The Colorado Eagles swept the first round of the playoffs, largely thanks to a shutout in game two by Trent Miner. The Henderson Silver Knights also swept their first-round opponents. Now, the second and third seeds in the Pacific Division face off in a best-of-five series. As the higher seed, the Eagles had the option of either starting at home or finishing at home. They chose the latter, meaning the first two games of the series will be played in Henderson. The winner of this series will move on to the Division Championship, where they’ll face the winner of the Ontario/Coachella Valley series.

2026 Calder Cup Playoff Bracket, Round 2

The Eagles are 6–2–0–0 against Henderson this season. However, Henderson had a lot of players return from injury over the last couple of months. They’ve been on an absolute tear, leapfrogging their way from sixth to third in the division in the final weeks of the regular season. Colorado will be vastly outsized in this matchup. And since Henderson has the number one power play in the league, it will be critical for the Eagles to stay disciplined and not let themselves be drawn into bush-league shenanigans.

Summary

The Eagles came out firing, initially outshooting Henderson 7–2. The Eagles had one penalty, when a Henderson player tripped over Miner’s pad as he made a save right at the front of the crease. That’s not a penalty that generally gets called, but this time it was. Luckily, it didn’t cost the Eagles. At 17:16 of the first, Lucas Johansen went to the box for high-sticking. Alex Barré-Boulet scored on the ensuing power play, putting the Eagles up 1–0.

Here’s another great look at the goal.

The second period started out much like the first with the Eagles outshooting Henderson. then, about halfway through the period, the Eagles seemed to devolve. Play became incredibly sloppy with multiple turnovers, including one right in front of the crease. Miner had to bail the Eagles out several times. Late in the period, during a scrum in front of the net, Ivan Ivan should have had a goal. Unfortunately, the referee had apparently lost sight of the loose puck and blew the whistle just before the puck went in.

Both teams had plenty of opportunities in the third, but neither team could capitalize. The Eagles won the game 1–0 and took a 1–0 lead in the series.

Takeaways

Sometimes when a team is under pressure, its play tightens. Passes become crisp and clean, and players seem to always know where their line-mates are. Most of round one felt like this kind of play. Other times, pressure results in something that looks more like desperation. Turnovers become common, and the things that work look more like luck than skill. The last half of this game felt like that uglier kind of play. I don’t know if this is a matter of focus and discipline, or if Henderson is just really good at disrupting Colorado’s game. Whatever the reason, the Eagles had some very good chances, but they also made a ton of mistakes. They were lucky to escape unscathed.

Despite looking rather sloppy, there were very few penalties. The Eagles only allowed one power play for Henderson, which they easily killed off. The Eagles had two power play opportunities and scored on one of them. Hopefully, they can maintain this kind of discipline throughout the series.

Trent Miner was absolutely the hero in game one. His amazing saves kept the Eagles in the game. This was his second shutout in a row and his second career playoff shutout.

Up Next

The Eagles now get a couple of days to rest. Game two will be played on Monday, May 4, at 8:00 p.m. Mountain Time. AHLTV on FloHockey.com will stream the game.