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Iowa Wild

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Iowa Wild
BERJAYA
CityDes Moines, Iowa
LeagueAmerican Hockey League
ConferenceWestern
DivisionCentral
Founded1994 (IHL)
Operated2013–present
Home arenaCasey's Center
ColorsForest green, Iron Range red, harvest gold, Minnesota wheat, white
         
OwnerMinnesota Sports and Entertainment
General managerMatt Hendricks[1]
Head coachStu Bickel
MediaFanduel Sports Network North
KXNO
AHL.TV (Internet)
AffiliatesMinnesota Wild (NHL)
Jacksonville Icemen (ECHL)
Franchise history
1994–2013Houston Aeros
2013–presentIowa Wild
BERJAYA Current season

The Iowa Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Des Moines, Iowa. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Minnesota Wild of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Wild play their home games at Casey's Center.

The team was formerly the Houston Aeros, in Houston, Texas, before being relocated to Des Moines, beginning with the 2013–14 AHL season as the Iowa Wild.[2][3] The Wild is the second AHL team based in Des Moines following the Iowa Stars, which had been the Dallas Stars' AHL affiliate from 2005 until 2008 (in the team's final season (2008–09), they were known as the Iowa Chops and were affiliated with the Anaheim Ducks).

The affiliation between the two Wild franchises is the first of two between Twin Cities area franchises and Iowa minor league franchises, as the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association and the Iowa Wolves of the NBA G League also share an affiliation.

History

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The Iowa Wild franchise began as the Houston Aeros, a 1994 expansion team in the International Hockey League (IHL) that played out of the Compaq Center. The Aeros were one of six IHL teams to join the American Hockey League (AHL) in 2001 when the IHL folded. Upon joining the AHL, the Aeros affiliated with the National Hockey League's one-year-old expansion team, the Minnesota Wild. The AHL version of the Aeros won the 2003 Calder Cup and also reached the 2011 Calder Cup finals, but lost to the Binghamton Senators. In 2003, the majority ownership of the franchise was sold to Minnesota Sports and Entertainment, the ownership group of the Wild, while former owner Chuck Watson retained a 10% minority share along with Houston native Nick Sheppard holding a 4% share. The team then moved home games to the new Toyota Center.[4]

On April 18, 2013, the Minnesota Wild announced that Minnesota Sports and Entertainment were unable to reach a lease agreement with the Toyota Center, and the Aeros would be relocated to Des Moines, Iowa, beginning with the 2013–14 season with home games at Wells Fargo Arena.[5] The Iowa Wild inaugural season was opened on October 12 with a 1–0 win over the Oklahoma City Barons. The opening night attendance was 10,200.[6] The team failed to make the playoffs for its first five seasons.

BERJAYA
The Wild playing against the Milwaukee Admirals in 2024

On February 22, 2018, the Minnesota Wild extended their contract through 2023.[7] In 2019, the team reached the playoffs for the first time since relocating from Houston, reaching the division finals and losing to the Chicago Wolves in six games. The following 2019–20 season was then curtailed by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic with the Wild holding second place in the division and no playoffs were held. The 2020–21 season was then delayed due to the pandemic, with a shortened season held and no Calder Cup playoffs.

Season-by-season results

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Regular season Playoffs Average
attendance[8]
Season Games Won Lost OTL SOL Points PCT Goals
for		 Goals
against		 Standing Year Prelims 1st
round		 2nd
round		 3rd
round		 Finals
2013–147627367667.4411692355th, Midwest2014Did not qualify5,883
2014–157623492250.3291722455th, Midwest2015Did not qualify5,659
2015–167624415659.3881692258th, Central2016Did not qualify5,846
2016–177636317281.5331821966th, Central2017Did not qualify6,019
2017–1876332710682.5392322465th, Central2018Did not qualify6,153
2018–197637268587.5722422303rd, Central2019—W, 3–2, MILL, 2–4, CHI——6,409
2019–206337184482.6511941712nd, Central2020Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic6,351
2020–213417134038.5591071134th, Central2021No playoffs were held3,273[9]
2021–227232314573.5072022096th, Central2022Did not qualify5,435
2022–237234276579.5492112114th, Central2023L, 0–2 RFD————6,296
2023–247227374462.4311842456th, Central2024Did not qualify6,401
2024–257227376262.4312012516th, Central2025Did not qualify6,237
2025–267227366363.4381792266th, Central2026Did not qualify6,154

Players

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Current roster

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Updated July 13, 2026.[10]

No. Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace Contract
– United States Blake Biondi C R 24 2026 Hermantown, Minnesota Iowa
2 United States Mike Koster D L 25 2025 Chaska, Minnesota Iowa
– Canada Drew Kuzma F L 23 2026 St. Albert, Alberta Iowa
10 United States Brad Marek C L 25 2024 Big Rapids, Michigan Iowa
20 United States Gerry Mayhew RW R 33 2025 Wyandotte, Michigan Iowa
– Canada Nick Rhéaume LW L 24 2026 Sherbrooke, Quebec Iowa
35 Canada William Rousseau G L 23 2025 Trois-Rivières, Quebec Iowa
29 United States Braidan Simmons-Fischer D R 24 2026 Commerce Township, Michigan Iowa

Team captains

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Franchise records and leaders

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Scoring leaders

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These are the top-ten point-scorers for the Iowa Wild in the AHL. Figures are updated after each completed season.[11]

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game;   = current Iowa player

Points
PlayerPosGPGAPtsP/G
Gerald MayhewRW288119101220.76
Kyle RauC24488111199.81
Sam AnasC25972125197.76
Zack MitchellRW2506666132.53
Cal O'ReillyC14231100131.92
Mason ShawC1974378121.61
Brennan MenellD19915101116.58
Adam BeckmanLW1815751108.60
Marco RossiC1163470104.90
Colton BeckLW3194163104.33

References

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  1. ↑ "Hendricks named new GM of Iowa Wild". theahl. May 15, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Wild AHL Affiliate Moving To Iowa". Minnesota Wild. April 18, 2013. Archived from the original on December 30, 2013. Retrieved April 18, 2013.
  3. ↑ Birch, Tommy; Leistikow, Chad (April 18, 2013). "Is Des Moines ready to try pro hockey again?". Des Moines Register. Retrieved April 18, 2013.[permanent dead link]
  4. ↑ "Relocation Likely if Aeros Can't Get A New Lease Deal at Toyota Center". Houston Chronicle. January 18, 2013.
  5. ↑ "It's official: Aeros hockey team leaving Houston at end of season". ABC13. April 19, 2013.
  6. ↑ As former sole owner of the team, Chuck Watson owns the rights to the Aeros name, prompting the name change."Wild statement on AHL affiliate". Houston Aeros. April 18, 2013. Retrieved April 18, 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  7. ↑ Wild, Iowa. "FIVE YEARS IN: JUST GETTING STARTED | Iowa Wild". www.iowawild.com. Retrieved August 13, 2018.
  8. ↑ "Iowa Wild yearly attendance". HockeyDB. Retrieved April 22, 2023.
  9. ↑ Reduced capacity during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  10. ↑ "Iowa Wild Roster". American Hockey League. Retrieved July 13, 2026.
  11. ↑ "Iowa Wild - All Time AHL leaders". hockeydb.com. April 20, 2024. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
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