| 2008–09 AHL season | |
|---|---|
| League | American Hockey League |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Duration | October 8, 2008 - April 12, 2009 |
| Regular season | |
| Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy | Manitoba Moose |
| Season MVP | Alexandre Giroux |
| Top scorer | Alexandre Giroux |
| Calder Cup playoffs | |
| Calder Cup playoffs MVP | Michal Neuvirth |
| Finals champions | Hershey Bears |
| Runners-up | Manitoba Moose |
The 2008–09 AHL season was the 73rd season of the American Hockey League. 29 teams each played 80 games in the regular season, which ran from October 8 until April 12.[1]
Team and NHL affiliation changes
The Iowa Stars are renamed and are now called the Iowa Chops, and the Anaheim Ducks have replaced the Dallas Stars as the team's NHL affiliate.[2]
The Dallas Stars have no AHL affiliate this year, with the Texas Stars (based in Austin) to become their affiliate for the 2009–10 season.
On April 28, 2009, it was announced that two teams would be relocated for the 2009–10 season: the Quad City Flames would move to Abbotsford, BC, and the Philadelphia Phantoms would relocate to Glens Falls, NY.[3]
Affiliation changes
| AHL team | New affiliate | Old affiliate |
|---|---|---|
| Iowa Chops | Anaheim Ducks | Dallas Stars |
| Portland Pirates | Buffalo Sabres | Anaheim Ducks |
| Rochester Americans | Florida Panthers | Buffalo Sabres/Florida Panthers |
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–Hartford Wolf Pack (NYR) | 80 | 46 | 27 | 3 | 4 | 99 | 243 | 216 |
| x–Providence Bruins (BOS) | 80 | 43 | 29 | 2 | 6 | 94 | 238 | 232 |
| x–Portland Pirates (BUF) | 80 | 39 | 31 | 3 | 7 | 88 | 249 | 239 |
| x–Worcester Sharks (SJS) | 80 | 42 | 35 | 1 | 2 | 87 | 223 | 223 |
| e–Manchester Monarchs (LAK) | 80 | 37 | 35 | 0 | 8 | 82 | 211 | 218 |
| e–Lowell Devils (NJD) | 80 | 35 | 36 | 2 | 7 | 79 | 213 | 243 |
| e–Springfield Falcons (EDM) | 80 | 24 | 44 | 8 | 4 | 60 | 188 | 258 |
| East Division | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y–Hershey Bears (WSH) | 80 | 49 | 23 | 2 | 6 | 106 | 296 | 240 |
| x–Bridgeport Sound Tigers (NYI) | 80 | 49 | 23 | 3 | 5 | 106 | 241 | 212 |
| x–Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (PIT) | 80 | 49 | 25 | 3 | 3 | 104 | 274 | 212 |
| x–Philadelphia Phantoms (PHI) | 80 | 43 | 30 | 2 | 5 | 93 | 234 | 232 |
| e–Binghamton Senators (OTT) | 80 | 41 | 30 | 5 | 4 | 91 | 232 | 238 |
| e–Norfolk Admirals (TBL) | 80 | 33 | 38 | 4 | 5 | 75 | 236 | 269 |
| e–Albany River Rats (CAR) | 80 | 33 | 40 | 3 | 4 | 73 | 219 | 258 |
Western Conference
| North Division | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y–Manitoba Moose (VAN) | 80 | 50 | 23 | 1 | 6 | 107 | 239 | 188 |
| x–Hamilton Bulldogs (MTL) | 80 | 49 | 27 | 4 | 0 | 102 | 263 | 201 |
| x–Grand Rapids Griffins (DET) | 80 | 43 | 25 | 6 | 6 | 98 | 255 | 226 |
| x–Toronto Marlies (TOR) | 80 | 39 | 29 | 5 | 7 | 90 | 240 | 229 |
| e–Syracuse Crunch (CBJ) | 80 | 40 | 32 | 5 | 3 | 88 | 214 | 226 |
| e–Lake Erie Monsters (COL) | 80 | 34 | 38 | 3 | 5 | 76 | 199 | 218 |
| e–Rochester Americans (FLA) | 80 | 29 | 43 | 0 | 8 | 66 | 184 | 259 |
| West Division | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y–Milwaukee Admirals (NSH) | 80 | 49 | 22 | 3 | 6 | 107 | 229 | 195 |
| x–Peoria Rivermen (STL) | 80 | 43 | 31 | 2 | 4 | 92 | 215 | 211 |
| x–Houston Aeros (MIN) | 80 | 38 | 31 | 2 | 9 | 87 | 218 | 230 |
| x–Rockford IceHogs (CHI) | 80 | 40 | 34 | 0 | 6 | 86 | 229 | 220 |
| e–Quad City Flames (CGY) | 80 | 36 | 31 | 6 | 7 | 85 | 212 | 216 |
| e–Chicago Wolves (ATL) | 80 | 38 | 37 | 3 | 2 | 81 | 226 | 222 |
| e–Iowa Chops (ANA) | 80 | 33 | 33 | 4 | 10 | 80 | 209 | 260 |
| e–San Antonio Rampage (PHX) | 80 | 36 | 38 | 2 | 4 | 78 | 205 | 243 |
Scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alexandre Giroux | Hershey Bears | 69 | 60 | 37 | 97 | 84 |
| Keith Aucoin | Hershey Bears | 70 | 25 | 71 | 96 | 73 |
| Jason Krog | Manitoba Moose | 74 | 30 | 56 | 86 | 30 |
| Janne Pesonen | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins | 70 | 32 | 50 | 82 | 33 |
| Artem Anisimov | Hartford Wolfpack | 80 | 37 | 44 | 81 | 50 |
| Darren Haydar | Grand Rapids Griffins | 79 | 31 | 49 | 80 | 26 |
| Tim Stapleton | Toronto Marlies | 70 | 28 | 51 | 79 | 26 |
| Corey Locke | Houston Aeros | 77 | 25 | 54 | 79 | 60 |
| Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau | Hartford Wolfpack | 74 | 29 | 49 | 78 | 142 |
| Kyle Greentree | Quad City Flames | 79 | 39 | 37 | 76 | 63 |
Calder Cup playoffs
In each division, the fourth-place team will play the first-place team in the division semifinals, while the second-place team plays the third-place team.
