With the American Hockey League into the Calder Cup Playoffs during its 90th anniversary season, NHL.com continues its bi-weekly notebook breaking down all the happenings around the league. The postseason is down to eight teams following several early-round upsets. Each of the four divisions will be represented by two teams and this round will use a best-of-5 format. After this round, the Eastern and Western Conference Finals, as well as the Calder Cup Finals, will shift to a best-of-7 format. Here are five key NHL prospects still competing for the Calder Cup.
Easton Cowan, Toronto (Toronto Maple Leafs)
The forward, who turns 21 on May 20, played most of his first full pro season with the Maple Leafs and had 29 points (11 goals, 18 assists) in 66 games.
Cowan was chosen in the first round (No. 28) of the 2024 NHL Draft. With the Maple Leafs failing to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs, they opted to get one of their top prospects additional postseason experience at the AHL level. He has six points (two goals, four assists) in eight playoff games.
Toronto has eliminated Rochester (Buffalo Sabres) and North Division regular-season champion Laval (Montreal Canadiens). Next is a series against Cleveland (Columbus Blue Jackets).
Oscar Fisker Molgaard, Coachella Valley (Seattle Kraken)
The forward got a late-season look in the NHL before returning to the AHL and has carried that level of play through the Calder Cup Playoffs.
Seattle selected Fisker Molgaard in the second round (No. 52) of the 2023 NHL Draft. In his first season in North America, the 21-year-old had 34 points (10 goals, 24 assists) in 49 games for Coachella Valley and two assists in 13 games with the Kraken.
Fisker Molgaard leads the playoffs with 10 points (six goals, four assists) in eight games. Coachella Valley has eliminated Bakersfield (Edmonton Oilers) and the Pacific Division regular-season champion Ontario (Los Angeles Kings) and opened the third round against Colorado (Colorado Avalanche) on Wednesday.
Sergei Murashov, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (Pittsburgh Penguins)
The 22-year-old is making his case to become the Penguins' future No. 1 goalie. He's 4-1 with a 1.59 goals-against average and .947 save percentage in the playoffs.
Pittsburgh selected Murashov in the fourth round (No. 118) of the 2022 NHL Draft. He was 24-9-4 with a 2.20 GAA and .919 save percentage in his first full AHL season. He also played five NHL games, going 1-1-2 with a 2.56 GAA and .897 save percentage.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton eliminated Hershey (Washington Capitals) and is opened the Atlantic Division finals with a 2-0 win against Springfield (St. Louis Blues) on May 12. Murashov made 24 saves for his first playoff shutout after he had four in the regular season.
Michal Postava, Grand Rapids (Detroit Red Wings)
The Western Conference regular-season champion had a goaltending choice entering the playoffs between Postava, who went undrafted, and top prospect Sebastian Cossa.
Postava went 3-1 with a 1.25 GAA and .945 save percentage to help Grand Rapids eliminate Manitoba (Winnipeg Jets) in four games and next faces Chicago (Carolina Hurricanes) in the Central Division Finals. He won a championship with HC Kometa Brno in the Czech Extraliga last season and signed a two-year, entry-level contract with the Red Wings on June 10, 2025.
He played 25 games for Grand Rapids and finished 17-6-0 with a 1.71 GAA and .937 GAA.
William Villeneuve, Toronto
The 24-year-old defenseman has quietly emerged as a candidate to skate for the Maple Leafs in the future.
His 30 points (three goals, 27 assists) led all Marlies defensemen in the regular season, his fourth in the AHL, and he leads his position with eight points (one goal, seven assists) in eight playoff games.
Villeneuve made his NHL debut against the Florida Panthers on April 11 and played three games before returning to the AHL. He was selected in the fourth round (No. 122) of the 2020 NHL Draft.
