# 2018–19 AHL season

The 2018–19 AHL season was the 83rd season of the American Hockey League. The regular season began October 5, 2018, and ended April 15, 2019. The 2019 Calder Cup playoffs followed the conclusion of the regular season. This was the last year the Calder Cup was awarded until 2022.

## League changes

The league expanded by adding the Colorado Eagles to the Pacific Division and moved the two Texas-based teams to the Central Division from the Pacific. The Cleveland Monsters were moved from the Central to the North Division.
Similar to the California and Arizona teams in the Pacific Division, Colorado plays 68 games in the regular season. This gave the Pacific Division a balanced schedule for the first time since its creation in 2015 and removed the necessity for playoff qualification based on points percentage. Continuing from previous seasons, the teams in the Atlantic, North, and Central Divisions all play 76 games. The Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy for the regular season champion is still awarded based on points percentage.

### Team and NHL affiliation changes

After the National Hockey League (NHL) added the Vegas Golden Knights for the 2017–18 season, the NHL had 31 teams while the AHL still had 30. After exploring other AHL expansion options, the NHL Vegas expansion team eventually affiliated with the Chicago Wolves on a multi-year agreement. The affiliation with the Wolves left their former affiliate, the St. Louis Blues, without an affiliate and the Blues would send players to the Wolves and the San Antonio Rampage, the affiliate of the Colorado Avalanche.
After the 2017 Board of Governors meeting, the league confirmed that it had made a commitment to an expansion applicant for a 31st team for the 2018–19 season later revealed to be the Colorado Eagles. The Eagles organization had been a member of the ECHL prior to the promotion and was the affiliate of the Avalanche. The Eagles join other recently added ECHL markets in the AHL such as Bakersfield, Charlotte, Ontario, and Stockton. The Blues then became the primary affiliate of the Rampage.

#### Affiliation changes

| AHL team | New affiliate | Old affiliate |
| Colorado Eagles | Colorado Avalanche | Expansion team |
| San Antonio Rampage | St. Louis Blues | Colorado Avalanche |
* ↑ Although the Blues sent players to the Rampage the previous season, they were not the Rampage's primary NHL affiliate and only had a working agreement.

## 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

As of April 14, 2019
| Atlantic Division | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | Pts% | GF | GA |
| y–Charlotte Checkers (CAR) | 76 | 51 | 17 | 7 | 1 | 110 | .724 | 255 | 189 |
| x–Bridgeport Sound Tigers (NYI) | 76 | 43 | 24 | 6 | 3 | 95 | .625 | 233 | 228 |
| x–Hershey Bears (WSH) | 76 | 43 | 25 | 4 | 4 | 94 | .618 | 211 | 215 |
| x–Providence Bruins (BOS) | 76 | 38 | 27 | 8 | 3 | 87 | .572 | 228 | 212 |
| e–Lehigh Valley Phantoms (PHI) | 76 | 39 | 30 | 4 | 3 | 85 | .559 | 240 | 244 |
| e–Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (PIT) | 76 | 36 | 30 | 7 | 3 | 82 | .539 | 232 | 228 |
| e–Springfield Thunderbirds (FLA) | 76 | 33 | 29 | 9 | 5 | 80 | .526 | 250 | 241 |
| e–Hartford Wolf Pack (NYR) | 76 | 29 | 36 | 7 | 4 | 69 | .454 | 209 | 266 |
| North Division | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | Pts% | GF | GA |
| y–Syracuse Crunch (TBL) | 76 | 47 | 21 | 4 | 4 | 102 | .671 | 264 | 187 |
| x–Rochester Americans (BUF) | 76 | 46 | 23 | 5 | 2 | 99 | .651 | 254 | 218 |
| x–Toronto Marlies (TOR) | 76 | 39 | 24 | 9 | 4 | 91 | .599 | 248 | 243 |
| x–Cleveland Monsters (CBJ) | 76 | 37 | 29 | 8 | 2 | 84 | .553 | 232 | 234 |
| e–Belleville Senators (OTT) | 76 | 37 | 31 | 3 | 5 | 82 | .539 | 228 | 228 |
| e–Utica Comets (VAN) | 76 | 34 | 34 | 6 | 2 | 76 | .500 | 224 | 257 |
| e–Laval Rocket (MTL) | 76 | 30 | 34 | 6 | 6 | 72 | .474 | 195 | 231 |
| e–Binghamton Devils (NJD) | 76 | 28 | 41 | 7 | 0 | 63 | .414 | 201 | 278 |