Bracket
| Division Semifinals | Division Finals | Conference Finals | Calder Cup Finals | ||||||||||||||||
| A1 | Hartford | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| A4 | Worcester | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| A4 | Worcester | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| Atlantic Division | |||||||||||||||||||
| A2 | Providence | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| A2 | Providence | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| A3 | Portland | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| A2 | Providence | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| Eastern Conference | |||||||||||||||||||
| E1 | Hershey | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| E1 | Hershey | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| E4 | Philadelphia | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| E1 | Hershey | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| East Division | |||||||||||||||||||
| E3 | WBS | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Bridgeport | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| E3 | WBS | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Manitoba | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| E1 | Hershey | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Manitoba | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| N4 | Toronto | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Manitoba | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| North Division | |||||||||||||||||||
| N3 | Grand Rapids | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| N2 | Hamilton | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| N3 | Grand Rapids | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Manitoba | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| Western Conference | |||||||||||||||||||
| W3 | Houston | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| W1 | Milwaukee | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W4 | Rockford | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| W1 | Milwaukee | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| West Division | |||||||||||||||||||
| W3 | Houston | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W2 | Peoria | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| W3 | Houston | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
- A is short for Atlantic Division
- E is short for East Division
- N is short for North Division
- W is short for West Division
All Star Classic
The 22nd AHL All-Star Classic was played in Worcester, Massachusetts, on January 26, 2009, with the PlanetUSA All-Stars defeating the Canadian All-Stars 14–11 after scoring nine goals in the third period to come back from an 8–5 deficit. Corey Locke scored four goals for the Canadian All-Stars, while Jeff Taffe had a hat-trick for the PlanetUSA All-Stars.[4]
The host club was the Worcester Sharks. The 2009 event in Worcester marked the fourth time since 1995 that the AHL All-Star Classic took place in New England. The AHL All-Star Game was last held in Massachusetts in 1959 at the Eastern States Coliseum in West Springfield.[5]
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* indicates player was called up to his NHL team. ** indicates player was named to All-Star team, but missed game due to injury. † indicates player was named as a replacement due to callups or injury.
Trophy and award winners
Team awards
| Calder Cup Playoff champions: | Hershey Bears |
| Richard F. Canning Trophy Eastern Conference playoff champions: | Hershey Bears |
| Robert W. Clarke Trophy Western Conference playoff champions: | Manitoba Moose |
| Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy Regular season champions, League: | Manitoba Moose |
| Frank Mathers Trophy Regular season champions, Eastern Conference: | Hershey Bears |
| Norman R. "Bud" Poile Trophy Regular season champions, Western Conference: | Manitoba Moose |
| Emile Francis Trophy Regular season champions, Atlantic Division: | Hartford Wolf Pack |
| F. G. "Teddy" Oke Trophy Regular season champions, East Division: | Hershey Bears |
| Sam Pollock Trophy Regular season champions, North Division: | Manitoba Moose |
| John D. Chick Trophy Regular season champions, West Division: | Milwaukee Admirals |
See also
References
- ↑ "The making of the AHL schedule". theahl.com. July 17, 2008. Archived from the original on August 4, 2008. Retrieved July 22, 2008.
- ↑ "Iowa Chops to hit the ice this fall". theahl.com. July 9, 2008. Archived from the original on July 19, 2008. Retrieved July 22, 2008.
- ↑ "Austin, Abbotsford, Glens Falls joining AHL in 2009–10". theahl.com. April 28, 2009. Archived from the original on May 2, 2009. Retrieved April 28, 2009.
- ↑ "PlanetUSA prevails on record-setting night". theahl.com. Retrieved January 29, 2009.
- ↑ "AHL awards 2009 AHL All-Star Classic to Worcester". theahl.com. December 5, 2007. Archived from the original on December 8, 2007. Retrieved July 22, 2008.
- AHL official site
- AHL Hall of Fame
- HockeyDB
- Historic standings and statistics - at Internet Hockey Database
