2014–15 AHL season
| 2014–15 AHL season | |
|---|---|
| League | American Hockey League |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Duration | October 10, 2014 - April 19, 2015 |
| Regular season | |
| Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy | Manchester Monarchs |
| Season MVP | Brian O'Neill |
| Top scorer | Brian O'Neill |
| Playoffs | |
| Playoffs MVP | Jordan Weal |
| Calder Cup | |
| Champions | Manchester Monarchs |
| Runners-up | Utica Comets |
The 2014–15 AHL season was the 79th season of the American Hockey League. The regular season began in October 2014 and ended in April 2015. The 2015 Calder Cup playoffs followed the conclusion of the regular season.
Team and NHL affiliation changes
Relocations
- The Adirondack Phantoms relocated to Allentown, Pennsylvania, to play as the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.[1]
- The Abbotsford Heat relocated to Glens Falls, New York, after the City of Abbotsford terminated their lease agreement with the Calgary Flames.[2][3] The team became the Adirondack Flames and played out of the Glens Falls Civic Center.[4]
On July 9, 2014, the President of the AHL announced a realignment for the 2014–15 season. Eastern Conference changes include the Lehigh Valley Phantoms relocation and swapping to the East Division from the Northeast Division with the Syracuse Crunch. Western Conference changes include the Lake Erie Monsters moving from the North Division to the Midwest Division, and the Iowa Wild moving from the Midwest to the West Division due to the Adirondack Flames relocation in to the North Division [5]
Rule changes
- Overtime was extended to seven minutes. Following the first whistle beyond the first three minutes, both teams are reduced further from four to three men on the ice.[6]
- Shootouts switched to the NHL format of three skaters a side.[6]
- If a goaltender deliberately knocks the goal out of place during a breakaway, the goaltender shall be ejected from the game, and the backup goaltender will be required to face a penalty shot against any player of the opposing team's choosing. This rule was imposed midseason after Bridgeport Sound Tigers goaltender David Leggio knocked his goal out of place during a 2-on-0 breakaway, determining (correctly) that the penalty shot he would face under then-current rules would have been easier to defend than the 2-on-0 breakaway he was facing.[7]
Final standings
y– indicates team clinched division and a playoff spot
x– indicates team clinched a playoff spot
e– indicates team was eliminated from playoff contention
Eastern Conference
| Atlantic Division | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y–Manchester Monarchs (LAK) | 76 | 50 | 17 | 6 | 3 | 109 | 241 | 176 |
| x–Providence Bruins (BOS) | 76 | 41 | 26 | 7 | 2 | 91 | 209 | 185 |
| x–Worcester Sharks (SJS) | 76 | 41 | 29 | 4 | 2 | 88 | 224 | 198 |
| x–Portland Pirates (ARI) | 76 | 39 | 28 | 7 | 2 | 87 | 203 | 190 |
| e–St. John's IceCaps (WPG) | 76 | 32 | 33 | 9 | 2 | 75 | 183 | 235 |
| Northeast Division | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y–Hartford Wolf Pack (NYR) | 76 | 43 | 24 | 5 | 4 | 95 | 221 | 214 |
| x–Syracuse Crunch (TBL) | 76 | 41 | 25 | 10 | 0 | 92 | 218 | 219 |
| e–Springfield Falcons (CBJ) | 76 | 38 | 28 | 8 | 2 | 86 | 192 | 209 |
| e–Albany Devils (NJD) | 76 | 37 | 28 | 5 | 6 | 85 | 199 | 201 |
| e–Bridgeport Sound Tigers (NYI) | 76 | 28 | 40 | 7 | 1 | 64 | 213 | 246 |
| East Division | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y–Hershey Bears (WSH) | 76 | 46 | 22 | 5 | 3 | 100 | 218 | 181 |
| x–Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (PIT) | 76 | 45 | 24 | 3 | 4 | 97 | 212 | 163 |
| e–Binghamton Senators (OTT) | 76 | 34 | 34 | 7 | 1 | 76 | 242 | 258 |
| e–Lehigh Valley Phantoms (PHI) | 76 | 33 | 35 | 7 | 1 | 74 | 194 | 237 |
| e–Norfolk Admirals (ANA) | 76 | 27 | 39 | 6 | 4 | 64 | 168 | 219 |
Western Conference
| West Division | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y–San Antonio Rampage (FLA) | 76 | 45 | 23 | 7 | 1 | 98 | 248 | 222 |
| x–Texas Stars (DAL) | 76 | 40 | 22 | 13 | 1 | 94 | 242 | 216 |
| x–Oklahoma City Barons (EDM) | 76 | 41 | 27 | 5 | 3 | 90 | 224 | 212 |
| e–Charlotte Checkers (CAR) | 76 | 31 | 38 | 6 | 1 | 69 | 172 | 231 |
| e–Iowa Wild (MIN) | 76 | 23 | 49 | 2 | 2 | 50 | 172 | 245 |
| Midwest Division | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y–Grand Rapids Griffins (DET) | 76 | 46 | 22 | 6 | 2 | 100 | 249 | 185 |
| x–Rockford IceHogs (CHI) | 76 | 46 | 23 | 5 | 2 | 99 | 222 | 180 |
| x–Chicago Wolves (STL) | 76 | 40 | 29 | 6 | 1 | 87 | 210 | 198 |
| e–Lake Erie Monsters (COL) | 76 | 35 | 29 | 8 | 4 | 82 | 211 | 240 |
| e–Milwaukee Admirals (NSH) | 76 | 33 | 28 | 8 | 7 | 81 | 206 | 218 |
| North Division | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y–Utica Comets (VAN) | 76 | 47 | 20 | 7 | 2 | 103 | 219 | 182 |
| x–Toronto Marlies (TOR) | 76 | 40 | 27 | 9 | 0 | 89 | 207 | 203 |
| e–Hamilton Bulldogs (MTL) | 76 | 34 | 29 | 12 | 1 | 81 | 201 | 208 |
| e–Adirondack Flames (CGY) | 76 | 35 | 33 | 6 | 2 | 78 | 233 | 240 |
| e–Rochester Americans (BUF) | 76 | 29 | 41 | 5 | 1 | 64 | 209 | 251 |
Statistical leaders
Leading skaters
The following players are sorted by points, then goals. Updated as of April 18, 2015.[8]
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/– = P Plus–minus; PIM = Penalty minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brian O'Neill | Manchester Monarchs | 71 | 22 | 58 | 80 | 55 |
| Andy Miele | Grand Rapids Griffins | 71 | 26 | 44 | 70 | 42 |
