SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … I Vegas Golden Knights again Carolina Hurricanes they are ready to face the Stanley Cup, and their rosters are full of American Hockey League graduates.
Vegas, the AHL’s parent club Henderson Silver Knightswon the Western Conference with contributions from AHL alumni up and down the roster – 21 of the 24 players to dress for the Golden Knights’ playoff game so far have spent time in the American Hockey League.
Pavel Dorofeyev again Brett Howden they are tied for the leading team in Vegas with 10 goals per season. Dorofeyev played 119 games in the AHL with Henderson, including a 27-goal campaign in 2021-22. Howden made his professional debut as a 19-year-old with the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch in 2017, helping them reach the Calder Cup Finals.
Vegas captain Mark Stone played 91 games over two seasons with the AHL Senators in Binghamton, tallying 30 goals and 49 assists. William Karlsson skated in the AHL with Norfolk and Springfield, and on and on Colton Sissons and defenders Rasmus Andersson, Brayden McNabb again Dylan Coghlan all were AHL All-Stars. Ivan Barbashev, Keegan Kolesar, Kaeden Korczak, Jeremy Lauzon again Shea Theodore all played over 100 games in the AHL.
The head coach John Tortorella He spent two seasons as the head coach of the AHL’s Rochester Americans, winning the Calder Cup championship 30 years ago in 1995-96. Tortorella is already one of nine coaches to have won both the Calder Cup and the Stanley Cup. Golden Knights assistant coach John Stevens he is a member of the AHL Hall of Fame who won three Calder Cups as a player and one as a head coach, and an assistant. Joel Ward worked in that capacity with Henderson before being promoted to Vegas.
Carolina, making its first Stanley Cup Finals appearance in 20 years, is the AHL’s parent club Chicago wolves. The Hurricanes take the lead with a goal Taylor Hallwho scored 34 points in 26 games skied for the AHL’s Oklahoma City Barons in 2012-13.
Logan Stankovenwinner of the Dudley (Red) Garrett Memorial Award as the AHL’s outstanding rookie in 2023-24, leads the Hurricanes with nine postseason goals in 13 games. Stankoven recorded 24 goals and 33 assists for 57 points in 47 games with the Texas Stars that year.
The protector Jalen Chatfield and the goalkeeper Pyotr Kochetkov were members of Chicago wolves‘ 2022 Calder Cup Championship Team. Chicago is currently playing in the AHL’s Western Conference Finals, as the Hurricanes and Wolves look to become the first NHL/AHL teams to win titles in the same season since New Jersey and Albany in 1995.
Other AHL alumni on Carolina’s roster include a goaltender Frederik Andersenis 12-1 with a 1.41 goals-against average this postseason, and Jordan Martinook, Eric Robinsonformer AHL All-Stars Mark Jankowski, Sean Walker again Brandon Bussiagain Seth Jarviswho makes his pro debut with the Wolves in 2021.
Before partnering with the Hurricanes in 2021, the Wolves were Vegas’ AHL affiliate and reached the Calder Cup Finals in 2019.
The 2026 Stanley Cup Final begins tonight in Raleigh, NC
Operating since 1936 and celebrating its 90th season this year, the AHL serves as the top development league for all 32 teams in the National Hockey League. About 90 percent of today’s NHL players graduated from the American Hockey League, and more than 100 members of the Hockey Hall of Fame spent time in the AHL during their careers.
