Abby Canucks Win Calder Cup!

The Abbotsford Canucks are the 2025 Calder Cup Champions of the American Hockey League.

The Vancouver farm team wrapped up the best-of-seven final series in Charlotte, North Carolina with a 3-2 victory in Game-6.

It’s fitting that Linus Karlsson tallied the Cup winner. The Swedish forward led the overall playoffs in scoring with 26 points and 14 goals in 24 games. Also fitting, Surrey native Arshdeep Bains, 2nd overall with 24 points, picked up the primary assist with a beautiful cross-slot pass from the right goal line. It was his second helper of the night.

Karlsson played 23 games this past season for Vancouver, Bains 13.

Canucks goalie Arturs Silovs won the most valuable player award for the playoffs. He finished with a 2.01 goals against average and a .932 save percentage over 24 games. He also posted five shut-outs.

Considering his efforts last season in the postseason for Vancouver, and this Calder Cup performance, it should give local NHL fans growing confidence that the 24-year-old Latvian could be a consistent number-two to Kevin Lankinen, should Thatcher Demko’s injury situation flare up again.

For now, it’s party time in the lower mainland.

Abbotsford fans gathered at Exhibition Park to watch and celebrate in a big way as the final seconds ticked off the clock.

The Canucks fell behind two-nothing in the 1st period of Game-6, only to come back and eventually take the lead with Karlsson’s game winner at the 17:19 mark of the 2nd period.

“Obviously going down two-nothing is not the way you want to start a game, but as we have done throughout the course of the season and playoffs, we just found a way to claw our way back into the game and get ourselves a lead,” Abbotsford head coach Manny Malhotra said postgame. “When you’re able to close games out, obviously some hairy situations in the 3rd period, but when you’re able to close a game out, we take a lot of pride in that.”

It’s the first title for a Vancouver Canucks AHL farm club. The Utica Comets under Travis Green made the final in 2015 and lost to the Manchester Monarchs in five games.

The Stanley Cup hasn’t been hoisted by a Canadian franchise since 1993. Abbotsford is the first Calder Cup champ north of the border since the Toronto Marlies won it in 2018. Before that, the Hamilton Bulldogs in 2007 and the Saint John Flames in 2001.