SAN DIEGO – The results speak for themselves. In a year when American Hockey League affiliate Coachella Valley started the season with the third-youngest roster among 32 AHL teams, the Firebirds overcame key injuries and absences among veterans to make the playoffs and earn home-ice advantage for the first round of the imminent Calder Cup Playoffs. CVF finished fourth in the highly competitive Pacific Division, set to play a best-of-three series against either San Jose or Calgary pending a final regular-season matchup between the two teams in Calgary Sunday afternoon. The playoff series starts Tuesday.
The accomplishment shines up when you consider veteran captain Max McCormick played only 19 games this year, due to a long-term lower body injury. He was a stalwart clutch scorer and leader in the first two seasons, both bearing Western Conference championships. Veteran John Hayden (top-six forward) and Cale Fleury (first-pair defenseman) played key roles for the Firebirds' playoff runs but missed half the season due to call-ups to the Kraken roster. Center Mitchell Stephens, who will play a big part in the CVF postseason, is another NHL-tested skater who effectively split the season between Seattle and Coachella Valley.
“If you look at our season this year, we battled a lot of adversity in our group,” said first-year CVF head coach Derek Laxdal, who has postseason championships on his hockey resume. “It's those moments and that adversity [including a rough home-game stretch in March and April] that's going to help us going forward. We open up on Tuesday night, and I liked our effort [this weekend]. I've seen a lot of little pieces to our game get better. I think that'll be important. And, you know, whoever we get, San Jose or Calgary, it's going to be a tough series for us. It's going to be a tough series for them. That’s playoff hockey.”
Prospects to the Rescue
Reinforcements came aplenty among Kraken prospects: 2022 second-rounder Jani Nyman scored 28 goals and likely would have pushed past 30 in his first AHL season, except he played 12 games and scored three goals for the Kraken. His Finnish countryman and southern California roommate, goalie Nikke Kokko, was named to the AHL All-Rookie First Team, leading all AHL goalies in wins with 20 and finishing top 10 among all AHL goalies in save percentage (.913) and goals-against average (2.26). Firebirds goalie Colin Zulianello deserves sizeable credit for his program of bringing the goalie prospect along step-by-step this season, setting up Kokko for the postseason.
Forward Ryan Winterton (third round, 2021) delivered 18 goals and 19 assists to be the Firebirds' fourth-leading scorer, but missed the 20-plus mark for a second straight season because he was called up for 12 NHL appearances. CVF rookie Jagger Firkus (second round, 2022) finished his rookie AHL year with 15 goals and 20 assists to rank sixth in team scoring. Undrafted prospect Logan Morrison finished third in scoring (14 G, 27 A) in year two as a pro, coming on strong in the 2024-25 second half.
What's more, there could be two more reinforcements for the postseason. Kraken 2024 second-rounder Nathan Villeneuve joined the CVF group after his juniors season ended and looks playoff-ready on a possible grind line with 2021 fifth-rounder Jacob Melanson (who has been playing solid hockey upon his return from a broken leg that disrupted a promising start to his year). Kraken 2023 fourth-round forward Andrei Lashko, who recently signed an entry-level contract, joined the AHL roster after his juniors season. The Belarus native played his first game Saturday at San Diego, scoring his first two AHL goals on his first two professional shots on goal in a hard-fought 5-4 overtime loss, with the Firebirds ending the season at 37-26-9.
