The American Hockey League western conference champion Abbotsford Canucks begin their Calder Cup Final series against the Charlotte Checkers on Friday night in North Carolina.
It’s the first time since 2015 and just the second time ever that a Vancouver Canucks affiliate has reached this stage. The Travis Green coached Utica Comets lost the final to the Manchester (New Hampshire) Monarchs a decade ago.
The AHL Canucks clinched the western final in six games with a 4-2 win on home ice over the Texas Stars on Sunday.
It’s a formidable group getting excellent goaltending from Arturs Silovs, strong two-way play from a balanced group of youngsters and ex-NHLers, and clutch, determined play in the biggest moments.
In three of their four series clinching matches thus far, Abbotsford has pitched a shut-out. 5-0 in the opening series against Tucson, 2-0 in the deciding win over Coachella Valley, and 5-0 in the final game of the pacific division finals against Colorado.
Surrey native Arshdeep Bains scored twice in the deciding game against Texas, including an empty-netter, in a game that saw Abby come back from down 2-0. The Canucks scored four times over the final 22-minutes.
If all necessary, the Abbotsford Centre will host the middle three games of the best-of-seven series on Tuesday June 17th, Thursday June 19th, and Saturday June 21st.
