The Atlantic Division was one of the best in the American Hockey League during the 2008-09. The Providence Bruins and Hartford Wolf Pack dominated, while the Lowell Devils once again finished last. Here's a recap of the Atlantic Division.

Hartford Wolf Pack
Record: 50-20-2-8, 110 points

Summary: The Hartford Wolf Pack enjoyed a stellar 2007-08 regular season. The season saw many changes for the Pack with Al Montoya being traded, the addition of Thomas Pock from the N.Y. Rangers, and making the playoffs for a tenth consecutive season.

Hartford was filled with talented players in all areas. Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau was in his first season with the Wolf Pack and enjoyed the best season of his career. Parenteau finished the season as Hartford’s leading scorer with 34 goals, 47 assists, and 81 points in 75 games. Andrew Hutchinson wasn’t only Hartford’s best defensemen, but he was the best in the league winning the Eddie Shore Award for the league’s most outstanding defensemen. Hutchinson recorded 18 goals, 46 assists, and 64 points in 67 games.

The departure of Al Montoya brought the end of an era in Hartford. Montoya spent two and a half seasons as Hartford’s number one goalie, but after a sluggish season and nowhere in the Rangers organization for him, Montoya was shipped to San Antonio in a deadline deal for David LeNeveu.

The Wolf Pack had an amazing run in the second half of the season losing only eight games in regulation. Hartford finished second to Providence in the Atlantic Division, and it was the seventh time Hartford has been runner-up in the division. Unfortunately, Hartford’s season ended in the first round when the Portland Pirates defeated them four games to one.

Lowell Devils
Record: 25-43-7-5, 62 points

Summary: What can be said about the Lowell Devils? Not much really, but here goes.

The Devils finished last in the Atlantic Division after a promising 2006-07 season, but they took a turn for the worse and finished the 2007-08 season at 25-43-7-5. They were 13-19-3-3 after the midway point, but winning just 12 games will get you nowhere.

Lowell had only two players with 20-plus goals, and no player averaged a point per game. The Devils had just one player with 50 or more points, and the only player on the active roster with a plus-minus rating on the even side was rookie Ryan Gunderson with a +1 in three games. Petr Vrana once again provided some life for Lowell, but there’s little he can do without support. Vrana had 20 goals, 41 assists, and 61 points in 80 games.

There’s not much that can be said Lowell’s fans. The Devils had a total attendance of 84,094 in 40 games which averaged to 2,102 fans per game. Can you blame the fans for not attending when the team is one of the worst in the league? Two years ago during the NHL lockout, Lowell averaged 3,635 fans per game, so I guess if you don’t do well in Lowell, the fans won’t come. Maybe it’s time for the Devils to pack up and move.

Manchester Monarchs
Record: 39-31-5-5, 88 points

Summary: At the midway point of the season, the Manchester Monarchs were a .500 team at best. A strong second half run helped the Monarchs advance to the postseason after advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals a season ago. Unfortunately, the Monarchs drew the Providence Bruins, the league’s best regular season team, in round one and were ousted in four games.

Rookie Teddy Purcell was simply amazing this season. Purcell finished third in the league in scoring with 25 goals, 58 assists, and 83 points in 67 games. Purcell couldn’t have done it on his own, so he did have some help from Brian Boyle, Gabe Gauthier, and Matt Moulson who combined for 82 goals, 96 assists, and 178 points.

Manchester used seven different goaltenders during the season, five of them being rookies. Erik Ersberg started the majority of the games, but when playoff time rolled around, Jonathan Quick was tabbed as the number one goaltender. Ersberg was recalled to the Los Angeles Kings on February 23 and spent the remainder of the season in Los Angeles. Quick made 19 regular season starts posting an 11-8-0 record, 2.32 GAA, .922 SV%, and three shutouts.

Manchester finished the regular season with the best power play in the league at 23.8%, but that wasn’t enough as the Monarchs exited in the first round against Providence.

