Baltimore began as a farm team for the New York Rangers, and helped develop Hall of Fame players including, Eddie Giacomin, Doug Harvey, Jacques Plante and Jean Ratelle.
[1][2] The approval came with the promise that the Baltimore Civic Center which would be the largest rink in the AHL at that time, would be completed no later than November 1, 1962.
[6] Red Sullivan was named the player-coach, and the camp included many players with connections to Brandon, Manitoba.
[7] Baltimore won the first game of the 1962–63 AHL season on October 12, defeating the Springfield Indians, 6–4.
[8] On December 29, 1962, Sullivan was promoted to be head coach the New York Rangers, and was replaced by player-coach Aldo Guidolin.
[19] Baltimore struggled early in the 1965–66 AHL season, and head coach Jack Crawford was fired on January 24, 1966.
[22] In the 1966–67 AHL season, Reardon acquired Willie Marshall, who led the team in scoring with 33 goals, and 89 points.
[29] Baltimore picked up secondary affiliations with the Detroit Red Wings and Philadelphia Flyers for one season.
[41] Speck won the Les Cunningham Award as the league's most valuable player,[42] the John B. Sollenberger Trophy as the league's top scorer,[43] and the Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award as the AHL Rookie of the Year.
[47] In the playoffs, Baltimore fell in six games to the Providence Reds, ending the best team season to date.
[48] Veteran defenseman Jim Morrison was appointed co-coach with Reardon for the 1971–72 AHL season, in addition to playing.
[50] Baltimore repeated their first place finish in the west division,[51] winning another John D. Chick Trophy.
[52] Playing in their only Calder Cup finals appearance, Baltimore lost in six games to the Nova Scotia Voyageurs, and were outscored 8–21.
[4] The Clippers finished sixth place in the west division, and last overall in the league, missing the playoffs.
They had received an $80,000 subsidy from city in lieu of lease payments, giving up exclusive ice rights to the Baltimore Civic Center.
[59] The team formally folded on January 23, 1975, and cancelled the remaining 30 games on their schedule, citing poor attendance and debt.
[69][70] The team had lost $250,000 in the previous season, and were also unsuccessful in negotiating an NHL affiliation to help with costs.
[73] On January 18, 1977, Wilson was appointed interim head coach of Detroit Red Wings, and Baltimore named Don Grierson a player-coach-general manager.
[74] The Southern Hockey League soon ceased operations when four of its teams folded due to financial reasons, and the final game was played on January 31, 1977.
[98][99] Attendance began to drop in the early 1970s, and then the team faced competition with both the Washington Capitals, and the WHA in the 1974–75 season.