Series could set an AHL record if it makes it to Game 6
With building conflicts on both sides of the conference, it's a weird Calder Cup Finals schedule this year. Two sets of three games in four nights and gaps of four and three off days between games set up the strange schedule. However, it's all due to building availability.
The Mile One Centre has had this weekend booked for the Canadian Anesthesiologists' Society annual meeting since 2009. At that point, the IceCaps were still in Manitoba as the Moose and no one knew there would be a team in the city for another two years. To be fair, if there's one group of people you want to be good at planning ahead for things, it's anesthesiologists.
The schedule may actually make history if it goes to six games. June 19th or 23rd would be the latest in the year that the AHL has ever concluded its season in more than 75 years as a league. To this point, the latest the Cup has been won was by Grand Rapids on last year's June 18th date in Game 6 at Syracuse. If St. John's wins another game, Game 6 will be guaranteed, which will break that record.
What will not set a record is the gap in play that the teams will see this series. Four days is nothing in the history of the AHL. Going back just 25 years reveals a seven day gap in 1989's series between the Adirondack Red Wigns and New Haven Nighthawks. After the Red Wings won Game 4 by a 6-0 score to go up 3-1 in the series, they had seven days offs before playing again. They closed out the series in a wild offensive duel, which they won 10-7. Further analysis of the years since shows a lot of four day gaps. Of course, most of those came as teams switched cities in the series.
Texas even took part in a long delay in the Finals in their first year. Hershey wrapped up their Conference Finals on May 22 and Texas finished theirs on May 26. The two teams wouldn't square off for the Cup until June 3rd due to building availability issues at GIANT Center. That was a gap of seven days for Texas and eleven for the Bears.
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| Mile One Centre before Game 3 (Credit: Colin Peddle) |
The Mile One Centre has had this weekend booked for the Canadian Anesthesiologists' Society annual meeting since 2009. At that point, the IceCaps were still in Manitoba as the Moose and no one knew there would be a team in the city for another two years. To be fair, if there's one group of people you want to be good at planning ahead for things, it's anesthesiologists.
The schedule may actually make history if it goes to six games. June 19th or 23rd would be the latest in the year that the AHL has ever concluded its season in more than 75 years as a league. To this point, the latest the Cup has been won was by Grand Rapids on last year's June 18th date in Game 6 at Syracuse. If St. John's wins another game, Game 6 will be guaranteed, which will break that record.
What will not set a record is the gap in play that the teams will see this series. Four days is nothing in the history of the AHL. Going back just 25 years reveals a seven day gap in 1989's series between the Adirondack Red Wigns and New Haven Nighthawks. After the Red Wings won Game 4 by a 6-0 score to go up 3-1 in the series, they had seven days offs before playing again. They closed out the series in a wild offensive duel, which they won 10-7. Further analysis of the years since shows a lot of four day gaps. Of course, most of those came as teams switched cities in the series.
Texas even took part in a long delay in the Finals in their first year. Hershey wrapped up their Conference Finals on May 22 and Texas finished theirs on May 26. The two teams wouldn't square off for the Cup until June 3rd due to building availability issues at GIANT Center. That was a gap of seven days for Texas and eleven for the Bears.
That's a great pic... Peddle really does a good job in capturing the game.
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