Thank You, Thank You, Thank You - The Turnaround Season

 The Allen Americans’ season came to an end at home a week ago, with a 5-3 loss to Kansas City before the second-largest crowd of the season, 6146. It wasn’t the ending Allen Americans fans were hoping for. The series was a lot closer than the 4-0 sweep might indicate.

- Here are a few things to remember about the 2025-26 season:

• Steve Martinson returned to Allen and engineered an immediate turnaround. From a last-place 43 points in the division in 2024-25, Allen finished in second place under Coach Martinson in 2025-26 with 92 points. The 49-point turnaround is the fourth largest in the 38-year history of the ECHL. 
• Allen finished the regular season on a 12-game point streak (11-0-1-0). The Americans beat Kansas City 2-1 in overtime in the last game of the season to pass Idaho for second place and earned home ice advantage for the first round of the playoffs, which they won, beating Idaho 4-1.
• Allen lost in the Division finals to the #1 team in the league, Kansas City. Another way to express this is that only four of the 30 ECHL teams advanced further in the playoffs than the Americans. Kansas City is now playing in the Conference Finals and is still unbeaten (9-0-0). 
• Coach Martinson is set up much better for 2026-27. Having the #1 offense in the ECHL will pay big dividends in recruiting, as will the improved help expected to come from the affiliation with Ottawa/Belleville.

- The blog will take a short offseason break, but the blog never really sleeps. I will continue posting on an as-needed basis whenever there is news to report. I interviewed Coach Martinson this morning about the just-completed season, and General Manager Martinson about the 2026-27 season. I will get that posted in the next couple of days.    

- There are so many people to thank for helping make this blog possible. Writing about the team almost every day throughout the season is a major undertaking, and it truly takes a village. Over the years, more and more readers have contributed with story ideas, information, questions, and words of encouragement. . It is hard to put into words how much I appreciate everyone, whether you read the blog every day or are a casual fan who occasionally stops by to read my daily musings. I have had the pleasure of meeting many of you over the years, and your support through personal conversations, blog comments, social media, message boards, emails, and texts has been both inspiring and deeply rewarding. Thank you to all of the readers for your support and for being such a big part of the blog. 

- Since Steve Martinson first came to Allen in 2012, he has been an invaluable part of this blog through his honesty, accessibility, and trust. Fans who attend his post-game chats after every game can attest to this. Martinson is always willing to take a call, answer a question, or provide background or perspective at almost any time of the day. The working relationship we have built over the years has grown into something far more meaningful, and I will always appreciate the respect, confidence, and countless conversations we have shared along the way.  

 

- I always feel welcome in the coach's office after practices and games. A chance to talk in-depth to all of the coaches in addition to Martinson;  assistant coaches Matt Register and Jason Deitsch, and goalie coach Chris Johansen. They have all helped me and educated me, and I thank them for that.    

 

- Thanks to head athletic trainer Jordan Dutton and head equipment manager Matt Miletich for always taking the time to give me updates at practice and responding to my numerous text messages. Thanks also to the players who have never said no to a single request I have made of them for a chat, an interview, or a question. 

 

- A special thanks to team president Jonny Mydra and the entire front office staff for their support throughout the season. Jonny always reaches out with information, helping publicize the blog and making himself available whenever needed. Whether it is early in the morning when I am writing the blog or late at night when I am planning the blog. It is nice to know the president of the team supports and reads the blog and lets me know it is appreciated.  

 

- As almost everyone knows, the blog is a labor of love for me, not a business. Tommy Daniels deserves the credit or blame for the blog, as he encouraged me to write about the team because I attended so many practices. Tommy has been a great help over the years. The only reason for the blog's existence is to share stats and information about the Allen Americans with an insider's perspective. Providing information that is hard to get elsewhere. From a meager start in 2012, the blog has reached over five million page views, and the number of blogs published is approaching 3000. The blog reaches people all over the US and Canada, as well as the hockey hotbeds in Europe. It proves fans of the Allen Americans are all over the world.

DID YOU KNOW: I always end the last blog of the season with this list. Lots of memories, good and bad, when you look at the games on this list. If you consider that only one team has the pleasure of winning the last game of the season each year, Allen fans are fortunate to have had that experience four times, and they all happened at home. Here is the date of the last game played in each season of the Allen Americans franchise, along with the results.

• May 4, 2010: 4-3 loss at Rapid City in the CHL Presidents' Cup finals
• May 8, 2011: 5-3 loss at Bossier-Shreveport in the CHL Berry Conference finals
• April 10, 2012: 4-2 loss at Texas Brahmas in the CHL Berry Conference semi-finals 
• May 11, 2013: 4-3 OT home win over Wichita in the CHL Presidents' Cup finals
• May 10, 2014: 5-2 home win over Denver in the CHL Presidents' Cup finals
• June 14, 2015: 6-1 home win over South Carolina in the Kelly Cup finals
• June 9, 2016: 4-2  home win over Wheeling Nailers in the Kelly Cup finals 
• May 9, 2017: 4-3  home loss to Colorado, Mountain Division finals
• April 25, 2018: 4-1 loss at Idaho, Mountain Division semi-finals
• April 6, 2019: 4-1 loss at Wichita, out of playoffs
• March 7, 2020: 4-2 home loss to Tulsa, no playoffs, season canceled
• June 22, 2021: 3-2 OT loss at Fort Wayne, Western Conference finals
• April 30, 2022: 6-3 home loss to Rapid City, Mountain Division semi-finals
• May 14, 2023: 6-0 loss at Idaho, Mountain Division finals
• April 28, 2024: 5-3 home loss to Idaho, Mountain Division semi-finals 
• April 12, 2025: 7-2 home loss to Tulsa, out of playoffs
• May 16, 2026: 5-3 home loss to Kansas City, Mountain Division finals

 

If you add it all together, here are the outcomes: 

• 4 - Championships
• 1 - lost in the Championship finals
• 2 - lost in the Conference finals
• 3 - lost in Division finals
• 4 - lost in the first round 
• 2 - out of playoffs 
• 1 - no playoffs