No matter what happens between now and then, the Texas Stars’ 2021 season will end on May 15th in a road game against the Iowa Wild.
It’s not technically because of the team’s performance thus far, even though they have a losing record on the season and currently sit fifth out of six teams in the AHL’s Central Division. Rather, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the cash-strapped league were too much of a problem, leading to the decision to not host a playoffs and reward the Calder Cup for the second straight year.
While each of the AHL’s five divisions were provided the opportunity to host some sort of unique in-division postseason, the collective decision of the Central Division, which Texas is a part of, declined.