The Abbotsford Canucks struggles in Game 2's continued as they dropped a 5-3 decision to the Colorado Eagles on Sunday night. Jonathan Lekkerimäki, Chase Wouters and Linus Karlsson provided the goals while Artūrs Šilovs made 16 saves in the loss. After Sunday's result, Abbotsford is now 0-3 in Game 2s, while also holding a 6-0 record in every other game during the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs.
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The biggest storyline from Sunday's game was the overall physicality from both sides. There were massive hits thrown throughout the game, and plenty of scrums after the whistle. There was even a game misconduct handed out as Sammy Blais received an unsportsmanlike conduct at the 12:23 mark of the game.
Post-game, Jett Woo spoke about the physicality of the game. The Canucks defender said, "I mean, you know, if we look at it, we should be a more physical team. We got a lot of big bodies on this team, guys that can play physical, myself included. And if we can play hard in between the whistles, I think that kind of just takes care of itself."
Starting on time was also a recurring theme post-game. While Abbotsford did hold an 8-6 lead, the Eagles were able to create momentum with an early goal. According to Bains, the Canucks will need a stronger start in Game 3 if they want to take control of Wednesday's game.
"Just starting on time," said Bains. "I think they're one of the better teams out there, and they showed it tonight. And I think we just got to be able to apply the pressure early and kind of spend the front foot. So that's kind of our big takeaway there."
Special teams was also a talking point from this game. While Abbotsford was once again perfect on the penalty kill, going three for three, they went one for three on the power play, with the only goal occurring late in the third. Between failed passes and disorganized entry attempts, improving the power play will be a key heading into Game 3.
With the first two games complete, the series now shifts to Colorado for Games 3, 4, 5. While the Canucks had a successful road record this season, the Eagles were the best home team in the AHL this season, going 26-6-2-2. Ultimately, Abbotsford will need some strong efforts over the next week if they have eyes on a berth in the 2025 West Final.
Scoring Summary:
1st Period:
1:57- COL: Jake Wise (1) from Jacob MacDonald and John Ludvig
15:53- ABB: Jonathan Lekkerimäki (1) from Victor Mancini and Arshdeep Bains
2nd Period:
13:30- COL: Wyatt Aamodt (1) from Oskar Olausson and Matthew Phillips
18:06- COL: Chris Wagner (2) from T.J. Tynan and Bryan Yoon
3rd Period:
5:23- COL: Ivan Ivan (1) from Bryan Yoon
12:23- ABB: Chase Wouters (2) from Akito Hirose and Sammy Blais
16:56- COL: Jayson Megna (4) from Chris Wagner and Calle Rosén (ENG)
18:51- ABB: Linus Karlsson (4) from Kirill Kudryavtsev and Jonathan Lekkerimäki (PPG)
Game 3: at Blue Arena: Wednesday, May 21 @ 6:05 pm PT
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