Abbotsford Takes Game One of the Calder Cup Playoffs with a 4-3 Double OT Thriller

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AHL Abbotsford Canucks

Abbotsford Takes Game One of the Calder Cup Playoffs with a 4-3 Double OT Thriller

June 13, 2025 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Abbotsford Canucks News Release


The wait is over, and the Calder Cup Finals are officially underway.

Game One went down on Friday night at the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Abbotsford Canucks settled the rest versus rust debate with a commanding 4-3 victory in the opening game of the finals!

Max Sasson opened the scoring 4:34 into the opening period with a power play goal. It was Sasson's fifth goal of the postseason. Sammy Blais and Kirill Kudryavtsev picked up the assists on the goal and helped give Abbotsford an early lead.

The Checkers fought back with a pair of goals, including a goal with one second left on the clock to give them a 2-1 lead at the first intermission.

Former Vancouver Giant, Justin Sourdif scored in the second period to give the Checkers a 3-1 lead with just over 13 minutes remaining in the second period.

The Canucks fought back and did it quickly when Nate Smith was sprung on a breakaway from Blais, and he made no mistake, roofing the puck to make it a one-goal game in the middle frame.

The Canucks went on the power play to finish the second period and trailed by one goal as they prepared for the third period.

It was a busy third period, as the Canucks pushed hard off the opening faceoff. Young defenceman Kirill Kudryavtsev already had an assist in the game and was moving the puck up ice throughout the period as the Canucks looked to even up the score in the third period.

Ty Mueller scored with 11:46 remaining in the third period after consistent pressure, and we had a tie with just over half the third period to play.

The Canucks had come back to force the game into overtime. The Checkers were extremely dominant in the extra period, holding the Canucks to just 3 shots the entire frame, while grabbing 15 of their own. Šilovs stood tall, backstopping Abbotsford to another period.

With both teams visibly tired, the teams looked to end this one quickly. At around 8 and a half minutes in, the Checkers thought they called game when the puck rolled into the Canucks net off the faceoff, but the official called the goal off due to an improper start. With a second chance, the Canucks took advantage, and Danila Klimovich became the hero once again, when he called game in his second double OT, backhanding the puck past Kahkonen.

Abbotsford took game one of the Calder Cup Finals, taking a 4-3 win over the Charlotte Checkers.

Game two of the Calder Cup Finals is set to take place on Sunday with a 1:00 p.m. PT start time. You can watch all of the Calder Cup Finals games with a FloHockey subscription or listen to the radio call with Brandon Astle on Sportsnet 650.

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American Hockey League Stories from June 13, 2025


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