They were formed in August 1983 after the Minnesota North Stars of the NHL had withdrawn supprt for the Birmingham South Stars of the Central Hockey League (CHL) at the end of the 1982-83 CHL season. It was felt that the travel and player expenses for the team would be lower in the ACHL than in the CHL. The ACHL was rated lower than the CHL and their teams were closer to Birmingham. The team could not keep the name "South Stars" and chose the name of the defunct World Hockey Association team instead.