The last time an NHL team and its AHL affiliate won the championship in the same season was 1994-95. The New Jersey Devils won the Stanley Cup while the Albany River Rats won the Calder Cup the same season. Many longtime AHL followers will point to the irony of a Lou Lamoriello team winning in the AHL. Jokes aside, he built up organizational success from the top down as a GM, and the River Rats helped fuel the Devils' Cup runs in the subsequent years (they won it all in 2000 and 2003 while reaching the Final in 2001). 

Last season, two teams were close to winning both. The Dallas Stars and their Texas affiliate both reached the Western Conference Final. The Florida Panthers won the Cup, and the Charlotte Checkers were close, winning the Eastern Conference but coming up short in the Final to the Abbotsford Canucks in six games. 

This season, the Colorado Avalanche and Eagles both made it to the Western Conference Final. However, they both lost, with the Avalanche getting swept and the Eagles falling in a seven-game series. There is still one franchise that can win both and enter rare territory.

Presumably, every hockey fan knows how close the Hurricanes are to a Stanley Cup title. They are in a tight back-and-forth series with the Vegas Golden Knights but have the team to get over the hump. 

After years of coming up short in the playoffs, the Hurricanes have the team to win it all. They powered through the Eastern Conference with four lines that can come at teams and a high-pressure forechecking style that’s tough to play against. 

Most hockey fans know about the Hurricanes. They might not know that their AHL affiliate, the Wolves, is four wins away from a Calder Cup title. The Wolves have some similarities but their journey to the Final involved them battling back and overcoming the odds. 

The Wolves struggled to start the season and hired Spiro Anastas to turn things around. In the playoffs, they trailed in multiple games and were notably down 2-0 in Game 6 of the Western Conference Final and on the verge of elimination. The Wolves won the game 3-2 and took the series in seven games. 

Both the Hurricanes and the Wolves are well-built from the top down. They are well coached and have a mix of both experience and young talent. It’s a good sign for the Hurricanes, who might win the Cup this year and are poised to be great for a long time. 

The Hurricanes-Wolves affiliation isn’t a typical one. The Wolves are one of the few independent teams in the AHL and are proud of that identity. It’s why they’ve won three Calder Cup titles since joining the league in 2000 and also why they’ve had rough relationships with their NHL affiliates. 

The Wolves value winning first and developing second. It results in them adding veterans and favoring them over prospects, certainly more so than teams run by the NHL front office. This understandably is at odds with what NHL teams want to see.

The Hurricanes discontinued their affiliation with the Wolves for a brief period before reuniting in 2024. Some people who cover the AHL jokingly refer to the relationship as a tough marriage where the two sides are keeping it together for the kids. However, when the Hurricanes partnered in 2024, things changed. 

The Wolves are now run similarly to the Hershey Bears. Yes, the team is independent but the Hurricanes run the hockey operations. It’s allowed them to maintain a winning environment while also developing the prospects. It’s a relationship that’s smoothed out and become one of the better ones in hockey, with both teams in the Final being a case in point. 

In the AHL, there are pros and cons to the teams being independent from their NHL teams. Likewise, teams that are completely controlled by their NHL teams have their pluses and minuses. 

One thing the Hurricanes and Wolves have proven is that winning fixes everything. Or more accurately, a winning culture in the AHL helps develop prospects and, by default, helps the NHL team. 

One thing great owners in sports will admit is that a key to success is hiring the right people and getting out of the way. That’s true about the Hurricanes and the Wolves. The Hurricanes don’t need to interfere with the business side of their AHL team. Likewise, the Wolves don’t need to meddle with the hockey operations. It’s created a successful environment across the board.