### Western Conference

As of April 14, 2019
| Central Division | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | Pts% | GF | GA |
| y–Chicago Wolves (VGK) | 76 | 44 | 22 | 6 | 4 | 98 | .645 | 250 | 199 |
| x–Milwaukee Admirals (NSH) | 76 | 36 | 24 | 14 | 2 | 88 | .579 | 217 | 207 |
| x–Iowa Wild (MIN) | 76 | 37 | 26 | 8 | 5 | 87 | .572 | 242 | 230 |
| x–Grand Rapids Griffins (DET) | 76 | 38 | 27 | 7 | 4 | 87 | .572 | 217 | 222 |
| e–Manitoba Moose (WPG) | 76 | 39 | 30 | 5 | 2 | 85 | .559 | 197 | 219 |
| e–Texas Stars (DAL) | 76 | 37 | 31 | 4 | 4 | 82 | .539 | 238 | 231 |
| e–Rockford IceHogs (CHI) | 76 | 35 | 31 | 4 | 6 | 80 | .526 | 184 | 214 |
| e–San Antonio Rampage (STL) | 76 | 31 | 38 | 6 | 1 | 69 | .454 | 196 | 244 |
| Pacific Division | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | Pts% | GF | GA |
| y–Bakersfield Condors (EDM) | 68 | 42 | 21 | 3 | 2 | 89 | .654 | 242 | 182 |
| x–San Jose Barracuda (SJS) | 68 | 39 | 22 | 3 | 4 | 85 | .625 | 227 | 197 |
| x–San Diego Gulls (ANA) | 68 | 36 | 24 | 5 | 3 | 80 | .588 | 239 | 221 |
| x–Colorado Eagles (COL) | 68 | 36 | 27 | 4 | 1 | 77 | .560 | 191 | 205 |
| e–Tucson Roadrunners (ARI) | 68 | 34 | 26 | 5 | 3 | 76 | .559 | 206 | 202 |
| e–Stockton Heat (CGY) | 68 | 31 | 31 | 4 | 2 | 68 | .500 | 235 | 252 |
| e–Ontario Reign (LAK) | 68 | 25 | 33 | 6 | 4 | 60 | .441 | 213 | 274 |

## Statistical leaders
### Leading skaters

The following players are sorted by points, then goals. Updated as of April 14, 2019.
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/– = P Plus–minus; PIM = Penalty minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| Carter Verhaeghe | Syracuse Crunch | 76 | 34 | 48 | 82 | 34 |
| Jeremy Bracco | Toronto Marlies | 75 | 22 | 57 | 79 | 16 |
| Daniel Carr | Chicago Wolves | 52 | 30 | 41 | 71 | 10 |
| T. J. Tynan | Chicago Wolves | 71 | 12 | 59 | 71 | 28 |
| Andrew Poturalski | Charlotte Checkers | 72 | 23 | 47 | 70 | 34 |
| Alex Barre-Boulet | Syracuse Crunch | 74 | 34 | 34 | 68 | 16 |
| Cal O'Reilly | Iowa Wild | 67 | 16 | 51 | 67 | 14 |
| Tyler Benson | Bakersfield Condors | 68 | 15 | 51 | 66 | 44 |
| Chris Mueller | Toronto Marlies | 60 | 33 | 32 | 65 | 32 |
| Michael Sgarbossa | Hershey Bears | 75 | 30 | 35 | 65 | 91 |

### Leading goaltenders

The following goaltenders with a minimum 1500 minutes played lead the league in goals against average. Updated as of April 14, 2019.
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 |
| Alex Nedeljkovic | Charlotte Checkers | 51 | 2917:19 | 1306 | 110 | 4 | 2.26 | .916 | 34 | 9 | 5 |
| Marcus Hogberg | Belleville Senators | 39 | 2304:28 | 1068 | 89 | 2 | 2.32 | .917 | 21 | 11 | 6 |
| Shane Starrett | Bakersfield Condors | 42 | 2447:41 | 1156 | 95 | 4 | 2.33 | .918 | 27 | 7 | 5 |
| Edward Pasquale | Syracuse Crunch | 45 | 2650:11 | 1241 | 104 | 4 | 2.35 | .916 | 27 | 12 | 6 |
| Troy Grosenick | Milwaukee Admirals | 46 | 2633:49 | 1316 | 106 | 1 | 2.41 | .919 | 24 | 14 | 6 |

## Calder Cup playoffs
### Playoff format

The 2019 Calder Cup playoffs format was retained from the divisional format of the 2016 Calder Cup playoffs. During the regular season, teams receive two points for a win and one point for an overtime or shootout loss. The top four teams in each division ranked by points qualify for the 2019 Calder Cup playoffs.
The 2019 Calder Cup playoffs features a divisional playoff format, leading to conference finals and ultimately the Calder Cup finals. The division semifinals are best-of-five series; all subsequent rounds are best-of-seven.

