockey League being set up. Houston's Polar Wave Bears joined the league for 1935-36 and 1936-37. The Texas Ice Palace opened in Beaumont in January 1940, and a local team known as the Texas Rangers was formed. The Dallas Texans and Fort Worth Rangers joined the American Hockey Association for the 1941-42 season. The league then disbanded, and some exhibition games took place in Dallas in 1942-43.

The AHA was reformed as the United States Hockey League for 1945-46, the Rangers and Texans rejoining it. They played in the league until both disbanded in 1949. The Houston Skippers (1946-47) and Huskies (1947-49) were also members of the USHL. The Houston Amateur Hockey League operated from 1946-1948, while the Dallas Amateur Hockey League was in existence from 1947-1949. The Texas Amateur Hockey League, consisting of teams from Dallas and Fort Worth, was set up for the 1949-50 season. After this, hockey in Texas went dormant until 1958, when the Amarillo Ice Palace opened. The first ice hockey game at the arena was played between the Albuquerque Falcons and Kirtland Flyers of the Sandia Mountain Hockey League on September 6, 1958. The Flyers won, 4-3. The Amarillo Wranglers began play at the Ice Palace in February 1959. The team folded after the 1960-61 season.

The Iceland rink opened in Lubbock in the summer of 1964. The Lubbock Hockey Club faced the Albuquerque All-Stars in April 1966, and played full seasons in 1966-67 and 1967-68, before disbanding. There was a Central Hockey League exhibition game played in Dallas on December 6, 1965, the Oklahoma City Blazers thumping the Minnesota Rangers 6-2 in front of 2,400 fans. The Ice-O-Rama rink opened in El Paso in the fall of 1965, and a local team played Lubbock and teams from Albuquerque, New Mexico, from 1966-1968. There was also a youth program established at the facility.

Hockey returned to Houston in 1965, the Apollos competing in the Central Hockey League from 1965-1969 and later 1979-1981. The Houston Mustangs amateur team played three games in Mexico City during the summer of 1967, beating the Mexicans 9-0, 12-0, and 14-0. They also defeated the Memphis Eagles 10-4 on July 15. The Fort Worth Texans (Wings from 1967-1974) were members of the CHL from 1967-1982, and the Dallas Black Hawks competed in the league from 1967-1982 as well. The Amarillo Wranglers had a CHL franchise from 1968-1971. The Central Senior Hockey League ran for the 1969-70 season.

The Austin Hockey Association was established in December 1974, operating at the Ice Age rink in the Northcross Mall. By 1978, there were seven teams in the local senior league. The Spenco Ice Arena opened in Waco in late 1980, and the Waco Amateur Hockey Association was established for the 1980-81 season. In 1983, the Austin association had 30 youth players, and four senior teams. Their traveling team won a tournament in New Orleans that March, which also featured teams from Houston, Baton Rouge, and New Orleans. Houston had around 500 youth players. In Dallas, there were eight youth teams that played at a local mall rink. In 1985-86, the Austin Hockey Association featured eight teams from Austin, San Antonio, and Killeen. In 1989-90, it consisted of four teams from Austin, two from San Antonio, and one from Fort Hood. Amateur hockey continued to be played in Austin, Houston, and Dallas into the 1990s.

The Houston Aeros played in the World Hockey Association from 1972-1978. Texas has had three American Hockey League franchises, the Houston Aeros (2001-2010), San Antonio Rampage (2002-2020), and Texas Stars (2009-present). The Texas Wildcatters, based in Beaumont, played in the ECHL from 2003-2008, and the Allen Americans have been members of the league since 2014. There have been numerous other minor pro and junior franchises that have operated in Texas over the years. The Dallas Stars have played in the National Hockey League since the 1993-94 season. The team was founded as the Minnesota North Stars in 1967, but relocated to Dallas in 1993. The Stars won the Stanley Cup in 1999, and reached the finals in 2000 and 2020.

List of minor pro franchises

• Dallas Texans - (AHA) - (1941-1942)
• Fort Worth Rangers - (AHA) - (1941-1942)
• Dallas Texans - (USHL) - (1945-1949)
• Fort Worth Rangers - (USHL) - (1945-1949)
• Houston Skippers - (USHL) - (1946-1947)
• Houston Huskies - (USHL) - (1947-1949)
• Houston Apollos - (CHL) - (1965-1969)
• Fort Worth Wings - (CHL) - (1967-1974)
• Dallas Black Hawks - (CHL) - (1967-1982)
• Amarillo Wranglers - (CHL) - (1968-1971)
• Fort Worth Texans - (CHL) - (1974-1982)
• El Paso Raiders - (SWHL) - (1975-1976)
• Amarillo Wranglers - (SWHL) - (1975-1976)
• Amarillo Lone Stars - (SWHL) - (1977)
• Houston Apollos - (CHL) - (1979-1981)
• Dallas Freeze - (CHL) - (1992-1995)
• Fort Worth Fire - (CHL) - (1992-1999)
• Houston Aeros - (IHL) - (1994-2001)
• San Antonio Iguanas - (CHL) - (1994-2002)
• Amarillo Rattlers - (WPHL) - (1996-2001)
• Austin Ice Bats - (WPHL) - (1996-2001)
• Central Texas Stampede - (WPHL) - (1996-2001)
• El Paso Buzzards - (WPHL) - (1996-2001)
• Waco Wizards - (WPHL) - (1996-1999)
• San Antonio Dragons - (IHL) - (1996-1998)
• Fort Worth Brahmas - (WPHL) - (1997-2001)
• Odessa Jackalopes - (WPHL) - (1997-2001)
• San Angelo Outlaws - (WPHL) - (1997-2001)
• Abilene Aviators - (WPHL) - (1998-1999)
• Corpus Christi IceRays - (WPHL) - (1998-2001)
• Lubbock Cotton Kings - (WPHL) - (1999-2001)
• Border City Bandits - (CHL) - (2000-2001)
• Austin Ice Bats - (CHL) - (2001-2008)
• San Angelo Outlaws - (CHL) - (2001-2002)
• Amarillo Rattlers - (CHL) - (2001-2002)
• Corpus Christi IceRays - (CHL) - (2001-2010)
• El Paso Buzzards - (CHL) - (2001-2003)
• Fort Worth Brahmas - (CHL) - (2001-2006)
• Houston Aeros - (AHL) - (2001-2013)
• Lubbock Cotton Kings - (CHL) - (2001-2007)
• Odessa Jackalopes - (CHL) - (2001-2011)
• Houston Blast - (GCHL) - (2001-2002)
• Texarkana Bandits - (GCHL) - (2001-2002)
• Dallas Sabres - (GCHL) - (2001-2002)
• Laredo Bucks - (CHL) - (2002-2012)
• Amarillo Gorillas - (CHL) - (2002-2010)
• San Angelo Saints - (CHL) - (2002-2005)
• San Antonio Rampage - (AHL) - (2002-2020)
• Texas Wildcatters - (ECHL) - (2003-2008)
• Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees - (CHL) - (2003-2012)
• Texas Brahmas - (CHL) - (2006-2013)
• Texas Stars - (AHL) - (2009-present)
• Allen Americans - (CHL) - (2009-2014)
• Allen Americans - (ECHL) - (2014-present)

American States

US Capital: Washington, D.C.

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