Chris Terry started his American Hockey League (AHL) career with the Albany River Rats in 2008. The River Rats no longer exist. It’s one of the many examples of how much the AHL has changed in Terry’s tenure, one that saw him go from a depth forward to one of the best in the league.
Related: Adam Beckman Adds Spark to the Bridgeport Islanders
He scored a goal and added an assist in a March 22 game against the Springfield Thunderbirds, a game the Bridgeport Islanders won 4-1, thanks mostly to his strong play offensively. The two points gave him 59 on the season but more importantly, 800 in his AHL career.
Terry is only the 12th AHL player to reach the 800-point milestone, a mark that can only be accomplished with consistency and longevity, two things he’s displayed better than anyone else in the league currently. “I’m proud of it. It’s a pretty cool feat,” Terry noted after the game. This season is a lost cause for the Islanders, a team that has four wins on their home ice, with the recent victory included. That said, he’s still putting together a great season.
With 59 points, he has the second-most in the league this season and is doing it on a team that averages only 2.60 goals per game, the second-worst mark in the AHL. His great play this season and in his career reflects his consistency but also how he’s adapted to establish himself as one of the league’s best.
How Terry Leads the Top Line
Terry leads the top line and drives the offense while also being a primary playmaker. His scoring is impressive as he has 19 goals, but his passing has made him and the rest of his line great as he’s distributed 40 assists this season. It’s unlocked Brian Pinho, another journeyman like Terry, but one who has struggled until this season. However, with plenty of open looks, Pinho has 22 goals for the first time in his career and was selected to the AHL All-Star Game as a result.
The passing also brings the most out of Adam Beckman. The 24-year-old forward was acquired at the 2025 trade deadline and playing alongside Terry has allowed him to score three goals in six games, including two in the recent win over the Thunderbirds. “The big thing for him is his intelligence. The way he reads the game but also brings a lot of speed and energy,” Beckman noted after a March 8 game against the Toronto Marlies, his first with the Islanders.
Terry’s been around the league for a long time, and with that experience comes a smarter way to play the game. He knows where his linemates are on the ice and can find them with his passing. Terry knows how to pick apart an opposing defense with his hockey sense and feel for the game when he has the puck, and it shows. Likewise, his speed has stood out this season and has become integral to his success as a playmaker, as he allows his linemates to find open looks and bury them.
The League Changed & So Did Terry
When Terry joined the AHL, it was a different game. Just like the NHL, the league was more physical and there was a North-South style to it. Teams moved the puck up the ice, but in the offensive zone, it was all about getting the puck to the net and crashing the net afterward. Physical play dominated and players were developed to power their way to the net.
Fast-forward a decade and the AHL is all about speed, skill, and the fine details. “I think that game is faster now, it’s played at a higher pace,” Terry mentioned after the latest game. But it’s not just about overwhelming an opponent with speed and shots. Great offenses find shots in the high-danger areas and value when they put the puck on the net. “It’s a puck possession game more than it ever has been,” Terry continued. There’s a cliche about the best defense being offense, and in hockey, one team can’t score when the other has the puck.
Terry turns 36 next month, yet he’s playing the best hockey of his career. In 2022-23, he scored 78 points, which was the most in his career, and two seasons later, he’s playing at a point-per-game pace, putting him on track to score 70 points for only the third time in his AHL tenure.
His best hockey is credited in part to his pivot. Terry’s using his speed and puck-handling skills paired with over 900 games to make a difference, and he’s showing no signs of slowing down. “I play because I love coming to the rink every day. When that stops, that’s when I know I’m done,” he stated after a game where most fans watching had no idea he was 10 or 15 years older than most players on the ice, considering the energy and joy he plays with.
Terry’s Veteran Presence
The Islanders are a young team with a handful of prospects, and more are on the way. With the Brock Nelson trade and the 2024 NHL Entry Draft class general manager (GM) Lou Lamoriello put together, this team will likely start next season with Calum Ritchie, Cole Eiserman, and Kamil Bednarik on it.
With a young team, a veteran presence is a big deal. Terry plays a key role in developing the prospects and preparing them for the next step. It’s a role he’s embraced in recent seasons as one of the older players in the AHL. “You’re so hungry to get called up when you’re younger, I get excited when I see a player like (Liam) Foudy or (Matthew) Maggio get called up, it’s a thrill for me,” Terry stated.
“I try to tell all these guys that I’ve been in your shoes, I know it’s hard, I know you’re frustrated, I felt everything you feel plus more,” Terry continued. The frustration in the AHL is real. Many prospects will feel like they are ready for the NHL, and they get the call-up, only to be sent down days later. In the Islanders’ case, the frustration is two-fold as the losses keep piling up in a league where winning is important but from the NHL team’s perspective, development matters more. It’s why Terry tells the younger players, “The stronger you are, the mentally stronger you are, the stronger you’ll end up becoming.”
Terry was in their shoes (or skates) and knows what’s needed to make it to the NHL. Many prospects come into the AHL thinking they are ready to take over the league, but the talent will humble them quickly and force them to round out their game. “It’s the little things, the game within the game,” Terry noted. With the prospects on the Islanders, it’s about learning how to not only score, but also forecheck and defend. Kyle MacLean and Marc Gatcomb weren’t the best scorers, but they played defense and forechecked at the AHL level, and it’s why they are on the fourth line for the New York Islanders.
What Terry Has Left to Prove
At this point, Terry has done just about all there is to do at the individual level in the AHL. He’s led the league in points, passed the 300-goal mark and the 450-assist mark, and made it to the AHL First All-Star Team multiple times. It’s not about those accolades anymore. “I want to win,” Terry noted after the 14th win of the season for the Islanders. “At the end of the day, points are great, milestones are great, but the Calder Cup is what I’m missing,” he continued.
Terry’s never won the Calder Cup and has spent most of his career on teams that haven’t been close. To cap things off with a title would be something special. He won’t do it this season with the Islanders, but he’s ready to lead this team in the future. While he can join any AHL team he wants at this point to make a run at the Calder Cup, the Islanders are where he feels at home, a team he returned to in the 2024 offseason with hopes of leading them to the promised land.
The Islanders have a lot working in their favor and when the talent arrives, they are in a good position to succeed. “The facilities here are great, they treat you really well,” Terry stated after the game against the Thunderbirds, something Beckman mentioned as well following his first game with the team. “The facilities are unbelievable, right up there with the NHL,” Beckman noted. It’s something that comes as a surprise at first, but for those who have been around the AHL for a while, it’s noticeable. “It ranges in this league and this one is high up on the list with how we’re treated and what we get, and that makes it easier to come to the rink every day,” Terry continued when discussing the behind-the-scenes advantage the Islanders provide.
The team is wrapping up a rough season, one of the worst in AHL history. However, it won’t be long until they turn things around, and it would be no surprise if Terry was a key part of that turnaround.
