Villeneuve's big post-season helps Marlies reach Calder Cup final

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An impressive post-season from William Villeneuve has helped push the Toronto Marlies into the Calder Cup final.

The Marlies defeated the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 2-1 in overtime on Sunday to take the Eastern Conference final in six games. Toronto will face either the Chicago Wolves or Colorado Eagles in the American Hockey League's championship series.

Toronto was not considered a favourite to make a Calder Cup run this season. The team went 36-26-5-5 in the regular season and entered the playoffs as the seventh best team in the Eastern Conference. 

The AHL's playoff format remains weird and hard to follow (please stop this madness, AHL) – but the Marlies have had a long road to get here. The team did not have a bye through the first round and had to face the Rochester Americans in a best-of-three. From there they faced the division champion Laval Rocket and then the Cleveland Monsters in best-of-five matchups. All three of those series went the distance.

Villeneuve has been one of Toronto's best players. The former Saint John Sea Dog currently leads all AHL defensemen in scoring by a wide margin with two goals and 14 assists in 19 games. He also sits third in overall league scoring.

From the AHL website:

Toronto’s William Villeneuve (2-14-16) has a seven-game scoring streak entering Game 6, and his 16 playoff points are the most by a defenseman in the Calder Cup Playoffs since Coachella Valley’s Ryker Evans posted 26 points in 26 games in 2023.

The 24-year-old, who made his NHL debut earlier this year, posted three goals and 27 assists in 61 regular season games. This is his fourth season with the Marlies.

Toronto's lineup also includes former Sea Dogs forward Cedric Pare, who has three goals and six assists in 19 playoff games.

With Wilkes-Barre/Scranton eliminated, the seasons are over for former Sea Dogs forwards Boko Imama and Raivis Ansons. Imama had an assist and 18 penalty minutes in six playoff games while Ansons was held pointless in two contests.

There are no Sea Dogs alumni on the Wolves or Eagles. Game 7 of that series takes place Monday night in Loveland, CO.