American Hockey League

📝 by Patrick Williams Pressure is becoming rather routine for defenseman Matt Kessel and the Springfield Thunderbirds. Springfield endured three overtime games with Laval in the Eastern Conference Finals, winning two of them. They prevailed in a Game 7 against the Rocket, a 4-0 masterpiece to secure their place in the Calder Cup Finals against

The Seattle Kraken have named Dan Bylsma as the first head coach of their new American Hockey League affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds. Bylsma spent the 2021-22 season as an assistant coach with the Charlotte Checkers, working with Kraken prospects as part of a shared affiliation with the Florida Panthers. Before joining the Seattle organization,

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League is holding the 2022 AHL Team Business Meetings presented by Ticket Evolution this week, with more than 220 representatives from the league and its member clubs gathering at the Renaissance Hotel and at PPL Center in Allentown, Pa. Meeting in person for the first time since 2019, front-office

ROSEMONT, Ill. (theahl.com) … The Chicago Wolves rode a four-goal first period to a 6-2 victory over the Springfield Thunderbirds in Game 2 of the 2022 Calder Cup Finals on Monday evening, squaring the AHL’s championship series at one game apiece. After a travel day tomorrow, the best-of-seven series resumes in Springfield with Game 3

📝 by Patrick Williams Even for two teams that have never met, there are few unknowns once the Calder Cup Finals arrive. Both the Chicago Wolves and Springfield Thunderbirds have been through three playoff rounds. Both have taken some hits along with some considerable success. They have endured slumps and setbacks. And the head coaches,

ROSEMONT, Ill. (theahl.com) … Matthew Kessel’s first goal as a pro was the overtime winner as the Springfield Thunderbirds rallied for a 5-4 win over the Chicago Wolves in Game 1 of the 2022 Calder Cup Finals on Sunday afternoon. The teams go right back at it in Game 2 on Monday evening (8 ET,

📝 by Patrick Williams Leave it to Chicago Wolves head coach Ryan Warsofsky to immediately cut to the point in his characteristically direct fashion. Said Warsofsky after putting his team through practice Friday, “[I] get asked a lot, ‘Oh, do you focus more on developing or do you focus more on winning?’ “Can’t you focus

The Los Angeles Kings have named Marco Sturm as head coach for the Ontario Reign of the American Hockey League. The remaining coaching staff for the Reign – assistant coaches Chris Hajt and Craig Johnson, video coach Brad Schuler and goaltending development coach Matt Millar – will all return in 2022-23. Sturm joins the Reign

📝 by Patrick Williams The Springfield Thunderbirds know. They know what the chance to play for the Calder Cup means to their home city, a mainstay on the American Hockey League map since 1936. “The Thunderdome,” goaltender Charlie Lindgren said Wednesday night as the Thunderbirds celebrated their upcoming trip to the Calder Cup Finals against

📝 by Patrick Williams Pressure. Who can handle it? No matter who ends up lifting the Calder Cup later this month, each of the 23 American Hockey League clubs that qualified to battle this spring will all have something in common. Win or lose, they all will have sampled that sort of high-pressure hockey that

In control from start to finish, the Springfield Thunderbirds advanced to the Calder Cup Finals on Wednesday night with a 4-0 Game 7 win over the Laval Rocket at MassMutual Center. Winners of the Richard F. Canning Trophy as Eastern Conference champions, the Thunderbirds will be making the first Finals appearance by a Springfield AHL

The Chicago Wolves will face off against the Springfield Thunderbirds for the American Hockey League championship when the 2022 Calder Cup Finals get underway on Sunday afternoon at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill. Led by head coach Ryan Warsofsky, the Wolves, top development team of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes, are seeking their third Calder Cup title

The Chicago Wolves are heading back to the Calder Cup Finals after a 3-0 win over the Stockton Heat in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals on Tuesday night. The Wolves won the series, four games to two, to capture the Robert W. Clarke Trophy as Western Conference champions and reach the Finals for

📝 by Patrick Williams Black aces have been a long-time part of playoff hockey lore. Typically the role is designated for American Hockey League players. Following the completion of a team’s AHL season, the parent National Hockey League club will recall a number of players from their affiliate for the duration of the Stanley Cup

There will be a Game 7 in the East. Danick Martel notched two goals and an assist and Cayden Primeau made 30 saves as the Laval Rocket registered a 5-1 win in Springfield on Monday night, setting up a winner-take-all showdown for the right to play for the Calder Cup. Game 7, the first to

📝 by Patrick Williams The Springfield Thunderbirds have that special something. Head coach Drew Bannister sees it. So does goaltender Charlie Lindgren. And no less than James Neal, he of 869 National Hockey League games and two trips to the Stanley Cup Final, can pinpoint it as well. Lots of teams have talent, the Thunderbirds

A night after surrendering a 2-0 lead in a 3-2 overtime loss in Game 4, the Springfield Thunderbirds returned the favor and will return home one victory away from the Calder Cup Finals. James Neal scored at 18:35 of overtime to lift Springfield to a 3-2 win in Game 5 at Place Bell on Saturday.

📝 by Patrick Williams How about Jon Cooper and Jared Bednar for coaching role models? Brad Larsen? Mike Eaves? Trent Vogelhuber has had all of them and more as he prepares to take over an American Hockey League bench next season. Vogelhuber became the AHL’s youngest current head coach earlier this week when the Columbus