Chirps from Center Ice

A fan blog about the AHL's Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins

Category Archives: The AHL

AHL Power Rankings: Week 20

Comments Off on AHL Power Rankings: Week 20 Posted by on February 19, 2018

Playoff jockeying continues as we start to turn to the final full month of play before the 2018 Calder Cup Playoffs begin in April. It’s Week 20 in the AHL and another edition of the Chirps from Center Ice AHL Power Rankings.

We have a new number one this week. It’s those pesky Utica Comets. A 15 game point streak will do that for you.

Last weeks number one, Toronto, isn’t far behind, they fall to second after a bad loss (something that doesn’t happen often really) to the Belleville Senators Friday.

As a matter of Utica jumping to first and Toronto dropping down one, Tucson makes room and drops to third. Still leading the Pacific Division are the Roadrunners.

Lehigh Valley put some separation on the Penguins for the Atlantic Division lead, and remain fourth.

That sound you hear in the distance are the defending Calder Cup Champion Grand Rapids Griffins, who shutout the Manitoba Moose in back to back games in Winnipeg this weekend. Grand Rapids is in the top five this week.

To see six on beyond, click past the Griffins. Enjoy!

1

 Last Week: SYR 3 @ UTI 2 (SO), BNG 1 @ UTI 3, UTI 5 @ WBS 4 (OT)
Comets are the new number one team this week based on the 15 game point streak that they are on. 8-0-1-1 in their last ten, 12-0-2-1 overall in the run and pesky.

+2

 This Week: @ BEL 2/19, vs. LV 2/21, vs. LAV 2/23, vs. SPR 2/24
Record: 28-14-6-4

2

 Last Week: TOR 1 @ BEL 3, TOR 4 @ LAV 2
16 game point streak ends Saturday for the Marlies against a team that they thought could be sleepwalked past. Do they learn from it? We think so.

-1

 This Week: vs. HER 2/19, vs. BNG 2/21, @ RCH 2/23, vs. RCH 2/24
Record: 38-12-0-1

3

 Last Week: TUC 2 @ SJ 4, BAK 4 @ TUC 5
Roadrunners 7-3 in their last ten has them in firm grip of the top spot in the Pacific and slowly moving away from the pack.

-1

 This Week: vs. BAK 2/19, vs. SA 2/23, vs. SA 2/24
Record: 28-15-2-1

4

 Last Week: LV 5 @ BRI 0, LV 8 @ SPR 2, HFD 3 @ LV 2 (SO), WBS 1 @ LV 4
5 of 6 points for the Phantoms while Wilkes-Barre only managed one will give Lehigh Valley breathing room over their in state rival. But the Penguins will have an insane five games in hand come this Friday.

n/a

 This Week: @ UTI 2/21, @ SYR 2/23, @ BNG 2/24
Record: 33-14-3-4

5

 Last Week: GR 1 @ MTB 0, GR 5 @ MTB 0
Grand Rapids are back. They went to Winnipeg and shutout the Moose in back to back games.Three at home against more Central Division competition.

+1

 This Week: vs. CHI 2/21, vs. IA 2/24, vs. IA 2/25
Record: 28-18-1-6

Click through here to see teams 6 through 30

Power Rankings

Coal Street Acquires Joe Cramarossa 2/14

2 Comments Posted by on February 14, 2018

In an, “out or nowhere” occurrence, this flashed across Twitter Wednesday afternoon.

Going the other way was Colin Smith…

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Obie and Hart had this to say about Cramarossa.

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Here’s the thing with this type of trade. We have seen it before. When the Pens signed Colin Smith in the summertime, he was touted as an offensive badass. Automatic 40 point scorer. He was #44 on my summertime AHL Big Board.

But, hampered by inconsistency and injuries, Smith’s tenure with the Penguins ends with 18 points in 35 games.

We will see if Cramarossa (10 points in 37 games and a -6) is any better or an upgrade.

Trends say no.

Anyone remember Danny Kristo? Here’s a refresher. He was later traded in an NHL package for Ron Hainsey that same year. At that time, I said this…

Danny Kristo came over in the trade which saw Reid McNeill get sent to the St. Louis Blues in a change of scenery for both players earlier this year. Kristo appeared in 32 games and had six goals and five assists. You could tell a few games into his tenure that the fit wasn’t there. Kristo was touted as a goal scorer, but only scored December 3 against St. John’s before going cold and not scoring again until January 7 against Binghamton. He had been a healthy scratch here and there and depending on the way you analyze things, was getting bumped in the lineup in favor of Patrick McGrath.

