Vancouver Island’s Ben Berard is heading back to Abbotsford with a little extra hardware and plenty of bragging rights.

Stepping in for Kirill Kudryavtsev, who was sidelined by a high ankle sprain, Berard represented the Abbotsford Canucks at the AHL All-Star festivities in Rockford, Illinois.

Berard first grabbed headlines during Tuesday’s Skills Competition. Taking part in the Upper Deck Breakaway Relay, he went one-on-one against Pittsburgh Penguins goaltending prospect Sergei Murashov and delivered one of the viral highlight-reel goals of the night.

With a smooth scoop-and-lift motion, the Duncan, BC native shovelled the puck to the top corner, drawing a roar from the crowd and instant buzz across social media.

He made his mark on day two, as well. Suiting up for Team Pacific during Wednesday’s All-Star Challenge at the BMO Harris Bank Center, Berard continued his momentum with a two-goal, three-assist performance through four mini 3-on-3 games. His contributions helped Team Pacific secure its third All-Star Challenge title in four years, capped by a 3–1 victory over the Central Division in the final.

The event consisted of three round-robin games, with each team facing each other once. With a 2-1 record, Pacific earned a spot in the finals. Taking on the Central, they faced the lone team that had beaten them on the round-robin slate.

Berard’s fingerprints were all over the tournament. He recorded a secondary assist in the opening game, connecting on a crisp passing play with Tanner Laczynski and former Vancouver Canuck Jayson Megna.

In Game Two against the Atlantic Division, Berard opened the scoring before adding another secondary assist just 30 seconds later. On his goal, he took a quick pass from Megna in tight, shifted to his forehand, and snapped it over the goaltender’s shoulder in one fluid motion.

The Megna–Berard connection surfaced again in the championship game, where Berard opened the scoring and later added a primary assist on the insurance marker to seal the 3–1 win.

With the victory, Berard became the third Abbotsford representative to win the All-Star Challenge. Arshdeep Bains captured the MVP award in 2024 en route to a title, while Christian Wolanin won with Team Pacific in 2023.

Now back in Abbotsford, Berard will rejoin a club preparing to host the Ontario Reign for a two-game set over the long weekend. He returns as one of the team’s offensive leaders, co-leading the Canucks with 23 points on the season.