Inside The Rink

The Hamilton Hammers enter the 2026-27 AHL season facing a unique challenge: building a franchise from the ground up. The former Bridgeport Islanders relocated to Hamilton during the offseason, becoming the New York Islanders’ new AHL affiliate. The Hammers will play their inaugural season in Hamilton after the AHL approved the relocation. They will also become the eighth team in the North Division.

A new contract for Mikkola has him signed long-term with the Cats, keeping their second pairing together through at least 2030, when Jones is up for an extension. The Mikkola-Jones duo has been an absolute stud for the Panthers since they acquired Seth Jones, and they were one of the strongest parts of last year’s team before Jones went down with a broken collarbone.

The Grand Rapids Griffins enter the 2026-27 AHL season looking to build on a record-breaking 2025-26 campaign. Grand Rapids earned the top seed in the Central Division last season and advanced to the Central Division Finals before the Chicago Wolves ended its playoff run. The Griffins defeated the Manitoba Moose in four games to reach the division finals, marking their second trip to that round in three seasons.

The Trois-Rivières Lions have announced that they’ve signed defenseman Marcus Tesink for the 2026-27 season. Tesink, 28, has spent the last three seasons in the EIHL with the Guildford Flames, where he had five goals and 25 assists for 30 points in 145 games. He would add six assists in 32 EIHL Cup. During his final season with the Flames, he played alongside Jake Gravelle. Trois-Rivières now has 12 forwards, six defensemen, and a goaltender signed for the 2026-27 season.

The Adirondack Thunder have announced that Tadd Sipowicz has been named the President of the Thunder as well as the GM of Harding Mazzotti Arena, replacing Jeff Mead, who is no longer an employee of the Thunder or the Arena. Mead had served as the team’s president since 2017, and the team has made the Kelly Cup Playoffs five times under his tenure, including two appearances in the Eastern Conference Finals.

It is a familiar sound, but the name may not be as familiar to those outside the inner workings of the New York Islanders franchise. It’s kind of an “if you know, you know” situation. It could be like pulling back the curtain to reveal the wizard behind the familiar tunes surrounding the Islanders. Walking to your seat, down the steps at UBS Arena, carrying concessions and feeling the coolness coming off the ice, you may hear a few notes from an organ, a common sound at a game.

It’s that point in the offseason across the league. Well, for every team but my Detroit Red Wings. But instead of wallowing in misery any longer, I’ve decided to do a feel-good piece and one that gets every fanbase involved. Nathan MacKinnon, Connor McDavid, and Nikita Kucherov may be the best players in the league, but that doesn’t make them the most likable. A lot of these guys have caused major heartbreaks for other fans due to their game-breaking talent.

The National Hockey League’s training camps are around the corner, which means it’s time for the young guns to showcase what they have in rookie camps in order to get the call to the big camp for a chance to start the season in the NHL this year. The Utah Mammoth posted their rookie camp roster on social media Tuesday, including names native to Tucson Roadrunners fans like Owen Allard, Michael Hrabal, Daniil But and Artem Duda.

The 2026-27 season will begin in just four weeks from today. In today’s look at the upcoming season, the top ten goalies for the 2026-27 season will be ranked. Reminder: This comes into play if someone like Michael DiPietro does not make the Bruins; then he would jump to the top of this list along with Sergei Murashov, who would be behind DiPietro if he doesn’t make the Penguins.

The Colorado Eagles enter the 2026-27 AHL season with plenty of momentum after putting together one of the best seasons in franchise history. Colorado finished the 2025-26 regular season with a 41-20-6-5 record before making its first trip to the Western Conference Finals. The Eagles pushed the Chicago Wolves to a decisive Game 7 but ultimately fell short of reaching the Calder Cup Final. Now, Colorado will try to take the next step while continuing to develop prospects for the Colorado Avalanche.