The puck will drop in tonight’s Central Division finals as Grand Rapids and Chicago renew their rivalry in Game 1 at Van Andel Arena (7 ET, 
).
This will be the seventh postseason meeting between the teams — including Chicago’s win in the 2000 Turner Cup final when both were members of the International Hockey League — and the first since the 2019 Calder Cup semifinal, which the Wolves won three games to two.
The Griffins are the only winners remaining in the Calder Cup hunt after defeating Manitoba in three games in the final round. Providence, Laval and Ontario were all eliminated, making this the first season since 2014 in which the top three clubs failed to win at least one playoff series.
Grand Rapids posted a 29-1-1-1 record to start the season, opening a 24-point lead over the second-place Wolves in early January. But the second half of the season was a much closer race; from Jan. 9 on, the Griffins (.588) had the third-best record in the division behind Texas (.641) and Chicago (.607).
“They’re a dangerous team,” the Grand Rapids head coach said Dan Watson said the Foxes. “They can score, they swing very well, they’re in good shape… They were able to knock off a good Texas team. I expect another tough fight.”
Michal Postava registered a 1.11 goals-against average and .956 save percentage over six appearances (first five games) against Chicago during the regular season, and is coming off a series win at Manitoba in which he allowed five goals on 91 shots (3-1, 1.25, .945). wolves’ Cayden Primeau (3-2, 2.27, .918) had a 1.48 GAA and a .948 save percentage against the Griffins in 2025-26.
The North Division finals go tonight at Rocket Arena (7 ET, ) with Cleveland and Toronto both coming off series upset wins.
The Marlies knocked off the top-seeded Laval Rocket with a Game 5 win at Place Bell, while the Monsters used two overtime victories on the road — including a triple-OT clincher — to get past second-place Syracuse.
The teams split their eight meetings during the regular season, although three of Cleveland’s four wins came by blowout. In Toronto Logan Shaw led all scorers with 12 points (4-8-12) in the season series.
“Cleveland is a great team,” said the Marlies forward Reese Johnson. “We had good games against them in the regular season. We want to stick to our game plan and do the things we do that are successful.”
Vinnie Lettieri (5-4-9), who scored the game-winning goal in Game 5 against Laval on Saturday, is the Marlies’ leading playoff scorer so far. William Villeneuve (1-7-8) leads all AHL defensemen in scoring this postseason.
On the other hand, nine different skaters accounted for 10 goals for Cleveland in their series against Syracuse, and Luca Del Belluz (0-4-4) recorded four assists.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton will host Springfield in Game 2 of the Atlantic Division finals tonight (7:05 ET, ) after a 2-0 decision in Tuesday’s opener gave the Penguins the early lead in the series.
Bill ZonnonPittsburgh’s first-round pick (22nd overall) in the 2025 NHL Draft, made his pro debut Tuesday and scored the game-winning goal. Zonnon, 19, joined the Penguins last week after his junior campaign with Blainville-Boisbriand of the QMJHL, where he scored 46 points in 35 games this season.
“It was a lot of fun. To be honest, I don’t remember the last time I played this great game,” said Zonnon. “I want to help the team as much as I can.
Sergei Murashov made 24 saves in Game 1, notching his first shutout in the playoffs. Murashov (4-1, 1.59, .947) gave up eight goals in his five starts.
“Sergei was great,” the head coach Kirk MacDonald said. “He made the saves he had to make. We defended well, we stuck to our game plan. I liked our game overall.”
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton was able to dampen Springfield’s momentum in the series after an emotional upset of Providence in the sectional semifinals.
“Obviously they’ve been on a long run, not just in the playoffs,” MacDonald said. “We want to hit first in any playoff series. You want to get off on the right foot, feel good about yourself, and the guys did a good job of it.”
George Romanov (5-2, 1.50, .950) made his seventh straight start for the Thunderbirds and turned away 23 shots in Game 1. He has allowed two goals or fewer in all of his appearances this postseason.
Springfield faced a series deficit in the first round after an 8-1 loss to Charlotte, then won two over the Checkers before taking three of four from the Bruins in the previous round. So this is not an unusual position for a head coach Steve Ott and his team.
“It doesn’t matter if you lose 8-1 or 2-0, it’s a loss,” Ott said. “We’ll make a few changes and be ready to go. We came back strong and I expect the same.”
