ABBOTSFORD CANUCKS KICK OFF ROAD TRIP WITH 4-2 WIN OVER MANITOBA MOOSE
The Abbotsford Canucks started their first tilt of their four-game road trip against the Manitoba Moose.
Nikita Tolopilo took the starting role in net, with Chris Driedger down at the other end of the ice.
After twelve minutes of scoreless play, Tristen Nielsen took matters into his own hands to get the action started. As Abbotsford started a rush down the ice, Arshdeep Bains made an excellent pass to Nielsen, who netted his eleventh goal of the season. Max Sasson registered a secondary assist.
Just 26 seconds later, Danila Klimovich tallied another. After breaking into the Manitoba zone, Ty Mueller passed the puck to Klimovich in front of the net, who made a move to backhand the puck passed Driedger, putting the Canucks up 2-0. About a minute and a half later, the Moose cut the lead in half with a goal from Axel Jonsson-Fjällby.
It did not take long for Abbotsford to strike back. After a great stop from Nikita Tolopilo, Abbotsford took possession of the puck and rushed down the ice. In a very similar fashion to his first goal, Nielsen one-timed the puck into the back of the net off a pass from Sasson only 31 seconds after Manitoba’s goal. With Bains getting the secondary assist, the trio all earned their second point of the night.
The second period was quieter than the first, with neither team getting on the board. Sammy Blais had a great chance off the face-off, going hard to the net, but Driedger was there to stop it. The Canucks had a few more chances in the minutes to come, including a breakaway chance for Jujhar Khaira, but Driedger shut the door to keep the score 3-1. Abbotsford outshot their opponents by nearly double, with the shots registering 13-7 in the Canucks’ favour that period.
The third frame continued in similar fashion, with lots of back-and-forth play. As time wound down, Manitoba’s Isaak Phillips went on a partial breakaway down the ice, but Tolopilo was there to make the stop and keep the Moose trailing by two. Less than two minutes later though, Jonsson-Fjällby scored his second of the game to bring the Moose back within one.
With 2:42 remaining in the game, Reece Vitelli took a penalty to give Abbotsford the man-advantage. In the dying seconds of the power play, Sasson found Mueller in the slot, who made no mistake putting the puck in the net, giving Sasson his third assist of the night. As the clock ticked to zero, the Canucks held onto their two-goal lead to win it 4-2.