The 2012 Calder Cup playoffs of the American Hockey League began on April 19, 2012, with a slightly different playoff format than in other recent years. The sixteen teams that qualified, eight from each conference, will play a best-of-five series in the conference quarterfinals, and the playoffs will then continue with best-of-seven series for the conference semifinals, conference finals and Calder Cup finals.
The Norfolk Admirals defeated the Toronto Marlies in four games to win the Calder Cup for the first time in Norfolk's history.
Playoff seeds After the 2011–12 AHL regular season, 16 teams qualified for the playoffs. The top eight teams from each conference qualifies for the playoffs.
Eastern Conference Atlantic Division St. John's IceCaps – 94 points Manchester Monarchs – 83 points
Northeast Division Bridgeport Sound Tigers – 91 points Connecticut Whale – 86 points
East Division Norfolk Admirals – 113 points Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins – 95 points Hershey Bears – 88 points Syracuse Crunch – 84 points
Western Conference North Division Toronto Marlies – 96 points Rochester Americans – 86 points (30 regulation and overtime wins, 1−1 in season series against Houston, +3 goal difference)
Midwest Division Chicago Wolves – 91 points Milwaukee Admirals – 87 points (36 regulation and overtime wins, 3−1 in season series against San Antonio)
West Division Oklahoma City Barons – 99 points Abbotsford Heat – 92 points San Antonio Rampage – 87 points (36 regulation and overtime wins, 1−3 in season series against Milwaukee) Houston Aeros – 86 points (30 regulation and overtime wins, 1−1 in season series against Rochester, −4 goal difference)
Bracket
Conference quarterfinals Note 1: All times are in Eastern Time (UTC−4). Note 2: Game times in italics signify games to be played only if necessary. Note 3: Home team is listed first.
Eastern Conference (1) Norfolk Admirals vs. (8) Manchester Monarchs
(2) St. John's IceCaps vs. (7) Syracuse Crunch
(3) Bridgeport Sound Tigers vs. (6) Connecticut Whale
(4) Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins vs. (5) Hershey Bears
Western Conference (1) Oklahoma City Barons vs. (8) Houston Aeros
(2) Toronto Marlies vs. (7) Rochester Americans
(3) Chicago Wolves vs. (6) San Antonio Rampage
(4) Abbotsford Heat vs. (5) Milwaukee Admirals
Conference semifinals Eastern Conference (1) Norfolk Admirals vs. (6) Connecticut Whale
* Game five was played at the Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport.
(2) St. John's IceCaps vs. (4) Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
Western Conference (1) Oklahoma City Barons vs. (6) San Antonio Rampage
(2) Toronto Marlies vs. (4) Abbotsford Heat
Conference finals Eastern Conference (1) Norfolk Admirals vs. (2) St. John's IceCaps
Western Conference (1) Oklahoma City Barons vs. (2) Toronto Marlies
Calder Cup Finals Norfolk Admirals vs. Toronto Marlies
Playoff statistical leaders Leading skaters
These are the top ten skaters based on points. If there is a tie in points, goals take precedence over assists.
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/– = Plus–minus; PIM = Penalty minutes
Player Team GP G A Pts PIM Norfolk Admirals 18 9 7 16 48 Norfolk Admirals 18 5 11 16 20 Norfolk Admirals 18 2 13 15 28 Norfolk Admirals 14 6 8 14 6 Toronto Marlies 17 4 10 14 20 Toronto Marlies 13 10 3 13 6 Toronto Marlies 17 8 5 13 12 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 12 6 7 13 2 Oklahoma City Barons 14 5 8 13 6 San Antonio Rampage 10 4 9 13 8
Leading goaltenders
This is a combined table of the top five goaltenders based on goals against average and the top five goaltenders based on save percentage with at least 360 minutes played. The table is initially sorted by goals against average, with the criterion for inclusion in bold.
GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; SA = Shots against; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; SV% = Save percentage; SO = Shutouts; TOI = Time on ice (in minutes)
Player Team GP W L SA GA GAA SV% SO TOI Norfolk Admirals 14 12 2 373 21 1.46 .944 3 865 Toronto Marlies 17 11 6 509 33 1.92 .935 3 1029 Connecticut Whale 9 5 4 327 20 2.10 .939 2 571 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 12 6 6 292 27 2.14 .908 0 756 Abbotsford Heat 7 4 3 192 16 2.26 .917 0 425 St. John's IceCaps 15 7 8 482 37 2.42 .923 0 917
Broadcasting Leafs TV, as the main broadcaster of the Toronto Marlies, aired the first three games of the Calder Cup Final in Canada. While the channel is normally restricted to the home market of the Toronto Maple Leafs (which includes most of Ontario), Leafs TV allowed television providers outside of the Leafs' market to carry the channel during the Calder Cup on a "preview" basis to allow nationwide coverage of the games. Sportsnet One would replace Leafs TV to air Game 4. In the United States, CBS Sports Network picked up the broadcast rights in the United States beginning with game 3, while Norfolk-area CW affiliate WGNT aired the games in simulcast with their Canadian broadcaster. The series was also carried by ESPN America, and on the NHL Home Ice channel on SiriusXM.
See also 2011–12 AHL season List of AHL seasons
References