Named after Les Cunningham, who retired in 1947 as the AHL’s career scoring leader, the Les Cunningham Award is annually presented to the American Hockey League’s most valuable player, as voted on by AHL coaches, media and players.
Cunningham’s 10 AHL seasons were all spent with the Cleveland Barons, where he won three Calder Cup championships and was named to five postseason AHL All-Star Teams, all in succession from 1941-45. He led the league in scoring in 1941, and played in the first AHL All-Star Game, a World War II fundraiser in 1942.
By the time he played his final game for the Barons in 1947, Cunningham was the league’s career scoring leader with 579 points in 517 games. He was inducted into the American Hockey League Hall of Fame in 2009.