Patrick WilliamsTheAHL.com Features Writer
Calder Cup playoff success often presents a challenging paradox for AHL teams.
When an AHL team does their job and does it well — by developing prospects, winning games, and maybe even winning the Calder Trophy — they often have to deal with the aftereffects of that success. Players will be promoted to their NHL parent team. Or maybe other NHL organizations took notice.
Just ask last year’s league semifinalists: Abbotsford, Charlotte, Laval and Texas have all had long playoff runs — racking up wins, gaining valuable experience and creating countless memories for their respective fans. But success in the spring could mean challenges next fall. New season, new faces, new team. Now it’s time for a new group of players to fill the holes on the AHL roster and develop the chemistry on and off the ice that will ultimately turn them into winners.
Let’s see how the four remaining teams from last June’s Calder Cup Playoffs adjust to the first month of the 2025-26 season. First up is the Eastern Conference, where Charlotte and Laval are trying to replicate and extend last season’s huge success.
In 2024-25, Charlotte struggled all season against the two-time defending Calder Cup champions in Hershey, finishing just two points behind the Bears in the Atlantic Division. But the Checkers got their message across in the postseason, sweeping the Bruins in the conference finals and then knocking off the regular-season champion Laval in a four-game sweep in the Eastern Conference Finals — while their parent team, the Florida Panthers, were on their way to a second straight Stanley Cup.
head coach Jody Kinnear His coaching staff is also back. So does a stalwart defender Trevor Carricktheir newly appointed captain. But beyond that, this is definitely a new team, with five of the top six regular-season scorers departing in the offseason and veteran goaltenders kapo kahkonen and Ken Appleby.
As a result, the front office had to scramble to replace all the talent and find new faces to complement the returning core. Nolan Foote, Tyler Mott, Jack Stadnicka and the 2025 AHL All-Star Game. Brian Pinho is part of a new crop of players who will continue Charlotte’s winning tradition. Brett Josk, Jack Devine, Ben Steves and goalkeeper cooper black All are ready to take on additional roles.
Meanwhile, in Laval, the Rockets won the AHL championship last season with a 48-19-3-2 record. This is the first time since the 1991-92 season that the Montreal Canadiens have won the McGregor Kilpatrick Trophy as the AHL regular season champions. They tied for the fewest goals scored in the league, and Pascal Vincent won the league’s coach of the year honors.
A decisive loss to Charlotte in the conference finals brought an early end to their championship hopes, but even disappointment can bring opportunities for growth. Jacob Fowler Gained playoff experience heading into his rookie season. Oliver KapanenPlayed in the playoffs with the Rockets, is now a regular with the Canadiens, and Owen Baker and Joshua Roy This season has been recalled.
Under the leadership of Baker and Roy, there is still an excellent young core, Jared Davidson, Sean Farrell, Adam Engstrom, Philippe Meshal, David Leinbach, Luke Tudge and Florian Chekay. They have support from veterans like this Laurent Dauphin, Alex Belzile, Lucas Condotta, Toby Beeson and Josiah DidierMontreal even added goaltender Kahkonen as an offseason signing.
Next week we’ll look at Abbotsford and Texas.
About two decades in the American Hockey League, TheAHL.com feature writer Patrick Williams also currently covers the league for NHL.com and FloSports and is a regular contributor to SiriusXM NHL Network Radio. In 2016, he received the AHL’s James H. Ellery Memorial Award for outstanding coverage of the league.
