Patrick Williams will also deliver a book FloHockey AHL Power Rankings during the regular season.
The record-setting Grand Rapids Griffins, however, are only seven points off the AHL lead with the Colorado Eagles, Laval Rocket, Providence Bruins, and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins continuing to make their best starts. With all 32 teams going on their holiday break this week, let’s break down the top half of the AHL.
1) Grand Rapids Griffins (–)
The fastest team to reach 50 points in a season in AHL history, the big question now is how far the Griffins can take this run. Last Wednesday in Iowa, they built a comeback with back-to-back goals. They then blew out Iowa in a rematch two nights later before dismantling the Cleveland Monsters to close out their weekend back on home ice. Carter Gylander (6-0-1 | 1.57 | .943) continues to be Sebastian Cossa’s go-to partner and recorded his first AHL shutout in last Sunday’s game. In 27 games, they have lost only twice, and one of them was in a shootout. They are also on a 14 game winning streak. This is a reign that may be unmatched in 90 AHL seasons.
2) Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (–)
Four more games came off the schedule last week, including a 3-in-3 weekend featuring a home-and-home series with the Utica Comets. The Penguins dropped a shot at home after the home-and-home set, but still come into the weekend with five points out of six. The goal tandem of Joel Blomqvist and Sergey Murashov can take this team far.
3) Colorado Eagles (+1)
Two home wins in overtime against the Henderson Silver Knights sent the Eagles into their holiday break. Trent Miner took both turns at the net and stopped a combined 55 of 58 shots in the two wins. That nice nine-day break between games is a reward for the Eagles, who don’t resume play until Dec. 30 in Calgary.
4) Providence Bruins (+1)
Providence finally got some time off last week, playing just one game and defeating the Syracuse Crunch at home. When the P-Bruins next play at home on January 4, they will have played 11 of 13 games on the road. They have three more contests to go as they continue to wind down their regular season road schedule: two trips to Springfield, and a quick jaunt to Hartford. All three of those road games are against opponents near the bottom of the league, so this P-Bruins team can come out of this grind in good shape and have a tough schedule at home. Elite goalie Michael DiPietro missed last Saturday’s game, but the P-Bruins have a standout teammate in Simon Zajicek.
5) San Jose Barracuda (+1)
Two more wins for the Barracuda, which has been one of the main stories in the first third of the AHL season. Filled with prospects, these Barracudas are growing – and winning – together at the AHL level. Combined with the parent San Jose Sharks having their own little success, the organization’s rebuilding plan shows some significant progress. They swept a two-game trip to Ontario, and will come off their break with two more meetings with the Reign.
6) Laval Rocket (-2)
Laval got nothing from Samuel Montembeault’s routine. They are coming off their two-game road trip to Cleveland with two losses. There have been some clunkers lately for the Rockets, who are 1-4-0-1 in their last six games. Other losses came against the Belleville Senators, Bridgeport Islanders, and Toronto Marlies, three teams that all had their own struggles. It is increasingly looking like rookie goaltender Jacob Fowler may be staying with the Montreal Canadiens for a while. Even the best teams have to go through the loss column, and the Rockets are going through theirs now.
2025 Syracuse Crunch vs Laval Rocket
7) Charlotte Checkers (-2)
The short pitstop home scored just two of the four points for the Checkers, who had to face Springfield. These are the types of series they need to sweep, especially if they have five, eight, and six-game road trips as the season progresses. That five-gamer begins after the holiday break, and the Checkers won’t return to the ice until Jan. 9.
8) Chicago Wolves (+3)
The team has the schedule in front of them, and the Wolves have done just that. In a month filled with four meetings with the struggling Milwaukee Admirals and a home date with Iowa heading into the break, the Wolves have been racking up points. They have six points (4-0-0-2) with six points before they see the Wild again on the road on Saturday. Interim coach Spiros Anastas has had a firm hand since the club’s coaching change on 12 December.
9) Syracuse Crunch (+3)
Before going to Providence, the Crunch had scored 17 goals in their last three games. Ryan Fanti, who shut out the Bridgeport Islanders last Wednesday to start a three-game swing in New England, has been a solid complement to veteran Brandon Halverson and caught 46 of 48 shots last week in the first period. The battle for the lead in the North Division begins on Saturday when the Crunch visit Laval for back-to-back games.
10) Coachella Valley Firebirds (-2)
The penalty kill is 24th, and the Firebirds rank 26th in the AHL in goals-against per game. Those two factors can make for a tough night in a grinding cycle, as demanding as the AHL. Their five-game winning streak came to an end in a home-and-home series last weekend against the Bakersfield Condors. They have a busy calendar after their break, too.
11) Dominion of Ontario (-2)
Ontario plays a tight, close-quarters style, but this is a team that knows how to capitalize on mistakes. They have some finishers as they are sixth in scoring despite ranking 29th in shots per game. At 1-3-0-1 against San Jose this season, they will need to start finding the Barracuda, especially with these two postseason games coming up.
12) Bakersfield Condors (NR)
Isaac Howard had a 3-3-6 weekend that featured a hat trick last Saturday as the Condors swept the Coachella Valley.
They will be without goaltender Connor Ingram for some time as well when he was sent back to the Edmonton Oilers, so the net belongs to Matt Tomkins.
13) Manitoba Moose (-3)
A 6-0 home loss to Iowa on Dec. 14 was one thing. The Moose then followed up that poor performance with a 7-3 loss to the Rockford IceHogs last Saturday. They bounced back with a 4-1 win against the IceHogs the following afternoon, but the Moose proved too prone to these types of letdowns. Aside from a three-game road trip earlier this month, the team has been at home since mid-November.
14) Hershey Bears (–)
Hershey’s franchise-record nine-game home run finished just 4-5-0-0.
15) Rochester Americans (–)
Rochester earned a split of two home games against teams below the playoff line. It will, but this has been a team that has shown significant decline at times this season. Amerks general manager Jason Karmanos is out as part of a major management shakeup with the Buffalo Sabers of late.
16) Henderson Silver Knights (NR)
Dropping seven of nine games in November took a lot of the shine off what had been a great start to the season for the Silver Knights. The team now has Carl Lindbom back in net, however, and their results are starting to show just how much he can bring to the team. Their next nine games will all be against the Coachella Valley, Colorado, or Ontario.
Outside of the Top 16
The Lehigh Valley Phantoms
Milwaukee Admirals
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