Certainly I am not questioning the brain trust at 40 Coal. All I am saying is that the trend has been there that these trades do little in the way of being anything terribly, “big.”

If you are saying I have only given one example and that a”trend” by definition is more than one sample set, okay fine. Mattias Plachta. Spencer Machacek. Danny Syvret. Ryan Parent. Derek Nesbitt.

You get the point.

More as it comes, or if not, by Friday for the Gameday setup against Rochester in Rochester Friday.

The AHL, WBS

AHL Power Rankings: Week 19

Comments Off on AHL Power Rankings: Week 19 Posted by on February 12, 2018

We are hitting mid-February with little changes at the top of the Chirps from Center Ice AHL Power Rankings.

The Toronto Marlies are running away with the North Division. The Tucson Roadrunners are establishing themselves as the Pacific Division favorite and if the Marlies get complacent, they may get streaked over by the Utica Comets.

The Phantoms and Wild round out the top five this week as two teams second place teams in their respective divisions who are further than they appear from the pinnacle of their division.

After the Wild, who just re-upped with parent Minnesota for five more years, please pop through the jump if you didn’t link in direct.

1

 Last Week: TOR 7 @ BEL 4, BNG 1 @ TOR 3, BNG 2 @ TOR 5
16 game point streak. 9-0-0-1 in last ten. Playing cupcake teams like Binghamton, Belleville and Laval will do that. Same story continues this week.

n/a

 This Week: @ BEL 2/16, @ LAV 2/17
Record: 37-11-0-1

2

 Last Week: TUC 4 @ SJ 3 (SO), TUC 5 @ TEX 2, TUC 2 @ TEX 1 (OT)
Roadrunners are establishing themselves as early favorites in the Pacific with yet another good week.

+4

 This Week: @ SJ 2/14, vs. BAK 2/17
Record: 27-14-2-1

3

 Last Week: LAV 1 @ UTI 2 (OT), BEL 3 @ UTI 4
12 game point streak (10-0-2-0) for the Comets have propelled Utica from outside of a playoff spot to a virtual tie with the Rochester Americans.

+2

 This Week: vs. SYR 21/4, vs. BNG 2/16, @ WBS 2/17
Record: 26-14-6-3

4

 Last Week: CHA 3 @ LV 4, HER 1 @ LV 5, RCH 3 @ LV 5
First team in the Atlantic to 30 wins with another sweep of the week for the Phantoms.

+3

 This Week: @ BRI 2/13, @ SPR 2/16, vs. HFD 2/17, vs. WBS 2/18
Record: 30-14-3-3

5

 Last Week: IA 1 @ SD 5, CHI 1 @ IA 4, RFD 1 @ IA 2
Another good week for Iowa, who are solidifying themselves in the Central as a contender. Two Texas teams drop by Wells Fargo Center this week.

+3

 This Week: vs. SA 2/12, vs. TEX 2/18
Record: 24-15-7-3

Click through here to see teams 6 through 30

Power Rankings

AHL Power Rankings: Week 18

Comments Off on AHL Power Rankings: Week 18 Posted by on February 5, 2018

We are a week out of the All-Star break and things are slowly coming into focus.

What’s clear, is that there is a true number one team in the American Hockey League. That team is the Toronto Marlies. They reign again at the top of the Week 18 Chirps From Center Ice AHL Power Rankings this week.

In second this week is the Manitoba Moose. After a hiccup two weeks ago, the Moose are back to mowing teams down and have won five games in a row.

In third are the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins who are slowly starting to separate from the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. The Penguins beat the Phantoms Saturday in regulation and have three games in hand on Lehigh Valley.

In fourth are the Chicago Wolves, who you can’t beat at home. 12 straight wins for the Wolves at Allstate Arena. Second place in the Central Division.

Fifth place this week belong to the pesky Utica Comets. It’s a nice little party that the Marlies have in the North, but the Comets are looking to crash the party.

To see teams six on beyond, click past the Comets if you didn’t link in direct to check out the full list.

