The hockey in the NHL might still be on pause due to the Winter Olympics in Milan. But after holding their All-Star Weekend, the AHL is back in full swing.
For the Cleveland Monsters, that’s been a very good thing of late. The team is coming off a Pennsylvania sweep knocking off both the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.
The Monsters are one of the hottest teams in the AHL at this moment. They’re on an 8-1-1 run in their last 10 games and are 12-4-2 since the calendar turned to 2026. Four of the six losses have been to the two best teams in the Eastern Conference in the Providence Bruins and Laval Rocket. The Monsters do have a win in Grand Rapids in that stretch, who has been the best team in the AHL this season.
The Monsters’ streak started when the team was hovering around the hockey .500 mark for the season. They were 13-11-4-1 at the start of the New Year.
The Monsters enter this week with a record of 25-15-6-1, good for third in their division and comfortably in a playoff spot in a tight Eastern Conference. They have a three-game schedule this week playing in Grand Rapids on Wednesday before hosting the Toronto Marlies for a pair of games at Rocket Arena Friday and Saturday.
We will highlight a couple of performances for the Monsters that have helped them get to this point in which they are playing some of their best hockey of the season. We’ll begin with their AHL All-Star representative up to his usual tricks producing offense.
Del Bel Belluz Heating Up
Monsters’ center Luca Del Bel Belluz is again pacing the team on offense. Coming into this week, he’s up to 40 points in 35 games including 13 goals. As he’s gone, so has his team.
Del Bel Belluz has points in eight consecutive games and has points in nine of his last 10 games overall. He has three goals and four multi-point outings in that span. He has solidified himself as the team’s top center and continues to gain valuable experience there.
The Blue Jackets are mostly healthy at this point which has allowed Del Bel Belluz to get into a rhythm with the Monsters. Should something happen in Columbus after the Olympic break, he is on the short list to be called up depending on need.
The one noticeable area Del Bel Belluz is starting to make a difference is on the power play. He had eight power-play goals all of last season. He has seven so far this season with 25 games left to play. When the team needs a big goal, they look his way.
The other thing to potentially watch here is the upcoming NHL Trade Deadline. Depending on how active GM Don Waddell wants to be, Del Bel Belluz would be a player other teams would be interested in.
Del Bel Belluz doesn’t turn 23 until November. He plays a premium position as a center and has demonstrated he’s ready for a more full-time NHL role. In his callups to the Blue Jackets, he’s played both center and on the wing.
The current depth chart with the Blue Jackets could pose a challenge to Del Bel Belluz as he is more of an offensive player. Sean Monahan and Adam Fantilli are the current top-six centers. Charlie Coyle’s situation will be worth watching to see if the team can extend him.
Should the Blue Jackets be set down the middle, they will have an interesting decision to make on Del Bel Belluz. They could have him come up on the wing which is certainly within the realm of possibility.
But if Waddell sees a major opportunity to improve his club and doesn’t want to part with first-round picks, teams will ask about a player like Del Bel Belluz. The Blue Jackets’ organization loves this player so there would have to be incentive to consider a move here.
Del Bel Belluz is playing the best hockey of his young pro career. Now armed with multiple AHL All-Star appearances, he’s hungry for more. He’s heated up at the right time. With that, the Monsters have played their best hockey of the season. Both the Blue Jackets and other NHL teams have noticed.
Some Other Noteworthy Performances
Del Bel Belluz isn’t alone when it comes to good performances of late. Mikael Pyyhtia has stepped up in recent games. He has goals in consecutive games while recording eight points in his last seven games overall. He already has put up career offensive numbers in the AHL with 11-21-32 in 34 games played.
Luca Pinelli continues to impress despite a recent dip in his shooting percentage. He’s still third on the team with 31 points while playing in more key situations.
Quick question. Who leads the Monsters in shots on goal this season without looking? If you guessed Corson Ceulemans, that’s impressive. He enters this week with 103 shots on goal, one ahead of Pinelli for the team lead. Ceulemans has eight goals and 20 points in 2025-26 already shattering his personal best offensive output. He continues his rise up the Blue Jackets’ prospect ranks. He’s making a strong case to compete for the NHL in the next year or two. Although his path may have been different than other first-round picks, the team’s patient approach is starting to payoff.
One other player we’ll mention for now is someone that Rick Nash mentioned in our recent Q&A. That’s Jack Williams. He has nine goals and 25 points in his first full AHL season.
On Williams, Nash had this to say: “I think Jack Williams as well. Right shot center that we got from Northeastern last year. We were excited to get him. I know he had a lot of different opportunities and I think he’s showing to jump right into a pro game where he’s a player that the coaches just love to throw over the bench because they trust him so much.”
Williams is the Monsters’ fourth-leading scorer while playing just as effectively away from the puck. He’ll continue to get important reps while showing his readiness for an eventual NHL role.
On the goaltending front, Ivan Fedotov has been up and down this season but is trending in the right direction of late. He’s up to a record of 17-9-4 with an .888 save percentage and a 2.85 goals against average. The Blue Jackets goaltending has been better of late which points to Fedotov being the main guy with the Monsters down the stretch of this season.
Head coach Trent Vogelhuber continues to do a nice job of managing the ebbs and flows of the season. Blue Jackets’ injuries caused a bevy of callups early. Now with the team mostly healthy, the Monsters have found their game and hope to continue to build towards a berth in the Calder Cup Playoffs in 2025-26.
