following aurie's departure, max kaminsky became the third coach of the hornets in 1944. a year later, the hornets became a minor-league club for the toronto maple leafs ending their affiliation with the red wings. for the 1946–47 season the hornets returned to the ahl finals for the second time in team history, losing game 7 to the mid-state hershey bears. the maple leafs' success with four stanley cup championships between 1947 and 1951 helped to solidify the position of the minor league hornets. the hornets played the maple leafs' style of hockey that involved hard, close checking that produced low scoring games. in 1948, the hornets lost only 18 games, for their best record since 1938. max kaminsky would end his coaching career in 1947 with the hornets. he had a .562 winning percentage. kaminsky won 91 games, lost 68 and tied 27 in his 186 games behind the bench.