23-team playoff format officially approved by the Board of Governors for 2025
The American Hockey League (AHL) Board of Governors has approved keeping the 23-team playoff format for the 2024-25 season.
According to Tony Androckitis of InsideAHLhockey.com, the AHL will stick with the expanded playoff format for one more year, and will review potential changes next summer when the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) expires.
The AHL's Board of Governors has approved the format for one more year, sources tell InsideAHLHockey.com, meaning that the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs will remain unchanged from the previous format from the previous three playoffs.
The decision to extend the playoff format for only one year came to fruition as a way to revisit the topic next summer when the current AHL CBA expires." Androckitis said.
In 2022, the AHL expanded its playoff format from 16 to 23 teams to help teams generate extra revenue following the COVID-19 lockdowns. This format includes an additional best-of-three "First Round" featuring six teams from the Eastern Conference and eight from the Western Conference.
The current structure is as follows:
Pacific Division: The first-place team gets a bye to the "Division Semifinals," while the second to seventh place teams compete for the remaining three spots in round two.
North and Central Divisions: The top-three teams get a bye to the second round, with the fourth and fifth place teams facing off in the first round.
Atlantic Division: The top-two teams get a bye to round two, while the third to sixth place teams play in the best-of-three first round.
It will be interesting to see what changes, if any, the AHL will implement when their CBA expires next summer. Many believe that returning to the traditional 16-team playoff format, which was in place from 1996 to 2019, would be a smart move.
Source: bladeofsteelBoard of Governors approves 23-team playoff format in 2025
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