Patrick Williams again will deliver the FloHockey AHL Power Rankings throughout the regular season.

It is a rare week when the Grand Rapids Griffins suffer a regulation defeat. But it happened last Friday, the first time that they have lost in regulation since November. Meanwhile, the Providence Bruins are flying through the Eastern Conference while the Bakersfield Condors, Ontario Reign, and San Jose Barracuda, all bolstered in net lately, are challenging in the Pacific Division.

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Let’s break down the top half of the AHL.

1) Grand Rapids Griffins (--)
It took 19 games and nearly two months, but somebody has managed to hand the Griffins their second regulation defeat of the season. After losing to the Texas Stars, 2-0, last Friday, the Griffins had the rest of the weekend off the AHL schedule.

2) Providence Bruins (+1)
Aside from a stumble last Saturday at Hartford, the P-Bruins came through their 3-in-3 weekend with two more wins. They will get three more games at home with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton visiting Wednesday followed by a pair of games against the Cleveland Monsters. With the Penguins starting to sag lately, the P-Bruins might well be the Eastern Conference’s team to beat, especially now that they are again healthy in net.

3) Colorado Eagles (-1)
Hanging 10 goals on the visitors in a pair of games marked a solid way for the Eagles to return home for 2026. Kyle Keyser had a 35-save shutout last Saturday. Even with Trent Miner with the parent Colorado Avalanche, the Eagles’ goaltending situation is solid with Keyser and rookie Isak Posch.

4) Ontario Reign (--)
Up until last Sunday’s 3-0 loss at Bakersfield, it had been a productive week for the Reign. They picked off both the Iowa Wild and Henderson Silver Knights at home. They have a demanding week ahead of them with back-to-back two-gamers at Colorado and Texas. Their trip to Colorado will be a first-place showdown.

5) San Jose Barracuda (+6)
An NHL-proven goaltender and a first-round pick have landed on the Barracuda roster and for minimal cost. Laurent Brossoit should solidify San Jose’s goaltending, a problem spot at points this season. Nolan Allan is another prospect for the burgeoning group of young talent that the San Jose Sharks are amassing. Amid a run of 12 of 14 games on the road, the next stop on the itinerary is a two-game visit to Tucson.

6) Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (-1)
A 5-1 win at Charlotte one night. A 5-1 loss in the same building against the same opponent the next night. The Penguins are struggling with three losses in their past four games; in those three losses, they have given up 17 goals. This is a team that has lost some significant talent since the beginning of the season, and it is starting to show.

7) Laval Rocket (--)
A bit of time at home remains for the Rocket, who will face the Belleville Senators and Manitoba Moose at Place Bell this week. Then it’s off to Western Canada for a trip that begins next week at Abbotsford. With Jacob Fowler still with the Montreal Canadiens, Laval’s net belongs to Kaapo Kähkönen, who has been taking a heavy batch of assignments lately.

8) Bakersfield Condors (+2)
More and more this Condors team is looking like it will compete with the Pacific Division’s top teams. Connor Ungar has joined the Condors from the ECHL and has immediately helped in net. He shut out Ontario last Sunday. Unheralded, undrafted, and playing at Brock University two years ago, he will be an Edmonton Oilers prospect to watch closely. With a 6-0-1-0 streak, they will head to Calgary this weekend to face the Wranglers twice.

9) Chicago Wolves (--)
It was a 3-in-3 weekend for the Wolves, albeit with minimal travel. They came out with a pair of wins. Another three-game weekend awaits. With Grand Rapids running away, the season’s second-half objective now is to secure at least third place in the Central Division to avoid the Griffins for as long as possible in the postseason.

10) Charlotte Checkers (-2)
The nature of Charlotte’s schedule means alternating long stretches at home and away. With four home games this week, the Checkers need to pile up some points here. Another road trip awaits them after this weekend. And when they do return home at the end of January, they will head right into a daunting gauntlet of back-to-back sets against Providence and Grand Rapids.

11) Lehigh Valley Phantoms (NR)
Last Sunday’s loss at Providence ended the Phantoms’ 6-0-1-0 surge, but they have put themselves firmly in the Atlantic Division’s upper half. With two of their next three games against the Bridgeport Islanders, they have an opportunity to gobble up more points. Aggressive work by the parent Philadelphia Flyers in the first half has really helped to refine this team’s roster.

12) Syracuse Crunch (-6)
A lot like the Penguins, one night the Crunch look great. Another night they manage 15 shots and lose to the last-place Utica Comets, 3-0. They salvaged their week by defeating Laval at home, but the Crunch have been an inconsistent group.

13) Rochester Americans (+1)
The Amerks’ win-one-lose-one-win-one pattern continues. That kind of work is enough to keep the Amerks above the North Division playoff line, but they will need to show a lot more in the second half to be considered serious contenders.

14) Coachella Valley Firebirds (-1)
Until the Firebirds can shore up their defensive game and penalty kill, it is going to be difficult to vault into the AHL’s elite.

15) Manitoba Moose (+1)
Something to watch will be how the parent Winnipeg Jets decide to proceed with the rest of their season. If the Jets, 31st in the NHL right now, opt to break up their roster going toward the NHL trade deadline, the Moose could be impacted significantly by recalls. The time is now for this team to start to play to its potential.

16) Cleveland Monsters (NR)
Now that the Columbus Blue Jackets have made a head-coaching change, what does this mean for the Monsters? Will some of their young talent like Luca Del Bel Belluz and Luca Pinelli get a longer look in Columbus?

Out
Henderson Silver Knights

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