NHL call-ups return, AHL playoff teams get late-season boost

Bridgeport suddenly looks a lot deeper, and that may be the most consequential late-season swing in the Calder Cup field. The Islanders got back Viktor Eklund, Liam Foudy, Cal Ritchie and defenseman Isaiah George from Long Island, turning what had been a hold-the-line roster into one with legitimate playoff reinforcements just as the AHL regular season moved toward its April 19 finish.

Ritchie is the headliner. The 19-year-old center posted 30 points, including 13 goals and 17 assists, in 62 NHL games this season, a step that says as much about his organizational standing as it does his scoring touch. Eklund’s return matters too. After making his NHL debut, he came back to Bridgeport and scored in a 5-2 win at Hartford, giving him 10 points, three goals and seven assists, in only eight AHL games. For a club that still has games at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Hershey before the postseason begins, those are not cosmetic additions. They can change a series.

Charlotte may have the most established playoff floor. Florida sent back Michael Benning, Wilmer Skoog, Marek Alscher, Ludvig Jansson, Mikulas Hovorka and Tobias Bjornfot after its season-ending 8-1 win over Detroit, and the Checkers have already locked up third place in the Atlantic Division. That gives Charlotte home-ice advantage in a best-of-three first-round series next week, a major edge for the reigning Eastern Conference champion, especially after a week when the roster took on a much more finished look.

Coachella Valley is the other team that stands out because the Firebirds already know exactly what this stage feels like. Seattle returned Oscar Fisker Mølgaard, who produced 33 points, 10 goals and 23 assists, in 47 games during his first AHL season, while Jani Nyman’s NHL stint made him eligible to come back after a run of 21 goals and 12 assists in 38 games. Coachella Valley, which clinched its berth on April 4, also added Cooper Marody on March 12 to deepen a group that reached the Calder Cup Finals in both 2023 and 2024.

The broader picture is just as striking. Eleven playoff-bound AHL teams have NHL parent clubs that are not moving on to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, giving Bridgeport, Charlotte, Coachella Valley, Cleveland, Grand Rapids, Hershey, Manitoba, Milwaukee, San Jose, Springfield and Toronto a real chance to load up before a 23-team playoff bracket begins its five-round march. In a short series, a fresh line, a sharper power play or one more experienced defender can matter as much as seeding.