Abbotsford Defeats The Wranglers 5-4 In Regulation
The Abbotsford Canucks headed east to take on their rivals, the Calgary Wranglers, in the final meeting of the season series.
Ty Young got the start between the pipes, facing off against Arsenii Sergeev at the other end. Abbotsford rolled with a 12-and-6 lineup, with Jujhar Khaira and Cooper Walker both returning to the lineup after injury.
The first period moved quickly, with very few whistles and no penalties for either side. Calgary struck first, as captain Clark Bishop fired a one-timer from the right circle to give the Wranglers a 1–0 lead heading into the second. Danila Klimovich had one of Abbotsford’s best chances of the frame, nearly tucking in a wraparound, but Sergeev got the pad across just in time to keep it out.
The second period brought a lot more action. Abbotsford found their equalizer early, with Bennett Schimek ripping a shot from the slot off a clean pass to make it 1–1. Calgary responded on the power play, as Bishop picked up his second of the night by jamming home a rebound to restore the lead. The Wranglers extended it to 3–1 shortly after, with Rory Kerins finishing a backdoor feed from Dryden Hunt.
The Canucks kept pushing and cut into the deficit again, as Klimovich buried a chance from the top of the crease to bring Abbotsford within one. However, Calgary answered once more, with David Silye finding space in the slot and making it 4–2 heading into the third.
Abbotsford wasn’t done yet.
Ben Berard made it a one-goal game early in the third, weaving through traffic and roofing a shot top corner on a solo effort. The late push continued, and with under two minutes remaining, Klimovich struck again—this time finishing a backdoor pass from Jimmy Schuldt to tie the game 4–4.
With under a minute to play, Sergeev lost a skate blade, leaving the net exposed. Berard capitalized, sliding the puck into the open cage to give Abbotsford their first lead of the night with just 40 seconds remaining.
The Canucks completed the comeback in dramatic fashion, securing a 5–4 win over the Wranglers. The two teams will meet one final time tomorrow to close out the season series.