1

 Last Week: TOR 4 @ RCH 2, LAV 1 @ TOR 7
It does not appear to be any way to stop this team. Points in their last thirteen games and bottom feeder teams heading in to be fed to the beast this week.

n/a

 This Week: @ BEL 2/9, vs. BNG 2/10, vs. BNG 2/11
Record: 33-11-0-1

2

 Last Week: MTB 4 @ RFD 3 (OT), MTB 5 @ MIL 1
Well, whatever that was two weeks ago that was costing Manitoba points has been figured out. Moose have won five in a row and are still picking up valuable points in the Central Division.

+8

 This Week: @ MIL 2/6, @ GR 2/7, @ CLE 2/9, @ CLE 2/11
Record: 31-10-3-2

3

 Last Week: HER 1 @ WBS 4, LV 1 @ WBS 2
Quietly, the division leading Penguins are 7-2-1-0 in their last ten. Road beckons this week with some tougher competition,

n/a

 This Week: @ SPR 2/7, @ PRO 2/9, @ PRO 2/11
Record: 28-12-3-1

4

 Last Week: MIL 1 @ CHI 4, RFD 4 @ CHI 7
Wolves continue to defend home ice and win. Are back up to second in the Central. One this week with Iowa which will have bigger implications than the past.

+1

 This Week: @ IA 2/9
Record: 24-15-6-2

5

 Last Week: SYR 1 @ UTI 3, UTI 4 @ SYR 2
Comets are coming. 8-0-2-0 in their last ten. Have already passed Syracuse and now set their sights on a shaky Rochester team. Pair of non-playoff teams stopping in this week.

-1

 This Week: vs. LAV 2/9, vs. BEL 2/10
Record: 24-14-6-3

Click through here to see teams 6 through 30

Power Rankings

AHL Power Rankings: Week 17

Comments Off on AHL Power Rankings: Week 17 Posted by on January 28, 2018

We are officially at the All-Star break here in the AHL and there are teams that are solidly in contention, teams that have yet to make up their minds and teams that don’t seem like participating.

It’s never more apparent in this weeks version, as there have been no change in the top four teams from last week to this week.

Toronto is the class of the AHL at the break, and are just steamrolling teams.

Tucson continues to impress and are tops in the Pacific, but are being chased by a few good teams.

Wilkes-Barre seems to have worked out the bugs and are tops in the Atlantic.

A five game point streak by Utica has the Comets still in fourth. The Marlies should have company soon if the Comets continue this run.

The Chicago Wolves debut this week in the top five after splitting a pair with the Roadrunners.

Past the Wolves, click past the jump if you didn’t link in direct to see six and beyond.

Enjoy the all-star festivities if you are going this weekend!

1

 Last Week: RCH 0 @ TOR 2, TOR 4 @ SYR 2
We are at the break and now can start discussing early Calder Cup favorites. The Marlies are tops on that list. Toronto is pasting teams, 11 game point streak.

n/a

 This Week: @ RCH 2/2, vs. LAV 2/3
Record: 32-11-0-1

2

 Last Week: CHI 1 @ TUC 2 (OT), CHI 4 @ TUC 3
Split a pair with the Wolves. Still lead the Pacific. Roadrunners are playing good hockey and we see no reason for it to decline.

n/a

 This Week: @ ONT 2/2, @ SD 2/3
Record: 23-13-2-1

3

 Last Week: WBS 4 @ HER 0, WBS 2 @ LV 5, BNG 3 @ WBS 4 (OT)
Penguins lead the Atlantic at the break. Two horse race emerging with Lehigh Valley for that top spot. A pair this week at home against Hershey and the Phantoms.

n/a

 This Week: vs. HER 2/2, vs. LV 2/3
Record: 26-12-3-1

4

 Last Week: HFD 4 @ UTI 3 (OT), UTI 3 @ BNG 1, UTI 3 @ LV 2 (OT)
Five game point streak for your Utica Comets who are 7-1-2-0 in their last ten and pushing Syracuse for third and putting the heat on Toronto and Rochester.

n/a

 This Week: vs. SYR 2/2, @ SYR 2/3
Record: 22-14-6-3

5

 Last Week: CHI 1 @ TUC 2 (OT), CHI 4 @ TUC 3
Wolves back up to third in the Central after an OK week in Tucson. Central race will be one to watch.

