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Izzy Cheung
May 29, 2025
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The Abbotsford Canucks (8–4–0) keep on making franchise history. They won their five-game Division Final series against the Colorado Eagles, placing them in the final four of the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs. To win the Western Conference, they’ll need to defeat the Texas Stars (6–2–0) in a best-of-seven that starts on Thursday. 

The Stars currently have three of the Calder Cup Playoffs’ top scorers in Justin Hryckowian (15), Cameron Hughes (14), and former Canuck Kole Lind (11). As well, Matěj Blümel, Kyle Capobianco, and Curtis McKenzie round out the team’s top-six in scoring. After this, the Stars face a significant drop-off in scoring, as no other player on the team has more than four points.  This could make cracking Artūrs Šilovs, arguably the top goalie of the postseason, difficult for Texas. With that being said, Texas has the second-highest goals-for of all remaining teams, trailing the AHL Canucks by only five despite playing in four less games.  

Something Abbotsford will want to keep an eye out for during this series is their work on special teams. The AHL Canucks’ penalty kill has been discussed at length, as they are currently operating at a stellar 97.1% and previously killed 30 straight. Texas currently has the second-highest power play percentage of the final four playoff teams with a rate of 23.1%. On the flip side, the Stars have a penalty killing efficiency of 85.7%, which only barely falls in the top-half of all the teams who participated in the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs. While Abbotsford’s power play scored in their 5–0 win against the Eagles on Monday, prior to that, they hadn’t scored in their past five opportunities. It will be difficult for them to nab more power plays, as Texas is the least-penalized team remaining in the playoffs with 61 PIMs and 21 times being shorthanded.  

Team Stats

Abbotsford: 

  • Goals-for: 36 (1st) 
  • Goals against: 24 (4th)  
  • PIMs: 172 (2nd) 
  • PP%: 21.6% (3rd) 
  • PK%: 97.1% (1st) 

Texas: 

  • Goals-for: 31 (2nd) 
  • Goals against: 19 (3rd) 
  • PIMs: 61 (4th)  
  • PP%: 23.1% (2nd) 
  • PK%: 85.7% (3rd) 

Individual Stat Leaders

Points: 

Abbotsford: 

  • Sammy Blais (11)
  • Linus Karlsson (10) 
  • Phil Di Giuseppe (8) 
  • Arshdeep Bains (7) 

Texas:  

  • Justin Hryckowian (15)
  • Cameron Hughes (14) 
  • Kole Lind (11)
  • Matěj Blümel (10) 

Goals: 

Abbotsford: 

  • Linus Karlsson (7)
  • Phil Di Giuseppe (5)
  • Sammy Blais (3)
  • Nate Smith (3)
  • Max Sasson (3)

Texas: 

  • Justin Hryckowian (7)
  • Kole Lind (6) 
  • Curtis McKenzie (4) 
  • Cameron Hughes (3) 
  • Matěj Blümel (3) 

Assists: 

Abbotsford: 

  • Sammy Blais (8)
  • Arshdeep Bains (7)
  • Ty Mueller (5) 
  • Jonathan Lekkerimäki (4) 
  • Jujhar Khaira (4) 

Texas: 

  • Cameron Hughes (11)
  • Justin Hryckowian (8)
  • Matěj Blümel (7)
  • Kyle Capobianco (7)
  • Kole Lind (5) 

Goaltenders: 

Abbotsford: 

  • Artūrs Šilovs: 1.73 GAA, .936 SV% in 12GP 

Texas: 

  • Remi Poirier: 1.87 GAA, .926 SV% in 6GP 
  • Magnus Helberg: 2.85 GAA, 0.889 SV% in 3GP 
Abbotsford Canucks players Linus Karlsson (94), Phil Di Giuseppe (34), Christian Wolanin (86), and Ty Mueller (39) stand by the bench during a game. (Photo Credit: @AbbyCanucks/X)Abbotsford Canucks players Linus Karlsson (94), Phil Di Giuseppe (34), Christian Wolanin (86), and Ty Mueller (39) stand by the bench during a game. (Photo Credit: @AbbyCanucks/X)

Conference Final Schedule: 

Game 1 at Abbotsford Centre – Thursday, May 29 at 7:00pm PT

Game 2 at Abbotsford Centre – Saturday, May 31 at 7:00pm PT

Game 3 at H-E-B Center at Cedar Park – Monday, June 2 at 5:00pm PT

Game 4 at H-E-B Center at Cedar Park – Wednesday, June 4 at 5:00pm PT

*Game 5 at H-E-B Center at Cedar Park – Friday, June 6 at 5:00pm PT

*Game 6 at Abbotsford Centre – Sunday, June 8 at 6:00pm PT

*Game 7 at Abbotsford Centre – Monday, June 9 at 7:00pm PT

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