Patrick WilliamsTheAHL.com Features Writer
What a year it has been.
The arrival of 2026 will bring the second half of the AHL's 90th Anniversary season, with an outdoor game in Minnesota where the Rockford IceHogs will host the AHL All-Star Classic, followed by a two-month Calder Cup Playoffs.
As 2025 comes to an end, we take a look back at the most memorable year in AHL history.
Abbotsford Canucks lift Calder Cup for first time
On June 23, the Canucks defeated Charlotte 3-2 in Game 6 of the Calder Cup finals, marking the first time the Calder Cup came to the West. This is the first Calder Cup championship for a Vancouver Canucks-affiliated team.
They became the first Pacific Division team to win the Calder Cup since the AHL expanded to the West Coast in 2015. Abbotsford overcame a midseason slump to qualify for the Calder Cup playoffs with a 30-9-1-1 record. Since then, they've eliminated the Tucson Roadrunners, Coachella Valley Firebirds, Colorado Eagles and Texas Stars to reach the Finals under a rookie head coach. Manny Malhotra.
goalkeeper Artus Silovs Abbotsford won the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as the Calder Cup playoff MVP with a 16-7 record, 2.01 goals against average, 0.931 save percentage and five shutouts.
Montreal Canadiens prospects succeed
The last time a Montreal Canadiens affiliate finished first in the AHL during the regular season was more than 30 years ago.
Until last April, the Laval Rocket won the 2024-25 regular season champion McGregor Kilpatrick Trophy with a record of 48 wins, 19 draws, 3 draws and 2 losses. This is the Habs' first regular-season title since the 1991-92 Fredericton Canadiens.
The Rockets eliminated the Cleveland Monsters and Rochester Americans to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals before losing to Charlotte. They are once again one of the top contenders this season with a North Division-best 20-10-0-1 record.
Another Milwaukee vs. Texas matchup
If it were spring, the Milwaukee Admirals and Texas would definitely face off in the Calder Cup playoffs.
The two teams met in the playoffs for the third consecutive time, playing five classic games in the Central Division Finals. They alternated wins in the first four games before Texas won the decisive Game 5 with a 3-2 road victory. AHL Rookie of the Year Justin Hekovian Entering the regular season with a time of 5 minutes and 05 seconds, the series victory was guaranteed.
Texas has faced a full five games in its playoff series with Milwaukee in both 2023 and 2024.
Marco Sturm heads to Boston
Three solid seasons for Ontario Reign head coach Marco Sturm for his next steps in the coaching industry.
The call came on June 5, when the Boston Bruins named Sturm their new head coach. Sturm completed an impressive NHL climb with a 119-80-11-6 record with Ontario. The journey also includes a stint as an assistant coach with the Los Angeles Kings and international experience with the German men's national program, including winning a silver medal at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Todd Nelson moves to NHL
After winning back-to-back Calder Cup championships and transferring players to the Washington Capitals, Todd NelsonOn June 20, he accepted an invitation from the Pittsburgh Penguins to join the Hershey Bears as an assistant coach, leaving the Hershey Bears.
Nelson's 450 regular-season wins rank fifth in AHL history, 141 of which came in Hershey. He finished with a .704 hitting percentage, the highest in Hershey history. He also won the Louis AR Pieri Memorial Award as the AHL's most outstanding coach in the 2023-24 season.
Nelson has won the Calder Cup three times as a head coach, as well as the title as a player in 1994 and as an assistant coach in 2008.
AHL head coach promoted
Nelson and Sturm are not the only AHL head coaches to receive NHL appointments.
Neil Graham After leading the Dallas Stars' AHL affiliate for parts of six seasons, he joined the parent club, the Dallas Stars, as an assistant coach. In Colorado, it's a mainstay for the Eagles Aaron Schnicklos He got his first NHL opportunity as an assistant coach with the Seattle Kraken. Calgary Wranglers Head Coach Trent CarrAfter spending time as an interim assistant coach with the Calgary Flames last season, he has now taken on a permanent NHL role.
Grand Rapids' record-breaking start
While the Grand Rapids Griffins can make more history in 2026, they also make 2025 a very special year.
The team ended 2025 with an impressive record of 26 wins, 1 tie, and 1 loss, including a 15-game winning streak that was halted when they lost to Milwaukee in overtime on New Year's Eve. They have reached the 50-point mark faster than any team in AHL history, and they have yet to lose in the regular season this season (13-0-0-1). Dan WatsonNot even halfway through the season, the team already leads the Central Division by 19 points.
What will the Griffins bring to the table in 2026 as they seek their third Calder Cup title?
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.
