2018 Calder Cup Conference Finals

[JMCx4]

Texas scores with just 9 seconds left in the 1st OT, to defeat Rockford 2-1 and move on to meet the Marlies in the Calder Cup Finals.

Noteworthy Stat from Game 6: There were zero penalty minutes on the game sheet after nearly 80 minutes of play. S/T to both teams AND to the referees for letting them play hockey.

ETA: According to the League's game recap: "No penalties were called in Game 6, the first penalty-free game in the AHL since Dec. 26, 2016."

 

[JMCx4]

Four of the 6 games in the West Finals went to overtime, with Texas winning 3 of them. That makes a total of 9 overtime games they've played in these playoffs, and they've won 7 of them. That's either gonna make them a really tired team facing Toronto, OR it's gonna make them a really tough competitor for the Marlies to solve. I'm hoping for the latter.

 

[AmericanDream]

Rockford with a good year, glad to see some talent coming up through our system for the Hawks..

I can't believe the AHL Finals starts after the NHL Finals...why do I feel that is odd and should be reversed, like the AHL playoffs should be done by now..

 

[JMCx4]

... I can't believe the AHL Finals starts after the NHL Finals...why do I feel that is odd and should be reversed, like the AHL playoffs should be done by now..

The AHL regular season schedule started 2 days after the start of the NHL season. Add the larger factor of arena scheduling, which is far more challenging for AHL teams - especially in the playoffs when game dates cannot be booked months in advance - and it's likely that the AHL playoffs will lag the NHL playoffs every spring.

A lesser factor could be the NHL's traditional reliance on "Black Aces" to fill their playoff rosters with AHL players; over the years. This practice may have influenced AHL playoff scheduling as competing teams relied on the return of these players to improve their chances of advancement in the post-season. But if that was ever an influence, I doubt it is a measurable one these days. I just use it as an example of the sorts of secondary factors that could combine to drive game scheduling.

Meanwhile ... On to the Championship Finals!

 

[Dr Pepper]

Apparently there was a bit of an incident with one of the Rockford players after the game had ended....just saw a gif of it on Instagram, not sure how to get it on here. DiDomenico was swinging his stick like crazy on the bench, at the glass behind him. Probably got chirped by some rowdy Stars fans.

 

[Emery]

Apparently there was a bit of an incident with one of the Rockford players after the game had ended....just saw a gif of it on Instagram, not sure how to get it on here. DiDomenico was swinging his stick like crazy on the bench, at the glass behind him. Probably got chirped by some rowdy Stars fans.

 

[Dr Pepper]

^Thanks.

I wonder what was said to set him off. Whatever it was.....hell of an overreaction, especially if there's a little kid right up against the glass.

 

[Elysian]

^Thanks.

I wonder what was said to set him off. Whatever it was.....hell of an overreaction, especially if there's a little kid right up against the glass.

I was sitting behind the guy he was going after, and directly behind the 11-12 year old girl Didomenico made cry.

Section 118 was jeering a bunch of the players from the Ice Hogs, nothing worse than typical hockey jeers. No swearing, no threats. Didomenico was getting a bunch of it, because he sprayed section 118 with water in game 2, they didn't like that particularly well. Either way, nothing was over the line, in my opinion.

The guy that Didomenico went after did nothing worse than wave at Didomenico with a creepy face every time he came to the bench. Didn't do anything else. I'm really surprised Didomenico went after him to be honest, the rest of the section was much rowdier than said guy.

The arena staff came over after the incident and got the videos from the fans as well as statements, and will be submitting it to the AHL. They told us he'll likely get a fine.

I took this afterwards:

There's some black near the middle of the top of the glass that's where he was hitting.