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The 1996 Calder Cup playoffs of the American Hockey League began on April 19, 1996.[ 1] The sixteen teams that qualified, eight from each conference, played best-of-five series for division semifinals and best-of-seven series for division finals and conference finals. The conference champions played a best-of-seven series for the Calder Cup . The Calder Cup Final ended on June 13, 1996, with the Rochester Americans defeating the Portland Pirates four games to three to win the sixth Calder Cup in team history.[ 2] Rochester's Dixon Ward won the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as AHL playoff MVP .[ 3]
The Saint John Flames set an AHL playoff record by winning six games in overtime. This record was equaled by the Milwaukee Admirals in 2004 .[ 4]
After the 1995-96 AHL regular season , 16 teams qualified for the playoffs. The top four teams from each division qualified for the playoffs. However, due to the uneven number of teams in the each conference, it was possible for the fifth-placed team in the five team divisions to crossover to the playoffs for the four team divisions. This could only happen if the fifth-placed team in a five team division earned more points than the fourth-placed team in the four team division in the same conference. In this case, the fifth-placed team from the five team division would play in place of the fourth-placed team from the four team division in that part of the playoff bracket. The Albany River Rats were the Southern Conference regular season champions and also had the best overall record for the regular season. The Springfield Falcons were the Northern Conference regular season champions.[ 5]
Northern Conference [ edit ]
Prince Edward Island Senators - 85 points
Saint John Flames - 85 points
St. John's Maple Leafs - 80 points
Fredericton Canadiens - 79 points
Springfield Falcons - Northern Conference regular season champions, 100 points
Worcester IceCats - 88 points
Portland Pirates - 78 points
Providence Bruins - 74 points
Southern Conference [ edit ]
Albany River Rats - Southern Conference regular season champions; Best regular season record, 115 points
Adirondack Red Wings - 86 points
Rochester Americans - 83 points
Cornwall Aces - 80 points
Syracuse Crunch - 74 points (Played in the South Division bracket by virtue of earning more points than the fourth-placed team in that division)
Binghamton Rangers - 88 points
Hershey Bears - 86 points
Baltimore Bandits - 77 points
In each round the team that earned more points during the regular season receives home ice advantage, meaning they receive the "extra" game on home-ice if the series reaches the maximum number of games. There is no set series format due to arena scheduling conflicts and travel considerations.[ 6]
Division Semifinals [ edit ]
Note 1: All times are in Eastern Time (UTC-4 ).
Note 2: Game times in italics signify games to be played only if necessary.
Note 3: Home team is listed first.
Note 4: The number of overtime periods played (where applicable) is not specified
Northern Conference [ edit ]
(A1) Prince Edward Island Senators vs. (A4) Fredericton Canadiens[ edit ]
April 19
Prince Edward Island Senators
4 - 7
Fredericton Canadiens
April 20
Prince Edward Island Senators
7 - 3
Fredericton Canadiens
April 26
Fredericton Canadiens
6 - 5
OT
Prince Edward Island Senators
April 27
Fredericton Canadiens
5 - 6
OT
Prince Edward Island Senators
April 29
Prince Edward Island Senators
3 - 5
Fredericton Canadiens
Fredericton won series 3 – 2
(A2) Saint John Flames vs. (A3) St. John's Maple Leafs[ edit ]
April 21
Saint John Flames
2 - 3
St. John's Maple Leafs
April 23
Saint John Flames
2 - 1
OT
St. John's Maple Leafs
April 26
St. John's Maple Leafs
2 - 3
Saint John Flames
April 27
St. John's Maple Leafs
3 - 4
OT
Saint John Flames
Saint John won series 3 - 1
(N1) Springfield Falcons vs. (N4) Providence Bruins[ edit ]
April 19
Springfield Falcons
3 - 6
Providence Bruins
April 20
Springfield Falcons
3 - 2
Providence Bruins
April 26
Providence Bruins
4 - 5
OT
Springfield Falcons
April 27
Providence Bruins
3 - 4
OT
Springfield Falcons
Springfield won series 3 – 1
(N2) Worcester IceCats vs. (N3) Portland Pirates[ edit ]
