A regular season that began back on October 10 reaches the finish line today with a six-game schedule and plenty still at stake.
One Calder Cup Playoff berth remains up for grabs as teams prepare to play Game 72. Here’s a look at where things stand on the last day of the AHL’s 90th regular season:
NORTH DIVISION
A furious finish by the Utica Comets sends the AHL’s final playoff race down to the wire. Eighteen points out of a playoff spot at the All-Star break, and eight points back as recently as last Friday, the Comets caught the fifth-place Rochester Americans with a 4-2 win in Providence last night to close out their schedule with an 8-1-1-1 record in their last 11 games.
Rochester, meanwhile, saw its losing streak hit four games with an 8-0 loss at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The Amerks have one more chance to knock out Utica; they need a single point in Hershey this evening to qualify for the postseason. A regulation loss would send the Comets to the playoffs.
Third place – and a bye into the division semifinals – will be decided today as well, as the Cleveland Monsters hold a one-point lead over the Toronto Marlies with both teams in action this afternoon. Cleveland clinches third with a win vs. Grand Rapids, with a Toronto regulation loss vs. Laval, or if both the Monsters and Marlies earn a single point. The Marlies hold the tiebreaker if the teams finish even in points.
The Laval Rocket (1) have won the North Division for the second year in a row, and the Syracuse Crunch (2) have secured second place.
ATLANTIC DIVISION
The Providence Bruins (1) and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (2) have earned byes into the division semifinals in the Atlantic Division, while the Charlotte Checkers (3) and Bridgeport Islanders (4) will be the higher seeds in the first round.
The Springfield Thunderbirds hold a one-point lead over the Hershey Bears for fifth place heading into Day 192. The Thunderbirds’ fate is in Hershey’s hands; a Bears win over Rochester today gives Hershey the fifth spot, while a loss gives Springfield fifth.
CENTRAL DIVISION
The Central Division picture is set after the Texas Stars’ 5-1 win over Rockford last night gave them third place and set up a division semifinal matchup with the Chicago Wolves (2). The Manitoba Moose (4) will host the Milwaukee Admirals (5) in a best-of-three first round series beginning Wednesday in Winnipeg.
The division champion Grand Rapids Griffins (1) wait in the wings for their first opponent; the Griffins wrap up their regular season in Cleveland today.
PACIFIC DIVISION
The Ontario Reign (1) have won their first division title since 2015-16, giving them the only available bye into the Pacific semifinals.
The three first-round series will see the Colorado Eagles (2) take on the San Diego Gulls (7), the Henderson Silver Knights (3) battle the San Jose Barracuda (6), and the Coachella Valley Firebirds (4) will have home-ice advantage against the Bakersfield Condors (5) following their 6-4 win in San Diego last night.
Full playoff schedules will be announced at the conclusion of play Sunday. The first round of the 2026 Calder Cup Playoffs will be a best-of-three series, followed by best-of-five division semifinals and division finals, the best-of-seven conference finals and the best-of-seven Calder Cup Finals. Stay tuned to theahl.com and follow us on Instagram (@TheAHL), Facebook (fb.com/TheAHL), Bluesky (@theahl.com), Threads (@TheAHL) and X (@TheAHL), for the latest updates all weekend long.
All of the action of the regular-season finales can be seen live on AHLTV on FloHockey.
