Patrick Williams delivers again FloHockey AHL Power Rankings The entire regular season.
The Grand Rapids Griffins are on pace to continue a league-record 136-point season by beating their opponents. Still trying to keep the Griffins in some relative sight are the Colorado Eagles, Laval Rocket, Providence Bruins and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. But the Griffins' lead in the game was growing rapidly.
Let's break down the first half of the AHL.
1) Grand Rapids Griffins (–)
The Griffins' first top spot came in week three of the FloHockey AHL Power Rankings. They've kept it going ever since and are on track to end 2025 on Wednesday with a franchise-record 16th straight win. Will this Griffins team have its best season in AHL history? This will be the story to be told in 2026.
2025 Milwaukee Admirals vs Grand Rapids Griffins
2) Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins(–)
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's return from vacation got off to a good start, outscoring the visiting Hershey Bears last Saturday night with five first-period goals. The next day they lost in a shootout to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, but three quarters gave them a solid weekend.
3) Colorado Eagles (–)
The Eagles have nothing to say, having enjoyed a long break. Tuesday night means a game back in Calgary to begin a four-game road trip.
4) Providence Bruins (–)
The P-Bruins had an outstanding performance in defeating the Springfield Thunderbirds 7-1 on Saturday night. Luke Cavallin made his Bruins debut, stopping 25 of 26 shots. With Michael DiPietro out, bringing Cavallin on as the backup is another solid managerial move for Providence.
5) Laval Rockets (+1)
The Rockets made their stance clear in their battle with Syracuse for the North Division lead. Back-to-back wins at Bell Plaza put the Rockets in sole possession of first place heading into the new year. This will set up an excellent 2025 for the Rockets, who finish first overall in the 2024-25 regular season and advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. In 2026, they may face more challenges.
6) Charlotte Checkers (+1)
The Checkers got a late start when play resumed due to weather conditions. But they pulled off a late win in Hershey last Sunday before traveling to Lehigh Valley where they took an overtime decision. But if a team hopes to compete with the league's top teams, allowing the Phantoms to score two goals in the final minute of regulation to come back from 2-0 down is just not going to happen.
7) Chicago Wolves (+1)
If the Carolina Hurricanes need an extra goaltender, Pyotr Kochetkov's season-ending injury leaves the Wolves with less flexibility in net. They scored one point in last Saturday's home loss to the Iowa Wild. The Wolves travel to Rockford on Wednesday to begin 12 of 17 road games. This is nearly a quarter of the way into their season, which will determine how much of a contender this team becomes.
8) San Jose Barracuda (-3)
The Barracudas have largely been able to overcome their defensive deficiencies so far. However, they rank 18th in goals per game in the AHL, a league that traditionally gets tighter as it enters the second half of the season. Goalies Gabriel Carriere and Jakub Skarek both have the same .891 save percentage. This needs to be ticked upward.
9) Syracuse Crunch(–)
That trip to Laval slowed Syracuse's strong December performance. They got some help from Iowa State, with forward Michael Milne and guard Wyatt Neubauer each coming to Syracuse via trades. The next crunch time was a New Year's Day matinee in Toronto. The good news for them is that their January schedule includes four games against the Utica Comets, an opponent they have dominated this season.
10) Ontario Reign(+1)
For a team that lost two of its top goalies in Eric Portillo and Phoenix Copley, the Reign has been able to score everywhere. Isaiah Saville stepped in nicely when Copley was recalled to the Los Angeles Kings and recorded two shutouts in that span.
11) Coachella Valley Firebirds (-1)
Jani Nyman scored 28 goals for the Firebirds as a rookie last season and has been assigned to the Firebirds by the Seattle Kraken. This is a significant offensive improvement for a team already tied for second in the AHL in points scored.
12) Bakersfield Bald Eagle(–)
Quinn Hutson, the American Hockey League's (AHL) leading rookie scorer, returns from the Edmonton Oilers. Along with rookie Isaac Howard, the Condors have two of the best young players in the AHL this season.
13) Manitoba Moose(–)
Like their Western Conference brethren in Colorado, the Moose have taken a long break. They will eventually perform at the traditional New Year's Eve matinee. They have a chance against the visiting Abbotsford Canucks and they need to start putting up points in these games.
14) Rochester American (+1)
Team USA has three of four points in its home series against the Cleveland Monsters. A quiet week is coming up, with just a short trip to Toronto on their schedule this Saturday.
15) Henderson Silver Knights (+1)
Heading to Colorado before halftime, the Silver Knights had two decisions in overtime. They'll get another chance to play two games this weekend in Colorado.
16) Hershey Bears(-2)
Hershey's rapid decline came after nine home games failed to shake them up much. They lost two more games over the weekend.
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