# 1980 Calder Cup playoffs

The 1980 Calder Cup playoffs of the American Hockey League began on April 8, 1980. The playoff format was expanded from six to eight teams. The eight teams that qualified played best-of-seven series for Division Semifinals and Division Finals. The division champions played a best-of-seven series for the Calder Cup. The Calder Cup Final ended on May 17, 1980, with the Hershey Bears defeating the New Brunswick Hawks four games to two to win the Calder Cup for the sixth time in team history.

## Playoff seeds

After the 1979–80 AHL regular season, the top four teams from each division qualified for the playoffs. The New Haven Nighthawks finished the regular season with the best overall record.

### Northern Division

* New Brunswick Hawks - 96 points
* Nova Scotia Voyageurs - 93 points
* Maine Mariners - 93 points
* Adirondack Red Wings - 75 points

### Southern Division

* New Haven Nighthawks - 101 points
* Hershey Bears - 76 points
* Syracuse Firebirds - 69 points
* Rochester Americans - 66 points

## Bracket

| Division Semifinals | Division Semifinals | Division Semifinals | Division Finals | Division Finals | Division Finals | Calder Cup Final | Calder Cup Final | Calder Cup Final |
| 1 | New Brunswick | 4 | | | | | | |
| 4 | Adirondack | 1 | | | | | | |
| 4 | Adirondack | 1 | 1 | New Brunswick | 4 | | | |
| Northern Division | Northern Division | Northern Division | 1 | New Brunswick | 4 | | | |
| Northern Division | Northern Division | Northern Division | 3 | Maine | 2 | | | |
| 2 | Nova Scotia | 2 | 3 | Maine | 2 | | | |
| 3 | Maine | 4 | | | | | | |
| 3 | Maine | 4 | | | | N1 | New Brunswick | 2 |
| | | | | | | S2 | Hershey | 4 |
| 1 | New Haven | 4 | | | | | | | S2 | Hershey | 4 |
| 4 | Rochester | 0 | | | | | | |
| 4 | Rochester | 0 | 1 | New Haven | 2 | | | |
| Southern Division | Southern Division | Southern Division | 1 | New Haven | 2 | | | |
| Southern Division | Southern Division | Southern Division | 2 | Hershey | 4 | | | |
| 2 | Hershey | 4 | 2 | Hershey | 4 | | | |
| 3 | Syracuse | 0 | | | | | | |
In each round, the team that earned more points during the regular season receives home ice advantage, meaning they receive the "extra" game on home-ice if the series reaches the maximum number of games. There is no set series format due to arena scheduling conflicts and travel considerations.

## Division Semifinals

    Note 1: Home team is listed first.
    Note 2: The number of overtime periods played (where applicable) is not indicated

### Northern Division
#### (1) New Brunswick Hawks vs. (4) Adirondack Red Wings

* New Brunswick won series 4 - 1

#### (2) Nova Scotia Voyageurs vs. (3) Maine Mariners

* Maine won series 4 - 2

### Southern Division
#### (1) New Haven Nighthawks vs. (4) Rochester Americans

* New Haven won series 4 - 0

#### (2) Hershey Bears vs. (3) Syracuse Firebirds

* Hershey won series 4 - 0

## Division Finals
### Northern Division
#### (1) New Brunswick Hawks vs. (2) Maine Mariners

* New Brunswick won series 4 - 2

### Southern Division
#### (1) New Haven Nighthawks vs. (2) Hershey Bears

* Hershey won series 4 - 2

## Calder Cup Final
### (N1) New Brunswick Hawks vs. (S2) Hershey Bears

* Hershey won series 4 - 2