2005 Calder Cup playoffs
The 2005 Calder Cup playoffs of the American Hockey League began on April 19, 2005. The sixteen teams that qualified, eight from each conference, played best-of-7 series for division semifinals, finals and conference finals. The conference champions played a best-of-7 series for the Calder Cup. The Calder Cup Final ended on June 10, 2005 with the Philadelphia Phantoms defeating the Chicago Wolves four games to none to win the second Calder Cup in team history. Philadelphia's Antero Niittymaki won the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as playoff MVP.
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | April 19 – June 10, 2005 |
| Teams | 16 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Philadelphia Phantoms |
| Runner-up | Chicago Wolves |
Philadelphia set an AHL record by winning 11 consecutive home games in a single playoff. By playing the postseason in the Wachovia Center, the team also managed to settle postseason attendance records, with 20,103 spectators in the cup-clinching game 4 against Chicago.
As the National Hockey League was in the midst of a lockout that canceled that league's entire 2004–05 season, the 2005 playoffs featured a higher number of players from the NHL.