Abbotsford Canucks Come Back From A Three-goal Deficit, But Fall To The Firebirds 5-4 In Overtime

The Abbotsford Canucks suited up for the second game in Round 2 against the Coachella Valley Firebirds in the Palm Desert.

Artūrs Šilovs was given the starting nod with Nikke Kokko in net for Coachella.

For the second straight game, the Firebirds were the first on the scoresheet as Gustav Olofsson scored with a hard shot from the point off the face-off. Four minutes later, the Firebirds doubled their lead, as rookie defenceman Ty Nelson scored his first goal of the playoffs.

The Canucks went on a power play with 7:31 to go in the period after a high-stick on Chase Wouters. In the dying seconds of the man-advantage, Wouters took a shot off the cross bar that looked as though it may have gone in the net. After the whistle, the shot was reviewed and it was called a no-goal.

As the period came to a close, Max Lajoie took a shot from the face-off dot that had the puck trickling past Šilovs to give the home team a 3-0 lead to close out the first.

Looking to get back in the game, Nikita Tolopilo replaced Šilovs to start the second period. Only a few minuets into the frame, the Canucks started making moves, courtesy of Phil Di Giuseppe and Nate Smith scoring two goals 1:22 apart.

After Di Giuseppe picked up a bouncing puck in the slot, he skated over to the face-off dot and while spinning around, took a shot that made its way to the net and past Kokko. Akito Hirose and Aatu Räty were credited with the assists.

Moments later, as Jujhar Khaira was being pinned to the boards behind the net, he slid the puck over to Nate Smith, who’s wrap-around attempt was successful and earned him his first career playoff goal.

Abbotsford continued its quest to equalize the game in the third period. About six minutes in, Sammy Blais made a cross-ice pass to Smith, who found Khaira in the slot. Khaira took a shot on a wide-open net that hit the back bar and came flying out. While all the Canucks on the ice celebrated, the referees were unsure if the puck had hit the cross bar or had gone in. The review confirmed that the puck did go in the net and Khaira officially tied the game at three a piece.

With less than seven minutes remaining in the third, the Canucks broke the tie thanks to the trio of Blais, Smith, and Khaira. Down on the ice, Blais passed the puck to Smith behind the net, who found Khaira on the doorstep to score his second of the night. However, the Firebirds got the equalizer with 4:02 remaining in the period after a scramble in front of Tolopilo, sending the game to overtime.

The extra frame started with a blaze, as both teams had chances in the first minute. Five minutes in, as Tolopilo looked to play the puck, it was taken away by the Firebirds’ Melanson, who scored the winning goal to tie the series.

The Canucks return to Abbotsford for Game 3 of the series on Wednesday May 7 at 7:00 PM. Head to https://ticket.abbotsfordcanucks.ca/singlegame to secure your seats.