Mike McKenna, currently with the Ottawa Senators, is relatively new in NHL circles at 35 years old, but he has been a fixture in the AHL. Known for his steady play, veteran leadership, and community involvement, McKenna put together a strong playoff run for Texas (Dallas Stars) and led it to Game 7 of the Calder Cup Final. That matched his effort in 2017 when he helped Syracuse (Tampa Bay Lightning) to Game 6 of the final. He started this season in Belleville before a promotion to Ottawa, re-affirming hope for every AHL player that the NHL call can come at any moment.
9. Tom Kostopoulos retires
Kostopoulos parlayed being a seventh-round pick (No. 204) by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 1999 NHL Draft into 630 NHL games and 722 AHL games spanning 19 professional seasons. He is the fourth player in hockey history to play at least 600 games each in the NHL and the AHL. He captained Wilkes-Barre/Scranton for five seasons (2013-18) as Pittsburgh built a top farm system, one which sent defenseman Brian Dumoulin, goalie Matt Murray, and forwards Jake Guentzel, Bryan Rust and Conor Sheary to regular roles with the Penguins.
Consistency is tough in the AHL, but Wilkes-Barre/Scranton reached the postseason for the 16th consecutive time in 2017-18, the longest running streak in the league, before losing to Charlotte (Carolina Hurricanes) in the first round.
7. Charlotte and Lehigh Valley play into the night
By the time Game 4 of the second-round playoff series between Charlotte and Lehigh Valley (Philadelphia Flyers) was finished May 10 (it started May 9), a record for the longest game in AHL history had been established. Lehigh Valley goalie Alex Lyon had 94 saves . Lyon stopped the final 79 shots he faced before Lehigh Valley won the game 6:48 into the fifth overtime. The game ended at 1:09 a.m. ET, six hours and six minutes after it started.
6. Niku makes an impression
Manitoba defenseman Sami Niku became the second rookie in AHL history to win the Eddie Shore Award as the league's top defenseman after he had 54 points (16 goals, 38 assists) in 76 regular-season games last season. A seventh-round pick (No. 198) by the Winnipeg Jets in the 2015 NHL Draft, he also was on the AHL First All-Star Team as well as the AHL All-Rookie Team.
5. Colorado makes it 31
The AHL reached a record 31 teams when the Colorado Avalanche established their new affiliate, the Colorado Eagles, an hour north of Denver in Loveland, Colorado, during the offseason. The shuffle allowed the St. Louis Blues to move into a full affiliation in San Antonio, the former AHL home for the Avalanche.
4. Dave Andrews starts his 25th season as league president
Young NHL prospects need a stable environment to develop and Andrews has established one with the AHL. He signed a contract extension in May that will take him through the 2019-20 season, his 26th. Andrews has transformed the AHL from a small bus league into a coast-to-coast operation, taking the AHL from 16 teams to 31 since 1994.
3. From the first round to the AHL
The AHL has been known for its young talent, but it has been taken to new extremes. The 2018 NHL Draft class has four teenagers playing in the league: Grand Rapids forward Filip Zadina (No. 6, Detroit Red Wings), Colorado forward Martin Kaut (No. 16, Avalanche), San Diego forward Isac Lundestrom (No. 23, Anaheim Ducks), and Toronto defenseman Rasmus Sandin (No. 29, Toronto Maple Leafs).
2. Capitals investment pays off
If ever there was a validation for investing in AHL player development, the Capitals' run to the Stanley Cup in June might be it. Having a reliable AHL talent pipeline to surround the top end of a roster is an absolute must to become a contender and Washington has had that in Hershey. Their affiliation blended development inside of a winning AHL environment for years and sent multiple waves of talent to Washington. The Capitals had 14 Hershey alums on their championship roster, including goalie Braden Holtby and defensemen John Carlson.
1. Toronto wins Calder Cup
Texas and Toronto went seven games in a back-and-forth Calder Cup final. After a 112-point regular season (54-18-4-0), Toronto bulled through the first three rounds of the postseason before running into Texas. The teams alternated wins in each of the first six games of the series before Toronto won 6-1 at home June 14. Toronto forward Andreas Johnsson had 24 points (10 goals, 14 assists) in 16 playoff games to win the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as the most valuable player in the playoffs. Kyle Dubas, who oversaw the AHL affiliate as assistant general manager of the Maple Leafs, was promoted to general manager May 11, and seven players from the team graduated to the Maple Leafs for the 2018-19 season.