| Jordan Weal | Manchester Monarchs | 73 | 20 | 49 | 69 | 56 |
| Jonathan Marchessault | Syracuse Crunch | 68 | 24 | 43 | 67 | 38 |
| Chris Bourque | Hartford Wolf Pack | 73 | 29 | 37 | 66 | 66 |
| Shane Prince | Binghamton Senators | 72 | 28 | 37 | 65 | 31 |
| Andrew Agozzino | Lake Erie Monsters | 74 | 30 | 34 | 64 | 55 |
| Dustin Jeffrey | Bridgeport Sound Tigers | 69 | 25 | 39 | 64 | 22 |
| Travis Morin | Texas Stars | 63 | 22 | 41 | 63 | 40 |
| Teemu Pulkkinen | Grand Rapids Griffins | 46 | 34 | 27 | 61 | 30 |
Leading goaltenders
The following goaltenders with a minimum 1500 minutes played lead the league in goals against average. Updated as of April 19, 2015.[9]
GP = Games played; TOI = Time on ice (in minutes); SA = Shots against; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average; SV% = Save percentage; W = Wins; L = Losses; OT = Overtime/shootout loss
| Player | Team | GP | TOI | SA | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | W | L | OT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matt Murray | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins | 40 | 2320:49 | 1029 | 61 | 12 | 1.58 | .941 | 25 | 10 | 3 |
| Jacob Markstrom | Utica Comets | 32 | 1879:36 | 895 | 59 | 5 | 1.88 | .934 | 22 | 7 | 2 |
| Anton Forsberg | Springfield Falcons | 30 | 1763:51 | 808 | 59 | 3 | 2.01 | .927 | 20 | 8 | 1 |
| Jeremy Smith | Providence Bruins | 39 | 2277:53 | 1156 | 78 | 3 | 2.05 | .933 | 22 | 11 | 5 |
| Aaron Dell | Worcester Sharks | 26 | 1544:08 | 728 | 53 | 4 | 2.06 | .927 | 15 | 8 | 2 |
Calder Cup playoffs
| Conference Quarterfinals | Conference Semifinals | Conference Finals | Calder Cup Finals | ||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Manchester | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 8 | Portland | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Manchester | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| 4 | W-B/Scranton | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Hershey | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 7 | Worcester | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Manchester | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| Eastern Conference | |||||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Hartford | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Hartford | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 6 | Providence | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Hershey | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Hartford | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| 4 | W-B/Scranton | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 5 | Syracuse | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| E1 | Manchester | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W1 | Utica | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Utica | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 8 | Chicago | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Utica | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| 6 | Oklahoma City | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Grand Rapids | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 7 | Toronto | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Utica | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| Western Conference | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Grand Rapids | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| 3 | San Antonio | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| 6 | Oklahoma City | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Grand Rapids | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Rockford | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Rockford | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 5 | Texas | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
AHL awards
All-Star Teams
First All-Star Team
- Matt Murray (G)
- Brad Hunt (D)
- Chris Wideman (D)
- Chris Bourque (LW)
- Andy Miele (C)
- Teemu Pulkkinen (RW)
Second All-Star Team
- Jacob Markstrom (G)
- Colin Miller (D)
- Bobby Sanguinetti (D)
- Shane Prince (LW)
- Jordan Weal (C)
- Brian O'Neill (RW)
All-Rookie Team
- Matt Murray (G)
- Ville Pokka (D)
- Ryan Pulock (D)
- Viktor Arvidsson (F)
- Connor Brown (F)
- Charles Hudon (F)
See also
References
- ^ "Allentown's hockey team will be Lehigh Valley Phantoms". mcall.com. Archived from the original on May 25, 2013. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
- ^ "After losing $7.3M hosting the Calgary Flames' AHL team, Abbotsford pays $5.5M to get them to leave". nationalpost.com. April 15, 2014. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
- ^ "Flames' AHL franchise heading to Glens Falls". theahl.com. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
- ^ "It's official: Glens Falls keeping AHL hockey League approves team move to Adirondack". saratogian.com. May 5, 2014. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
- ^ "AHL announces alignment for 2014-15 | The American Hockey League". Archived from the original on July 11, 2014. Retrieved July 10, 2014.
- ^ a b OT in AHL now 7 minutes. Rochester Democrat & Chronicle. Retrieved July 10, 2014.
- ^ Dhiren Mahiban (November 6, 2014). Report: AHL changes rule following Leggio incident. ProHockeyTalk.com. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
- ^ "Top Scorers - 2014-15 Regular Season - All Players". AHL.
- ^ "Top Goalies - 2014-15 Regular Season - Goals Against Average". AHL.
- ^ "AHL Hall of Fame". Archived from the original on June 5, 2016. Retrieved June 26, 2015.