Details Emerge On AHL's 2021-22 Season

The American Hockey League (AHL) provided an update with some more details on what the 2021-22 season will look like on a broader scope, with further information to be finalized and released to the public at a later date.

We already knew the league's 2021-22 season will begin on October 15, but heading into the summer the league has their traditional four division setup - Atlantic and North Divisions in the Eastern Conference, along with Central and Pacific Divisions in the Western Conference - finalized for the fall in what hopes to be another positive step toward a return to "normalcy" in the upcoming season.

The four divisions nearly resemble the 2019-20 setup, albeit with Binghamton no longer in the AHL (New Jersey Devils relocated their affiliate to Utica, while Vancouver moved their AHL operation to Abbotsford, B.C., relocating their affiliate into Canada and closer to home) and Abbotsford and Henderson in the Pacific Division.

The AHL announced that starting with the 2022-23 season all clubs will play 72 games. For the 2021-22 season, the Pacific Division will play 68 games while teams in the other three divisions were given an option to play 72 or their traditional full-season schedule of 76 games.

Unsurprisingly, a majority of the independently owned AHL franchises opted for 76 games (10 total) while 12 teams opted in to playing 72 games. The result of that, however, will have teams within the same division playing a different amount of games.

For example, in the Atlantic Division four teams will play 76 games - Hershey (WSH), Lehigh Valley (PHI), Springfield (STL) and W-B/Scranton (PIT) - and four teams will play 72 games - Bridgeport (NYI), Charlotte (FLA), Hartford (NYR) and Providence (BOS).

It's similar for both the North and Central Divisions, where three teams in each seven-team division will play 76 games while the other four teams in each division will play 72.

For one last season, the standings in all but the Pacific Division will be decided by points percentage

AHL To Have Expanded Postseason Beginning 2021-22 Season

During Sportsnet's May 22 edition of Saturday's Headlines, Elliotte Friedman said the AHL was considering a play-in format for their postseason and the general thinking was that 16 teams wasn't enough for the playoffs, especially with the Seattle Kraken's AHL affiliate in Palm Springs, California set to arrive and make it a 32-team league.

A source told InsideAHLHockey.com last week that a committee had been formed, and they were working towards having an expanded postseason.

And on Monday, the AHL announced there will be an increase in the number of teams qualifying for the Calder Cup Playoffs with details to be finalized and announced later this summer.

Now that it is known that teams will be playing an uneven amount of games within three of the league's four divisions, not to mention that fourth division - the Pacific Division - will have nine teams, it makes all the more sense to give an expanded playoff or play-in (or whatever it will be termed) a shot.

It will be interesting to see how all of that unfolds.

AHL's Division Re-Alignment For 2021-22 Season

Key = AHL Team, 72/76 game schedule, (NHL parent club)

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Atlantic Division

Bridgeport 72 (NYI), Charlotte 72 (FLA), Hartford 72 (NYR), Hershey 76 (WSH), Providence 72 (BOS), Lehigh Valley 76 (PHI), Springfield 76 (STL) and W-B/Scranton 76 (PIT)

North Division

Belleville 72 (OTT), Cleveland 76 (CBJ), Laval 72 (MTL), Rochester 76 (BUF), Syracuse 76 (TB), Toronto 72 (TOR) and Utica 72 (NJD)

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Central Division

Chicago 76 (CAR), Grand Rapids 76 (DET), Iowa 72 (MIN), Manitoba 72 (WPG), Milwaukee 76 (NSH), Rockford 72 (CHI) and Texas 72 (DAL)

Pacific DivisionAll teams in the Pacific Division will play 68 games.

Abbotsford (VAN), Bakersfield (EDM), Colorado (COL), Henderson (VGK), Ontario (LAK), San Diego (ANA), San Jose (SJS), Stockton (CGY) and Tucson (ARI)

While I'm sure when Palm Springs enters the AHL in the 2022-23 season that they'll play in the Pacific Division, a 10-team Pacific Division won't happen. I'm also pretty sure the league would ideally like to eventually get to a more standard four-division, eight-team setup.

There will certainly be more re-alignment to come with the divisions again next summer, but let's not get too far ahead of ourselves. More details on the upcoming 2021-22 season will emerge in the coming weeks/months later this offseason.

Some AHL teams have announced their five guaranteed home dates for the 2021-22 season, with others still to announce their respective guaranteed dates.

There's also the full 2021-22 regular season schedule, and the finalized details of the AHL's expanded postseason still to come this summer as well.