Chirps from Center Ice

Week 23 is in the books and we already have a ticket punched to the 2017 Calder Cup Playoffs.

They are your number one team in the AHL overall and the number one team again this week, the San Jose Barracuda. San Jose locked up a playoff spot Saturday night.

The team behind them, the San Didego Gulls, should be joining their Pacific Division brethren very soon, as soon as this week in fact.

But there is a team that has been there the most times and has the most hardware which reside in Central Pennsylvania who are rising like a phoenix due to a man named Pheonix. The Hershey Bears are your number three team this week after jumping to third in the ever competitive Atlantic Division.

Oh, but in fourth is the team that has been at the pinnacle of the League’s best Division for months now, and one that the Bears would love to knock off. It’s the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins.

I think I have given enough away in this lede, so please jump through if you didn’t link in anywhere direct to see where the other 26 teams and maybe where your favorite team ended up in this weeks rankings.

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It’s Week 22 in the AHL and things are really heating up.

Right now, here are three teams for two playoff spots in the Atlantic and Pacific Division. The playoff race is shaping up with about a month to go!

San Jose reclaims the top spot in this weeks rankings after taking down the Gulls twice and the Central leading Griffins.

To see the rest of the order, click through the jump if you didn’t link here direct.

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Week 21 has come and gone in the American Hockey League and so has the NHL trade deadline. Some teams re-tooled and the results were immediate and helped in their playoff push this weekend.

There is a new number one at the top of the rankings, as the top five from last week are jumbled up a bit. Click through the jump and see who it is and where your favorite team ended up this week.

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We are 20 weeks into the AHL season and there is about 20 games left for most teams and for some, their chances at a postseason berth took a huge hit this past week. Cleveland, Binghamton, Tucson and Texas come to immediate mind.

The San Jose Barracuda are the best team in the AHL right now and are halfway to the Norfolk Admirals record of 28 straight wins. So of course they remain the number one team this week.

Click through the jump if you didn’t link in direct to see where your favorite team ended up this week.

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After what seems like an eternity, the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins are no longer the top team in the Weekly Chirps from Center Ice AHL Power Rankings.

At least not in Week 19.

That team is the San Jose Barracuda who have quietly plugged along for the past few months. Winners now of eleven straight games and the top team in the Pacific. Even if the Penguins won a few games this week, the Politburo would have been hard pressed to ignore all the work being done in San Jose to put the Barracuda on this run.

Another streaky team in the Eastern Conference follows the Barracuda at the two spot. Apologies to anyone who checks in from in Grand Rapids, the Griffins drop to third because of these streaking teams.

Hop through the jump if you didn’t link in direct to see where your favorite team ended up this week.

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No changes at the very top in the Week 18 AHL Power Rankings. While, yes, I am a blogger that follows the number one team, I think that my explanation as to why the Penguins are still the top team this week is enough to convince you that Wilkes-Barre should remain at the pinnacle in this weeks AHL Power Rankings.

A couple of changes in the top five, ten and on back, so click through the jump if you didn’t link in direct to see where your favorite team ended up this week.

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We are already past the first weekend of February. There are 10 weeks left in the 2016-17 AHL season. Where has the time gone?

The top team in the AHL was embarrassed Friday night and responded in a big way Saturday against their biggest division rival right now. They didn’t just beat the Phantoms, they crushed them. That, coupled with some minor falters below the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins keeps them at the pinnacle of the Week 17 AHL Power Rankings.

To see the rest of the order, click through the jump if you didn’t link in direct.

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