2011-12 AHL Division Alignment
American Hockey League President and CEO David Andrews announced that the league will operate with 30 active teams in 2011-12, with the relocation of the Manitoba Moose franchise to St. John's, Newfoundland amongst one of the changes. The St. John's franchise will be affiliated with the NHL's Winnipeg Jets. In addition to St. John's, the Portland Pirates (Phoenix Coyotes), Chicago Wolves (Vancouver Canucks), Rochester Americans (Buffalo Sabres), and San Antonio Rampage (Florida Panthers) have also experienced an affiliation change for the 2011-12 season.
All 30 National Hockey League teams will have their own primary affiliate playing in the AHL this fall. The league's Board of Governors has approved the following division alignment for 2011-12 (NHL affiliates in parentheses):
Eastern Conference |
Atlantic Division |
 | Manchester Monarchs | (Los Angeles Kings) |
 | Portland Pirates | (Phoenix Coyotes) |
 | Providence Bruins | (Boston Bruins) |
 | St. John's IceCaps | (Winnipeg Jets) |
 | Worcester Sharks | (San Jose Sharks) |
|
Western Conference |
North Division |
 | Grand Rapid Griffins | (Detroit Red Wings) |
 | Hamilton Bulldogs | (Montreal Canadiens) |
 | Lake Erie Monsters | (Colorado Avalanche) |
 | Rochester Americans | (Buffalo Sabres) |
 | Toronto Marlies | (Toronto Maple Leafs) |
|
Northeast Division |
 | Adirondack Phantoms | (Philadelphia Flyers) |
 | Albany Devils | (New Jersey Devils) |
 | Bridgeport Sound Tigers | (New York Islanders) |
 | Connecticut Whale | (New York Rangers) |
 | Springfield Falcons | (Columbus Blue Jackets) |
|
Midwest Division |
 | Charlotte Checkers | (Carolina Hurricanes) |
 | Chicago Wolves | (Vancouver Canucks) |
 | Milwaukee Admirals | (Nashville Predators) |
 | Peoria Rivermen | (St. Louis Blues) |
 | Rockford IceHogs | (Chicago Blackhawks) |
|
East Division |
 | Binghamton Senators | (Ottawa Senators) |
 | Hershey Bears | (Washington Capitals) |
 | Norfolk Admirals | (Tampa Bay Lightning) |
 | Syracuse Crunch | (Anaheim Ducks) |
 | Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins | (Pittsburgh Penguins) |
|
West Division |
 | Abbotsford Heat | (Calgary Flames) |
 | Houston Aeros | (Minnesota Wild) |
 | Oklahoma City Barons | (Edmonton Oilers) |
 | San Antonio Rampage | (Florida Panthers) |
 | Texas Stars | (Dallas Stars) |
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The format for the 2012 Calder Cup Playoffs was also approved by the Board of Governors. Eight teams in each conference will qualify for the postseason, with the three division winners earning the top three seeds and the next five best teams in order of regular-season points seeded fourth through eighth.
The conference quarterfinals will be best-of-five series; the conference semifinals, conference finals and Calder Cup Finals will be best-of-seven series. Teams will be re-ordered after the first round so that the highest-remaining seed plays the lowest-remaining seed.
The 2011-12 regular-season schedule can be viewed by clicking here.
The American Hockey League was officially born in 1936 when the Canadian-American Hockey League and the International Hockey League merged to form the International-American Hockey League (the “International” would be dropped from the league’s name in 1940). The AHL continues to serve as the top development league for the players, coaches, managers, executives and broadcasters of all 30 National Hockey League teams. More than 87 percent of today’s NHL players are American Hockey League graduates, and for the 10th year in a row, more than 6 million fans attended AHL games across North America in 2010-11. Through the years, the AHL has been home to more than 100 future members of the Hockey Hall of Fame.
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