April 19
Worcester IceCats
0 - 5
Portland Pirates
April 20
Worcester IceCats
2 - 1
Portland Pirates
April 26
Portland Pirates
6 - 5
OT
Worcester IceCats
April 27
Portland Pirates
3 - 2
Worcester IceCats
Portland won series 3 - 1
Southern Conference [ edit ]
(C1) Albany River Rats vs. (C4) Cornwall Aces[ edit ]
April 21
Albany River Rats
5 - 0
Cornwall Aces
April 22
Albany River Rats
2 - 3
Cornwall Aces
April 24
Cornwall Aces
3 - 0
Albany River Rats
April 26
Cornwall Aces
2 - 1
OT
Albany River Rats
Cornwall won series 3 - 1
(C2) Adirondack Red Wings vs. (C3) Rochester Americans[ edit ]
April 19
Adirondack Red Wings
1 - 4
Rochester Americans
April 20
Adirondack Red Wings
1 - 3
Rochester Americans
April 26
Rochester Americans
6 - 0
Adirondack Red Wings
Rochester won series 3 - 0
(S1) Binghamton Rangers vs. (C5) Syracuse Crunch[ edit ]
April 19
Binghamton Rangers
8 - 5
Syracuse Crunch
April 20
Binghamton Rangers
0 - 6
Syracuse Crunch
April 26
Syracuse Crunch
4 - 3
OT
Binghamton Rangers
April 27
Syracuse Crunch
6 - 3
Binghamton Rangers
Syracuse won series 3 - 1
(S2) Hershey Bears vs. (S3) Baltimore Bandits[ edit ]
April 19
Hershey Bears
2 - 5
Baltimore Bandits
April 20
Baltimore Bandits
3 - 2
OT
Hershey Bears
April 24
Hershey Bears
7 - 5
Baltimore Bandits
April 26
Baltimore Bandits
2 - 4
Hershey Bears
April 28
Hershey Bears
3 - 4
OT
Baltimore Bandits
Baltimore won series 3 - 2
Northern Conference [ edit ]
(A2) Saint John Flames vs. (A4) Fredericton Canadiens[ edit ]
May 3
Saint John Flames
5 - 0
Fredericton Canadiens
May 5
Saint John Flames
1 - 5
Fredericton Canadiens
May 8
Fredericton Canadiens
4 - 5
OT
Saint John Flames
May 10
Fredericton Canadiens
3 - 4
OT
Saint John Flames
May 12
Saint John Flames
4 - 3
Fredericton Canadiens
Saint John won series 4 - 1
(N1) Springfield Falcons vs. (N3) Portland Pirates[ edit ]
May 2
Springfield Falcons
3 - 4
Portland Pirates
May 3
Springfield Falcons
5 - 1
Portland Pirates
May 5
Portland Pirates
7 - 2
Springfield Falcons
May 8
Portland Pirates
6 - 0
Springfield Falcons
May 10
Springfield Falcons
4 - 3
Portland Pirates
May 11
Portland Pirates
6 - 4
Springfield Falcons
Portland won series 4 - 2
Southern Conference [ edit ]
(C3) Rochester Americans vs. (C4) Cornwall Aces[ edit ]
May 1
Rochester Americans
3 - 2
Cornwall Aces
May 3
Rochester Americans
6 - 3
Cornwall Aces
May 5
Cornwall Aces
1 - 3
Rochester Americans
May 7
Cornwall Aces
2 - 3
OT
Rochester Americans
Rochester won series 4 - 0
(S3) Baltimore Bandits vs. (C5) Syracuse Crunch[ edit ]
May 1
Baltimore Bandits
4 - 3
OT
Syracuse Crunch
May 3
Baltimore Bandits
0 - 3
Syracuse Crunch
May 6
Syracuse Crunch
7 - 5
Baltimore Bandits
May 8
Syracuse Crunch
4 - 1
Baltimore Bandits
May 10
Baltimore Bandits
5 - 4
Syracuse Crunch
May 12
Syracuse Crunch
1 - 7
Baltimore Bandits
May 14
Baltimore Bandits
4 - 5
Syracuse Crunch
Syracuse won series 4 - 3
Northern Conference [ edit ]
(A2) Saint John Flames vs. (N3) Portland Pirates[ edit ]
May 16
Saint John Flames
3 - 2
OT
Portland Pirates
May 18
Saint John Flames
1 - 7
Portland Pirates
May 21
Portland Pirates
4 - 1
Saint John Flames
May 24
Portland Pirates
1 - 4
Saint John Flames
May 25
Portland Pirates
2 - 3
OT
Saint John Flames
May 27
Saint John Flames
2 - 5
Portland Pirates
May 29
Saint John Flames
0 - 5
Portland Pirates
Portland won series 4 - 3
Southern Conference [ edit ]
(C3) Rochester Americans vs. (C5) Syracuse Crunch[ edit ]
May 17
Rochester Americans
5 - 2
Syracuse Crunch
May 19
Rochester Americans
6 - 4
Syracuse Crunch
May 22
Syracuse Crunch
4 - 2
Rochester Americans
May 24
Syracuse Crunch
1 - 4
Rochester Americans
May 25
Rochester Americans
6 - 5
OT
Syracuse Crunch
Rochester won series 4 - 1
(C3) Rochester Americans vs. (N3) Portland Pirates[ edit ]
June 1
Rochester Americans
5 - 3
Portland Pirates
June 2
Rochester Americans
5 - 1
Portland Pirates
June 5
Portland Pirates
3 - 2
Rochester Americans
June 8
Portland Pirates
5 - 4
Rochester Americans
June 9
Portland Pirates
4 - 5
OT
Rochester Americans
June 11
Rochester Americans
1 - 5
Portland Pirates
June 13
Rochester Americans
2 - 1
Portland Pirates
Rochester won series 4 - 3
Preceded by
Calder Cup playoffs 1996
Succeeded by
Eastern Conference Western Conference