Abbotsford Canucks Win First Calder Cup Defeating Charlotte Checkers

The Abbotsford Canucks won their first Calder Cup by defeating the Charlotte Checkers 3-2 in Game 6 of the American Hockey League Finals, overcoming an early 2-0 deficit. The Checkers took an early lead with goals from John Leonard and Jack Devine, but Abbotsford responded with three unanswered goals from Sammy Blais, Danila Klimovich, and Linus Karlsson to secure the victory. Despite outshooting Abbotsford 30-20 and pulling their goalie late in the game, the Checkers could not find the equalizer. Abbotsford's netminder Arturs Silovs played a key role, while the Canucks also excelled on the power play with a 36.8 percent conversion rate in the series. This championship marks Abbotsford as the first Vancouver-affiliated team and the first Canadian team since 2017-18 to win the Calder Cup. The Checkers, affiliated with the Florida Panthers, made their first finals appearance since 2019 and are expected to have several players join the Panthers’ upcoming training camps.