AHL Notebook: Hamilton, Grand Rapids & More

The big news in the American Hockey League this week had nothing to do with the games. It was the official announcement that the New York Islanders plan to move their AHL affiliate from Bridgeport to Hamilton. The relocation impacts the league in multiple ways and will have massive ramifications for years to come. 

The focus shifts to Hamilton, a hockey market with promise but also skepticism. Many wonder if an AHL team can thrive in the city halfway between Buffalo and Toronto. There’s also the question of whether the Islanders can succeed in Hamilton, especially since the move requires players to fly and cross a border when they are called up or sent down. So, it’s important to look at how Hamilton can thrive as an AHL market. 

This seems like the most obvious key to success. Plenty of teams moved their AHL affiliates into “enemy territory,” from the Pittsburgh Penguins putting a team in Northeast Pennsylvania to the Tampa Bay Lightning having their team in Upstate New York. The Islanders moved to Bridgeport, hoping they’d have a fanbase even though the area was known as New York Rangers territory. 

The Islanders never won. The inability to kick off the ground running or have a string of great seasons prevented them from building a fanbase or attracting hockey fans who weren’t tied to the Rangers. The Islanders have been at the bottom of the standings for most of their 25-year run, and it’s why their home games, especially against divisional rivals, are filled with fans of the visiting teams. 

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Hamilton has plenty of Buffalo Sabres and Toronto Maple Leafs fans but also casual hockey fans who don’t support either team. The Islanders can have success right away to win over the market, and with the way the new general manager (GM) Mathieu Darche has built the NHL team and the long-term plan for success, there’s good reason to believe they can succeed right away. 

One long-time Bridgeport season ticket holder once noted that the team was different back in the day. When he first signed up for season tickets, the team had meet-and-greets with the players and fans before the season, and autograph sessions, connecting the two sides. When Lou Lamoriello became the NHL team’s GM, and his son Chris ran the AHL team, they got rid of that.

In the AHL, there are three types of teams. The teams that care about winning first and developing second. The teams that care about development but also want to be competitive and have a winning culture to help out the prospects. Then there are the teams that only care about development. Under Lamoriello, the Islanders were on the extreme of the third option, with a strong focus on the prospects and not much else. 

The Islanders are moving to Hamilton with the start of a new era. The key will be appealing to fans from promotions to in-game events. It’s easy to forget about the fans in a development-focused league but the Islanders must lean into the untapped market if they want to avoid running into the same issues they had in Bridgeport. 

The other layers to building up a fanbase are catering to the Hamilton market. Hamilton, like many AHL cities, is known as a hard-working blue-collar city, yet it also has a growing population with changing demographics, with more businesses and corporations joining the region. It’s why many expect it to be a more profitable market for the Islanders and the AHL altogether. 

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The key, however, is working with the people in the city, especially at the AHL level. Part of that requires the team to keep ticket prices low and avoid pricing out and distancing fans from the start. Another layer is leaning into the Hamilton identity. Yes, the Islanders want to have their stamp on the team and will likely keep the name as a result but letting the fans know that this AHL team is theirs will go a long way. 

The Grand Rapids Griffins got off to a hot start to the season. They went 8-0 and only lost three games in the first three months. The assumption was they’d be a shoo-in for the best record in the Central Division, Western Conference, and the AHL. Many disregarded their hot start as peaking at the wrong time. 

They’ve hit a wall. The Griffins are 3-5 in March and have dropped games against teams they’ll likely face in the playoffs. The Milwaukee Admirals have a pair of 5-2 wins against the Griffins, and the Chicago Wolves defeated them 1-0. Even the Rockford IceHogs, a team that has the second-worst record in the division, swept the back-to-back against them. 

The question is, how concerning are these losses? This is the time of the season when teams want to play their best hockey and head into the playoffs with momentum. The Griffins got off to such a great start that they’ve been on cruise control for the past two months. 

One way to look at their struggles is a compilation of things. The Griffins have battled injuries lately, and on top of that, the Detroit Red Wings have called up players who have been vital to the team's success. The schedule also doesn’t help, as this is the three-in-three season, or when the schedule intensifies, and it prevents them from leaning on Sebastian Cossa to win games, which they’ve done throughout the season. 

All this is reason to believe the Griffins will be fine. When the playoffs roll around, they should have the same roster that dominated the first half of the season, plus they can turn to Cossa for a run. That said, the idea that the Griffins were going to walk through their competition isn’t the case, certainly not anymore. 

The Frozen Four for college hockey is underway. The fallout for the AHL is that some of the top prospects are joining teams around the league. Cole Eiserman joined the Islanders, and James Hagens is expected to join the Bruins, with the only question being the AHL or NHL team. The AHL teams get this extra boost in time for the playoffs, and some can use it. 

Speaking of college and junior-level kids, recent reports indicate that 19-year-olds who were drafted in the first round will be allowed to join their AHL teams. With rookies, the debate was always whether they should be pushed to the NHL, sent to college, or spend a year in junior to develop. There was no in between.

Now there is, and it will be most beneficial to those borderline prospects. Zayne Parekh comes to mind, and the upcoming draft has a few players who fit in this category as well. Instead of dominating the junior level or playing competitive college hockey but only in a small sample size, these prospects can join the AHL and still develop without getting overwhelmed by the skill level. 

The Islanders swept the home-and-home this weekend against the Hershey Bears to move within three points of fourth place in the division. Maybe they host playoff games in their final season in Bridgeport after all. 

Another team with an impressive back-to-back was the Coachella Valley Firebirds. They beat the Colorado Eagles twice and, with seven wins in their last 10 games, are starting to look like a tough out in the Pacific Division. 

Dylan Garand made his debut with the New York Rangers on Sunday afternoon, which is great to see. Garand had to battle to make it and is having a rough season in Hartford. However, his hard work finally paid off, and he’s one of the players whom fans can rally behind.