### Bracket

| Division semifinals | Division semifinals | Division semifinals | | | Division finals | Division finals | Division finals | Conference finals | Conference finals | Conference finals | | Calder Cup final | Calder Cup final | Calder Cup final |
| A1 | Charlotte | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| A4 | Providence | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| A4 | Providence | 1 | | | A1 | Charlotte | 4 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | A3 | Hershey | 0 | | | | | | | |
| A2 | Bridgeport | 2 | | | A3 | Hershey | 0 | | | | | | | |
| A3 | Hershey | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| A3 | Hershey | 3 | | | | | | A1 | Charlotte | 4 | | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | A1 | Charlotte | 4 | | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | N3 | Toronto | 2 | | | | |
| N1 | Syracuse | 1 | | | | | | | | | N3 | Toronto | 2 | | | | |
| N4 | Cleveland | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| N4 | Cleveland | 3 | | | N4 | Cleveland | 0 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | N3 | Toronto | 4 | | | | | | | |
| N2 | Rochester | 0 | | | N3 | Toronto | 4 | | | | | | | |
| N3 | Toronto | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| N3 | Toronto | 3 | | | | | | | | | | A1 | Charlotte | 4 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | C1 | Chicago | 1 |
| C1 | Chicago | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | | C1 | Chicago | 1 |
| C4 | Grand Rapids | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| C4 | Grand Rapids | 2 | | | C1 | Chicago | 4 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | C3 | Iowa | 2 | | | | | | | |
| C2 | Milwaukee | 2 | | | C3 | Iowa | 2 | | | | | | | |
| C3 | Iowa | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| C3 | Iowa | 3 | | | | | | C1 | Chicago | 4 | | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | C1 | Chicago | 4 | | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | P3 | San Diego | 2 | | | | |
| P1 | Bakersfield | 3 | | | | | | | | | P3 | San Diego | 2 | | | | |
| P4 | Colorado | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| P4 | Colorado | 1 | | | P1 | Bakersfield | 2 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | P3 | San Diego | 4 | | | | | | | |
| P2 | San Jose | 1 | | | P3 | San Diego | 4 | | | | | | | |
| P3 | San Diego | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |

## AHL awards

| Award | Winner |
| Calder Cup | Charlotte Checkers |
| Les Cunningham Award | Daniel Carr, Chicago |
| John B. Sollenberger Trophy | Carter Verhaeghe, Syracuse |
| Willie Marshall Award | Carter Verhaeghe, Syracuse Alex Barre-Boulet, Syracuse |
| Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award | Alex Barre-Boulet, Syracuse |
| Eddie Shore Award | Zach Redmond, Rochester |
| Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award | Alex Nedeljkovic, Charlotte |
| Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award | Edward Pasquale, Syracuse |
| Louis A. R. Pieri Memorial Award | Mike Vellucci, Charlotte |
| Fred T. Hunt Memorial Award | Brett Sutter, Ontario |
| Yanick Dupre Memorial Award | Landon Ferraro, Iowa |
| Jack A. Butterfield Trophy | Andrew Poturalski, Charlotte |
| Richard F. Canning Trophy | Charlotte Checkers |
| Robert W. Clarke Trophy | Chicago Wolves |
| Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy | Charlotte Checkers |
| Frank Mathers Trophy (Eastern Conference regular season champions) | Charlotte Checkers |
| Norman R. "Bud" Poile Trophy (Western Conference regular season champions) | Bakersfield Condors |
| Emile Francis Trophy (Atlantic Division regular season champions) | Charlotte Checkers |
| F. G. "Teddy" Oke Trophy (North Division regular season champions) | Syracuse Crunch |
| Sam Pollock Trophy (Central Division regular season champions) | Chicago Wolves |
| John D. Chick Trophy (Pacific Division regular season champions) | Bakersfield Condors |
| James C. Hendy Memorial Award | Nathan Costa, Springfield |
| Thomas Ebright Memorial Award | Todd Frederickson, Iowa |
| James H. Ellery Memorial Awards | Mike Griffith, Bakersfield |
| Ken McKenzie Award | Paul Branecky, Charlotte |
| Michael Condon Memorial Award | Fred Hudy Carl Sasyn |
| President's Awards | Organization: Iowa Player: Andrew Poturalski, Charlotte |

### All-Star Teams

First All-Star Team
* Alex Nedeljkovic (G) – Charlotte
* John Gilmour (D) – Hartford
* Zach Redmond (D) – Rochester
* Jeremy Bracco (F) – Toronto
* Daniel Carr (F) – Chicago
* Carter Verhaeghe (F) – Syracuse
Second All-Star Team
* Shane Starrett (G) – Bakersfield
* Aaron Ness (D) – Hershey
* Ethan Prow (D) – Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
* Tyler Benson (F) – Bakersfield
* Chris Mueller (F) – Toronto
* Andrew Poturalski (F) – Charlotte
All-Rookie Team
* Shane Starrett (G) – Bakersfield
* Jake Bean (D) – Charlotte
* Mitch Reinke (D) – San Antonio
* Drake Batherson (F) – Belleville
* Tyler Benson (F) – Bakersfield
* Alex Barre-Boulet (F) – Syracuse