Indiana Youth Hockey Association was founded in 1991, an early part of the boon from the Penguins' Stanley Cup teams that ultimately produced many new PAHL organizations.  Its teams play out of the S&T Bank Arena, which opened in 1995 as the Indiana Ice & Expo Center.

The Chiefs nickname is a play on the Indiana moniker, as the county of Indiana and the city of Indiana were named because its land had been purchased from the Native Americans in the late 1700s.

The Indiana Hockey Association annually hosts the Charlie Hogan Memorial Tournament. The tournament is held in honor of Charlie Hogan, a Chiefs player who died unexpectedly in 1994 at age 10.