Examining Calder Cup Hopes Of Last Year’s Final Four Led By Hershey Bears

Picking a Calder Cup champion in October has long been a fool’s errand.

This is the AHL, after all. Aside from injuries, slumps, and accelerated player progression that can happen in any league at any level of hockey, little ever stays the same in this league. Rosters are in flux from the end of NHL training camps through deep into the postseason. And with so much elite young talent, the progress that a prospect can make between October and June can be considerable.

So let’s compromise. Let’s look at last June’s four Calder Cup Playoff finalists and evaluate where they stand with the 2024-25 season now officially open.

HERSHEY BEARS (Washington Capitals)

The Bears never rest.

Barely more than a month after winning their second consecutive Calder Cup, the team went out and signed defenseman Brad Hunt. The 36-year-old possesses ample NHL experience and was an First All-Star Team selection last year with the Colorado Eagles. Forward Luke Philp, who came over from Rockford, had 29 goals in 2022-23 before an injury disrupted most of last season for him. Spencer Smallman also is a new forward option for head coach Todd Nelson.

No team has had a Calder Cup three-peat since 1962 when the Springfield Indians accomplished that. It was a much different AHL back then, though, one with loose affiliations, less turnover, and a much smaller emphasis on player development. That the Bears have been able to maintain such a degree of consistency in today’s AHL is remarkable.

Hershey never showed any sign of a Calder Cup hangover last year. Nelson has his name on the Calder Cup five times and always keeps his players hungry. With Nelson, a top-notch leadership group, and some new talent hungry to win a Calder Cup, there is every reason to think that the Bears can make a serious championship run once again.

COACHELLA VALLEY FIREBIRDS (Seattle Kraken)

So much has changed in just four months for the Firebirds, who have been back-to-back Calder Cup finalists in each of their first two seasons of operation.

Head coach Dan Bylsma completed his swing back to an NHL bench, becoming the head coach of the Seattle Kraken. Joining him in Seattle is Firebirds assistant coach Jessica Campbell. Top prospects Ryker Evans and Shane Wright have made the full-time jump to Seattle. Free agency also hit the Firebirds perhaps harder than any other club in the AHL. Goaltender Chris Driedger (Charlotte) left. The back end lost Connor Carrick (Bakersfield) and Jimmy Schuldt (San Jose). Among the forwards, elite playmaker Andrew Poturalski departed for San Jose. Top-end veterans Cameron Hughes and Kole Lind both made the jump to the Texas Stars. Devin Shore is with the Iowa Wild. Marian Studenic went to the SHL. 

But Seattle did act quickly to address those losses. The Kraken brought in Derek Laxdal to replace Bylsma. This is a head coach who fast-tracked Oshawa to the OHL final last year and had considerable success with Texas earlier. Captain Max McCormick is back on a new contract after a career-best 32 goals last season. The defense corps has been rebuilt with Nikolas Brouillard (Hartford) and Max Lajoie (Toronto) coming in to help. The forward ranks now have excellent two-way option Brandon Biro (Rochester) along with Ben Meyers (Anaheim) and Mitchell Stephens (Laval). First-round pick Eduard Sale will take on the AHL at age 19.

How all of these new pieces will come together is still very much unknown. But Seattle certainly has taken action to give the Firebirds a chance at another long postseason run.

CLEVELAND MONSTERS (Columbus Blue Jackets)

To start, defensemen David Jiricek and Jake Christiansen are with the Blue Jackets now. With a solid start, first-rounder Denton Mateychuk might not too far behind joining them on the Columbus blue line, either. Captain Brendan Gaunce (Iowa) is gone as is Carson Meyer (San Diego).

But goaltender Jet Greaves is back after an excellent playoff run. Trey Fix-Wolansky is a dependable producer offensively. Watching Mateychuk’s development continue to unfold will be a fun story for fans in both Columbus and Cleveland. Last season head coach Trent Vogelhuber led one of the tightest, most heart-and-soul teams in the league, a group that took the Bears to a Game 7 overtime in the Eastern Conference Finals before finally falling. There have been changes, but Vogelhuber has shown an impressive touch that has made him a solid contender for eventual NHL work.

MILWAUKEE ADMIRALS (Nashville Predators)

Is Milwaukee ever not in the mix?

This is a club that has missed the playoffs three times since entering the AHL in 2001. The Nashville-Milwaukee affiliation has produced star after star for the NHL club since the two sides came together for the Predators’ 1998-99 expansion season. Their first three seasons together had the Admirals playing out of the former IHL, and Milwaukee didn’t miss the postseason cut then, either.

If the Firebirds have been the hard-luck team of the Calder Cup Finals these past two seasons, the Admirals have taken that burden in the Western Conference Finals. In both seasons they have been a bona fide Calder Cup contender only to see those runs end both times against the Firebirds.

Most notably for the Admirals is the departure of top goaltending prospect Yaroslav Askarov, whose wish to go elsewhere resulted in a trade to San Jose. They’ll need Magnus Chrona, part of the return for Askarov, to establish himself in net this season with Troy Grosenick (Iowa) having also left. Defensively, Nick Blankenburg is a new face as is Lucas Johansen, and Ryan Ufko impressed as a late-season addition last spring. Kieffer Bellows signed with the organization and will supply significant offensive pop. Vinnie Hinostroza and Jake Lucchini provide further help. Zach L’Heureux displayed an ability to take over games, particularly in the Calder Cup Playoffs, and could become a dominant force this season. Karl Taylor ranks among the top head coaches in the AHL as well, and the Admirals are the type of team that should show steady improvement as the season moves along.

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