Early History
The Indians had their start in the Canadian-American Hockey League in 1926. The "Can-Am," as it was called, was founded in Springfield and the Indians were one of the five initial franchises. It was run at the time by Lester Patrick and the National Hockey League's New York Rangers, and future NHL stars such as Charlie Rayner, Earl Seibert (who after his playing days were through would be the Indians' longtime coach), Cecil Dillon and Ott Heller saw their start in Springfield uniforms. The Indians played in the Can-Am League until the 1932–33 season, having to fold thirteen games into the season. In 1935-36, Lucien Garneau transferred his Quebec Beavers franchise to Springfield, resurrecting the Indians name; the team was now associated with the NHL's Montreal Canadiens.
The Great Depression caused cutbacks all around, and the Can-Am merged with the International Hockey League to form the International-American Hockey League, which changed its name to the American Hockey League, having lost its last Canadian franchises, in 1941.
But before that time, the man who cast his shadow over the team for most of its existence, Boston Bruins's superstar defenseman Eddie Shore, purchased the team in 1939. Industriously, he split games between the Bruins and the Indians, even going so far as to provoke a trade to the Amerks to make the train commute easier. He retired from the NHL after that season, but played for Springfield for two more seasons. Shore's often-controversial but ever-colorful management style would permeate the team for the next three decades and provide generations of hockey players and fans with anecdotes.
Despite early stars like Shore, Fred Thurier, Frank Beisler and Pete Kelly, success eluded the Indians on the ice. However, in the 1941–42 season, the Indians finished in first place.
Disaster struck in the following season. With World War II, the United States army requisitioned the Eastern States Coliseum, Springfield's home arena, for the war effort, leaving the Indians homeless. Shore loaned Indians players to the Buffalo Bisons for the duration, returning the players to Springfield for the 1946–47 season. However, on ice success continued to elude the team, and despite the presence of stars such as Harry Pidhirny and Jim Anderson the franchise failed to have a winning record for over a decade more, including a temporary franchise relocation as the Syracuse Warriors from 1951–54.
During those three seasons, Shore fielded a Springfield team in the low-minor Eastern Hockey League and later the Quebec Hockey League using the Indians name. Led by future Boston Bruins goaltender Don Simmons and scoring leader Vern Pachal, the EHL Indians finished 3rd and 1st their two seasons in the loop, but finished in last place in 1954 in the QHL, the only team in the loop ever located outside of the province of Quebec.
Meanwhile, disappointed with attendance in Syracuse, Shore moved the AHL franchise back to Springfield - disbanding the QHL team - for good for the 1955 season. The team's few superlatives for the rest of the decade included the 1955 season - during which Ross Lowe won the only league MVP award in franchise history and Anderson was named rookie of the year - and All-Star Team citations to Eldie Kobussen at center in 1948, Billy Gooden in 1951, Lowe, Gordon Tottle and Don Simmons in 1955, Gerry Ehman and Cal Gardner in 1958, and Pidhirny in 1959.
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