The ECHL season has been underway for two weekends. While there are still a lot of unknowns I am going to give you my predictions for every division, the Kelly Cup Playoffs, and the end of season awards. With many call-ups bound to happen this list will most likely change drastically, but that’s the fun of predictions.
Division Standings
Z- Denotes Brabham Cup Winner
North
- Newfoundland Growlers
- Reading Royals
- Brampton Beast
- Adirondack Thunder
- Maine Mariners
- Worcester Railers
South
- South Carolina Stingrays
- Florida Everblades
- Greenville Swamp Rabbits
- Atlanta Gladiators
- Orlando Solar Bears
- Jacksonville Icemen
- Norfolk Admirals
Central
- Z-Toledo Walleye
- Wheeling Nailers
- Fort Wayne Komets
- Cincinnati Cyclones
- Indy Fuel
- Kalamazoo Wings
Mountain
- Idaho Steelheads
- Tulsa Oilers
- Allen Americans
- Rapid City Rush
- Utah Grizzlies
- Wichita Thunder
- Kansas City Mavericks
Kelly Cup Playoffs
North
#1 Newfoundland Growlers def. #4 Adirondack Thunder 4-1
#3 Brampton Beast def. #2 Reading Royals 4-3
Newfoundland Growlers def. Brampton Beast 4-3
South
#1 South Carolina Stingrays def. #4 Atlanta Gladiators 4-1
#3 Greenville Swamp Rabbits def. #2 Florida Everblades 4-3
South Carolina Stingrays def. Greenville Swamp Rabbits 4-2
Central
#1 Toledo Walleye def. #4 Cincinnati Cyclones 4-2
#2 Wheeling Nailers def. #3 Fort Wayne Komets 4-3
Toledo Walleye def. Wheeling Nailers 4-3
Mountain
#1 Idaho Steelheads def. #4 Rapid City Rush 4-1
#2 Tulsa Oilers def. #3 Allen Americans 4-3
Idaho Steelheads def Tulsa Oilers 4-2
Conference Championships
Eastern: Newfoundland Growlers def. South Carolina Stingrays 4-1
Western: Idaho Steelheads def. Toledo Walleye 4-3
Kelly Cup Cup
Idaho Steelheads def. Newfoundland Growlers 4-3
Awards
With the season being so young and many call-ups bound to happen I am going to give you 5 players I think will be in contention for the 4 major awards contingent on call-ups.
Rookie of the Year
- Colt Conrad, Newfoundland Growlers
- Karl El-Mir, Indy Fuel
- Brandon Hawkins, Wheeling Nailers
- Scott Conway, Atlanta Gladiators
- Alex Rodriguez, Norfolk Admirals
ECHL MVP
- Josh Dickinson, Utah Grizzlies
- Spencer Watson, Indy Fuel
- Colt Conrad, Newfoundland Growlers
- Shawn Szydlowski, Fort Wayne Komets
- Cam Brown, Wheeling Nailers
Goalie of the Year
- Michael Houser, Cincinnati Cyclones
- Thomas Sholl, Idaho Steelheads
- Pat Nagle, Toledo Walleye
- Devin Williams, Tulsa Oilers
- Sean Bonar, Atlanta Gladiators
Defensemen of the Year
- Eric Knodel, Reading Royals
- Logan Roe, Florida Everblades
- Stephan Falkovsky, Allen Americans
- Matt Petgrave, Brampton Beast
- Keoni Texiera, Indy Fuel
In the next few weeks we are going to name the Best ECHL Goal Horn via a Facebook poll on our Facebook page. All 26 teams will be involved.
Featured Photo Credit: Kyle Hernandez-GCSN
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