Abbotsford Canucks Ready to Raise Calder Cup Banner at Home Opener
AHL Abbotsford Canucks

Abbotsford Canucks Ready to Raise Calder Cup Banner at Home Opener

Published on October 23, 2025 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Abbotsford Canucks News Release


The Abbotsford Canucks are set to ignite the Abbotsford Centre on Friday night for their home opener with a Calder Cup banner being raised to the rafters. The Abby Canucks have a mix of familiar leadership with an influx of fresh energy for the 2025-26 season.

Head Coach Manny Malhotra and captain Chase Wouters talked about the anticipation and feeling in the room ahead of dropping the puck on home ice.

"I'm looking forward to the atmosphere and the energy again of the Abbotsford crowd. One of the most memorable parts of the run last year was the energy in this building on a nightly basis," Malhotra said.

"Everyone's excited. For the new guys who have played in this rink and been on the other side of it, it feels like everyone's on top of you, and it'll be a loud, busy Friday night," Wouters said.

"We're all excited for it, and the new guys are excited to hear the Abby fans rock it."

There are a lot of new faces on the Abbotsford Canucks roster this season as a number of players on the Calder Cup team have moved up to play in Vancouver, while others have moved on to other pro teams.

Malhotra says it's positive to see players from their group move on and noted the returning leadership has helped set the tone through their work ethic.

"The guys that we do have returning lead by example in the way they carry themselves and conduct themselves," Malhotra said.

"When you've got Wouty driving the bus, and everybody knows the expectation of what practice is supposed to look like, and then bringing in the guys that we did - high character people and the foundation of their game is work ethic and compete - it's easy to pick up where we left off in a sense. But at the same time, our mentality is, it is a new group, we have to start with the foundation and build our way up."

Through four games, Abbotsford sits with a 2-2-0 record on the season. Malhotra has liked what he's seen from the group, but says consistency remains the focus.

"Through all four games, there's been elements throughout the course of a game that we do like in terms of the structural pieces and executing the things that we've been asking them to do. I think now it's a matter of consistency," Malhotra said. "I think once we start putting some more consistent play together, we'll be getting the results we want."

Wouters says the team has gelled early, and he's liked what the newcomers have brought to the team.

"Everyone's great, hard-nosed players, which is something that we really zone in on here being an Abbotsford Canuck - being hard to play against. That's something that we've established here in the culture, and that the new guys have brought in, and they fit in like a glove," Wouters said.

The group has been taking workouts and practices day-by-day this week, and their mindset going into Friday's game is to tighten up some areas, play with consistency, bring effort on every shift, and continue to raise their level of play.

"Be hard to play against, be fast and compete. Something we always talk about is bringing our best effort every day. That's the foundation of our group, and we're going to try to establish that on home ice," Wouters said.

Wouters remembers his first home game in Abbotsford, and in the last five years, he's learned a lot about leading a team through big moments. He's learned what it takes on the ice and what it means in the bigger picture.

"There's so many ups and downs in a season, and we've learned so much about what it means to be a part of the city and a part of this culture here in Abbotsford," Wouters said.

"We've learned so much about our group, about each other in there, and that's what's so fun about the sport."

The last game at the Abbotsford Centre was almost exactly four months ago and after a short summer for fans, there is just one more sleep until the 2025-26 home opener. The Canucks will raise their Calder Cup banner to the rafters before the game, putting a bow on their Calder Cup win.

"Obviously, it's a very special moment for the organization, so to be a part of that will be fun," Malhotra said.

"It'll be really special," Wouters said. "Something we've been looking forward to since we won it is to be able to celebrate with our fans and to recognize all the guys and staff members and everyone that was a part of the special run last year."

The players from the Calder Cup winning team will be at the banner raising ceremony include: Joe Arntsen, Dino Kambeitz, Danila Klimovich, Kirill Kudryavtsev, Victor Mancini, Ty Mueller, Sawyer Mynio, Jiří Patera, Nikita Tolopilo, Cooper Walker, and Wouters.

The Canucks take on the Ontario Reign on Friday, October 24th at 7:00 p.m. which kicks off a six-game homestand for the club.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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