Portland Pirates
Record: 45-26-5-4, 99 points

Summary: The Portland Pirates had an amazing season that saw them return to the postseason after a one year absence. An incredible second half run by Portland kept them in contention for second place in the Atlantic Division, but only winning three of the final ten kept the Pirates in third.

When taking a look at the Pirates roster, there really isn’t one player that could be considered a superstar by AHL standards. Andrew Ebbett was Portland’s leading scorer during the regular season with 18 goals, 54 assists, and 72 points in 74 games. Geoff Platt came over from Syracuse early in the season and produced 28 goals, 30 assists, and 58 points in 60 games with Portland.

Brian Salcido served at Portland’s top defensemen this season with 11 goals, 42 assists, and 53 points in 71 games which was up from his 27 points last season. Portland only had three players with 20 or more goals, but had eight players with 30 or more points. Mike McKenna served as the number one goalie for the majority of the season, but the Pirates turned to Jean-Sebastien Aubin in the playoffs.

The Pirates made enjoyed playoff success and beat powerhouses Hartford and Providence to advance to the Eastern Conference finals. They had the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on the brink of elimination, but lost two straight games to lose the series in seven games.

Providence Bruins
Record: 55-18-3-4, 117 points

Summary: After finishing the regular season as the AHL’s best team, the Providence Bruins continued their success in the first round of the playoffs with a four game sweep of the Manchester Monarchs, but were ousted by the Portland Pirates in six games in the Atlantic Division finals.

The Bruins had the perfect mix of offensive power, strong defense, and excellent goaltending. On paper the Bruins didn’t look as a team that could be a powerhouse, but they played together as a tight knit group and proved that they were determined for a good year.

Pascal Pelletier had an amazing season in his third season in Providence. Pelletier led the Bruins in scoring with 37 goals, 38 assists, and 75 points in 73 games. Pelletier was the only reason Providence had success this past season. Martins Karsums, Jeff Hoggan, and Matt Hendricks finished two, three, and four in scoring for Providence. Each player had 20 or more goals and 50 or more points.

The Bruins couldn’t have had a great year without Tuukka Rask. Rask finished the season at 27-13-2 with a 2.33 GAA and a .905 SV%. The rookie earned a recall to the Boston Bruins during the season, but the majority of his time was spent leading the baby Bruins to the top spot in the AHL and the most feared team heading into the playoffs.

Springfield Falcons
Record: 35-35-5-5, 80 points

Summary: After spending most of the season securely in fourth place in the Atlantic Division and a playoff berth on the horizon, the only thing preventing that was a major meltdown down the stretch. That’s exactly what happened in Springfield. The Falcons were five games above the .500 mark halfway through the season, but finished up the season with a .500 record.

Rob Schremp led the Falcons in scoring this season with 23 goals, 53 assists, and 76 points in 78 games. Springfield’s offense was second worse in the division behind the Lowell Devils. The Falcons only scored 214 goals on the season and the defense wasn’t any better. Springfield allowed 257 goals on the season which was an improvement from last season, but it wasn’t enough.

Jeff Deslauriers was given the opportunity to be the number one goalie and for the most part he had decent numbers, but a few close games cost the Falcons dearly during the season. Deslauriers finished the season at 26-23-5, 2.90 GAA, and a .912 SV%.
Springfield has no one to blame but themselves for them not making the playoffs.

Worcester Sharks
Record: 32-37-5-6, 75 points

Summary: The Worcester Sharks battled for most of the season to make the playoffs, but struggles in the second half forced the Sharks to a sixth place finish. Worcester has talented players, but unfortunately they couldn’t find the right chemistry to get into the postseason. Worcester had only two players with 20 or more goals.

Mike Iggulden led the Sharks in scoring with 29 goals, 37 assists, and 66 points in 78 games, but that’s basically a wash with a -19 rating. Graham Mink, in his second season in Worcester, saw his production decline with only 55 points in 71 games. Tom Cavanagh’s production increased to 55 points from 44 points last season, which was a positive for Worcester.

Defense was a struggle all season for the Sharks. Worcester allowed 258 goals which was second worse only to last place Lowell. The Sharks finished 28th in penalty killing which was a sore spot all season long.