| Calder Cup playoffs | |
| Year: | 2016 |
| Dates: | April 20 – June 11, 2016 |
| Num Teams: | 16 |
| Winners: | Lake Erie Monsters |
| Second: | Hershey Bears |
| Prev Season: | 2015 |
| Next Season: | 2017 |
The 2016 Calder Cup playoffs were held from April 20 to June 11, 2016, to determine the season champion of the American Hockey League (AHL).[1] The 16 teams that qualified, eight from each conference, played best-of-five series in the division semifinals, then best-of-seven series for the division finals, conference finals, and Calder Cup finals. In the finals, the Lake Erie Monsters defeated the Hershey Bears in a four-game sweep to win the Calder Cup for the first time in franchise history.[2] It was the 10th time the Calder Cup was won by a team representing Cleveland, as the Cleveland Barons won nine titles during their history (1937–1973).
After the 2015–16 AHL regular season, 16 teams qualified for the playoffs. The top four teams in each division ranked by points percentage (points earned divided by points available) qualify for the 2016 Calder Cup Playoffs, with one exception in each conference: if the fifth-place team in the Atlantic or Central Division finishes with a better points percentage than the fourth-place team in the North or Pacific Division, it would cross over and compete in the other division's bracket.
At the end of the regular season, the following teams qualified (with points percentage):
These are the top ten skaters based on points. If there is a tie in points, goals take precedence over assists.
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/– = Plus–minus; PIM = Penalty minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| align=left | Toronto Marlies | 15 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 12 | ||
| align=left | Hershey Bears | 21 | 6 | 11 | 17 | 2 | ||
| align=left | Lake Erie Monsters | 17 | 10 | 6 | 16 | 2 | ||
| align=left | Lake Erie Monsters | 17 | 9 | 7 | 16 | 18 | ||
| align=left | Hershey Bears | 21 | 8 | 6 | 14 | 2 | ||
| align=left | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins | 10 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 0 | ||
| align=left | Lake Erie Monsters | 17 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 2 | ||
| align=left | Lake Erie Monsters | 17 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 8 | ||
| align=left | Lake Erie Monsters | 15 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 24 | ||
| align=left | Lake Erie Monsters | 17 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 4 |
This is a combined table of the top five goaltenders based on goals against average and the top five goaltenders based on save percentage with at least 180 minutes played. The table is initially sorted by goals against average, with the criterion for inclusion in bold.
GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; SA = Shots against; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; SV% = Save percentage; SO = Shutouts; TOI = Time on ice (in minutes)
| Player | Team | GP | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 9 | 0 | 255 | 13 | 1.34 | .949 | 2 | 583:58 | |||
| 20 | 11 | 9 | 567 | 44 | 2.13 | .922 | 2 | 1242:20 | |||
| 5 | 2 | 3 | 146 | 12 | 2.13 | .918 | 0 | 338:20 | |||
| 13 | 7 | 6 | 301 | 29 | 2.18 | .904 | 0 | 799:38 | |||
| 4 | 2 | 1 | 106 | 7 | 2.26 | .934 | 0 | 185:28 | |||
| 6 | 2 | 4 | 187 | 14 | 2.27 | .925 | 1 | 369:33 | |||
| 4 | 1 | 3 | 146 | 10 | 2.59 | .932 | 0 | 231:17 |