+1

 This Week: vs. MIL 2/2, vs. RFD 2/3
Record: 22-15-6-2

Click through here to see teams 6 through 30

Power Rankings

AHL Power Rankings: Week 16

Comments Off on AHL Power Rankings: Week 16 Posted by on January 22, 2018

We are a week away from the All Star break, and things are slowly coming into focus as a lot of teams are hitting the halfway point of the American Hockey League season.

The class of the AHL so far has been Toronto, and despite a setback in Bridgeport Sunday, the Marlies remain the number one team in the Week 16 Chirps from Center Ice AHL Power Rankings.

The Pacific Division leading Tucson Roadrunners are in second, followed by the hard luck Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins who, despite being shutout in back to back games, only allows two goals all weekend by the opponent and still lead the Atlantic Division.

The Pens are followed in fourth by the pesky Utica Comets, who are pushing Syracuse for third place in the North.

Fifth place is home to your Providence Bruins, who thanks to back to back shutouts by Zane McIntyre Friday and Sunday, are back to second place in the Atlantic Division.

Click past the Bruins to see six and beyond if you didn’t link in direct. Enjoy!

1

 Last Week: TOR 4 @ SYR 1, TOR 3 @ BNG 0, TOR 0 @ BRI 1 (SO)
Hard to believe that for a team as good as Toronto that the eight game winning streak they set Saturday in Binghamton was a franchise best. Then it quickly ended in a funky 1-0 shootout loss to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers the next day.

n/a

 This Week: vs. RCH 1/26, @ SYR 1/27
Record: 30-11-0-1

2

 Last Week: SD 3 @ TUC 5, SD 5 @ TUC 3, TUC 2 @ SA 1 (OT), TUC 2 @ SA 1 (OT)
Tucson continues to lead the Pacific. Giving loser points away to competition can’t be good with how tight things are though.

+1

 This Week: vs. CHI 1/26, vs. CHI 1/27
Record: 22-12-2-1

3

 Last Week: LV 1 @ WBS 4, WBS 0 @ PRO 1, WBS 0 @ HFD 1 (OT)
Penguins allow 2 goals all weekend and lose. That’s bad luck more than it is missing a playmaker.

+1

 This Week: @ HER 1/24, @ LV 1/26, vs. BNG 1/27
Record: 24-11-3-1

4

 Last Week: UTI 2 @ RCH 1 (SO), RCH 2 @ UTI 3 (SO), UTI 2 @ HFD 3 (OT), SYR 2 @ UTI 4
Good week for the Comets, who take points in every game this week and are pushing Syracuse for the third spot in the North.

+9

 This Week: vs. HFD 1/24, @ BNG 1/26, @ LV 1/27
Record: 20-14-5-3

5

 Last Week: WBS 0 @ PRO 1, PRO 2 @ BRI 3, SPR 0 @ PRO 2
Zane McIntyre is out of his funk, shutting out Wilkes-Barre and Springfield this weekend as his Providence Bruins are in a dead heat for the top of the Atlantic Division.

+8

 This Week: @ LV 1/24, vs. HER 1/26, @ SPR 1/27
Record: 24-13-3-1

Click through here to see teams 6 through 30

Power Rankings

Andrey Pedan Named AHL Player of the Week

Comments Off on Andrey Pedan Named AHL Player of the Week Posted by on January 15, 2018

There would have been a major uprising from the City of Wilkes-Barre if neither Ryan Haggerty or Andrey Pedan were not named AHL Player of the Week this week.

Andrey Pedan gets the nomination. The AHL announced the news as the 1 p.m. games got going on this Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

AHL could have went either way with either Pedan or Haggerty. I was told once that these types of awards are boosters for players on NHL contracts. Ryan Haggerty is on an AHL only contract to Wilkes-Barre, so that may have played into it. It’s my own conspiracy theory, but I’m happy for Pedan nevertheless.

In case you missed his weekend, Pedan had a hat trick Saturday and two assists with a +5 rating to help the Atlantic Division leading Penguins extend their winning streak to seven games.

The AHL Player of the Week and the rest of the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins take on the second place in the Atlantic Lehigh Valley Phantoms this Wednesday at home. But for anything breaking between now and then, check out the Gameday setup here Wednesday at @ 3.

The AHL, WBS

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