There was nothing that the Abbotsford Canucks could do but pack up, rest up and get ready for Game 6 tonight. “No other choice,” defenseman Christian Wolanin said following Saturday’s 4-3 overtime loss. Abbotsford made the trip back to Charlotte on Sunday after being denied a Calder Cup celebration on home ice. The Canucks chose … Read more
Canucks head coach Manny Malhotra may have been understating it a bit in describing his team’s start in Game 4 on Thursday. “We continuously talk about wanting to start on the front foot and apply pressure on teams,” Malhotra said. Jonathan Lekkerimäki finished off a two-on-one rush 75 seconds into the contest and the Canucks fended … Read more
The Calder Cup Finals are all about adjustments, and Canucks head coach Manny Malhotra had a few of his own for Game 3 on Tuesday night. After missing five games, forward Jonathan Lekkerimäki re-entered the Abbotsford lineup, replacing Ty Glover. Lekkerimäki, selected 15th overall in the 2022 NHL Draft by the Vancouver Canucks, played 24 … Read more
Canucks head coach Manny Malhotra was pretty blunt after Game 2 on Sunday, a 3-2 overtime loss that left the series at 1-1. First on Malhotra’s list was his team putting Charlotte on the power play five times. “It comes down to the things we discussed before the game in terms of making sure we … Read more
The Checkers are not about to change their approach now. It’s one that took them to a second-place finish in the Atlantic Division and then whisked them through three rounds of the Calder Cup Playoffs. They keep their excitement in check following a victory. The same goes after a loss, where they take those in … Read more
The Stars have long been able to count on their captain, Curtis McKenzie. McKenzie was the AHL’s rookie of the year in 2013-14 and helped Texas win the Calder Cup. He split the next four years between Texas and Dallas, appearing in 99 NHL games and making another trip to the Calder Cup Finals in … Read more
The Texas power play had not been particularly bad in a pair of road losses to Abbotsford. Nor had the penalty kill. Special-teams play simply had not gotten much work. Texas went a combined 0-for-5 on the power play in those two defeats and took care of Abbotsford’s two power-play chances across the two games … Read more
The Checkers have not seen much of Bojangles Coliseum lately. Starting today, they can settle back in at home for a spell. This afternoon’s game is their first in front of the home fans in 15 days, since Game 2 of the division finals against Hershey. Charlotte finished off the Bears on the road before … Read more
If Thursday’s Game 1 was any indication, the Canucks and Stars could be in for a long Western Conference Finals series. “The term ‘resilient’ comes to mind for our group,” Canucks head coach Manny Malhotra said after his team’s overtime victory. “There was a lot of frustration that set in throughout our game. They (the … Read more
The Checkers are hoping to have defenseman Matt Kiersted back in their lineup soon. Head coach Geordie Kinnear sounded an optimistic note before tonight’s Game 1 in Laval. Kiersted has missed Charlotte’s last five games. During the regular season, the fourth-year pro recorded 29 points and a league-best plus-34 rating in 64 games and was one of the … Read more