The Abbotsford Canucks can grab a 3-0 stranglehold on their best of seven American Hockey League Western Conference Final when they face the Texas Stars at H-E-B Center in Cedar Park, Texas.
The Canucks protected home ice with a pair of wins to start the series and will now try to push Texas to the brink of elimination with a road win in tonight’s 5 pm PT showdown.

What we know

Akito Hirose scored the only goal, and Arturs Silovs made 26 saves as Abbotsford held off Texas 1-0 on Saturday night. Hirose became the 18th different Canucks skater to score in these playoffs. His goal at 7:39 of the third period broke the scoreless deadlock and propelled Abbotsford to its second one-goal win of this series. 
Silovs posted his fifth shutout of the postseason and has allowed just two goals in his last three games. His playoff numbers are scintillating: a 10-3 record with a 1.61 GAA and a .941 save percentage. The Canucks as a team have allowed 12 goals in their last nine outings and one of those was an empty net goal in a Game 2 loss to Colorado in the previous round.
Abbotsford’s depth has been a huge part of the team’s success story in the playoffs. Already in this series, defencemen have accounted for three of the four goals the Canucks have scored (Hirose, Wolanin & Brisebois). Meanwhile, forward Linus Karlsson had a helper on Saturday and has had a hand in three of the team’s four goals in the series. 
While he is still looking for his first playoff goal this spring, Arshdeep Bains has the team lead in assists with nine through 14 games. Bains has four points in his last three outings, including points in both games against Texas.
Aatu Räty returned to the Abbotsford lineup on Saturday for the first time since the second game of the second round. However, he left after just 14 minutes and did not return. His status for the remainder of this series is uncertain.
As the scene shifts to the Lone Star State, Abbotsford is 3-2 on the road in these playoffs, outscoring opponents 16-11. During the regular season, the Canucks were 20-13-2-1 as the visitors.

The opponent

The Stars have a goalie with a .947 save percentage in this series and yet find themselves trailing 2-0. Remi Poirier has stopped 71 of the 75 shots he’s faced so far. He’s allowed four goals, but has come out on the wrong end of the decision in both games.
Justin Hryckowian, who entered this series riding a five-game goal scoring streak and had a point in the first eight Stars playoff games, has yet to find the scoresheet in the first two games against the Canucks. And Matej Blumel, who led the AHL with 39 goals in the regular season, has not found the back of the net on any of his seven shots in this series.
So far, the Stars’ two goal scorers are Kole Lind and Antonio Stranges. Since Stranges scored in the middle of the second period on Thursday, Texas has gone 93:41 without a goal. And since Lind opened the scoring in the series, the Stars have been outscored 4-1.
Texas was 19-14-3 on home ice during the regular season. Remarkably, this deep into the playoffs, the Stars have played just three home playoff games and are 2-1 so far. They have not played in the 8,000 H-E-B Center since May 18th.
On Sunday, the Dallas Stars returned veteran blueliner Alex Petrovic from the NHL. The 33-year-old appeared in 58 AHL games this season and suited up for 17 Stanley Cup Playoff games this spring. Petrovic is eligible to join the Texas lineup tonight.

Series at a glance

Game 1: Abbotsford 3, Texas 2 (OT)
Game 2: Abbotsford 1, Texas 0
Linus Karlsson leads all players in the series with three points. Abbotsford is 0/2 on the power play while Texas is 0/5. The Canucks hold a 75-64 edge in shots on goal.

Around the AHL Playoffs

Charlotte holds a 3-0 lead on Laval in the Eastern Final. The Checkers took the first two games of the series on the road and then posted a 5-1 win on home ice on Sunday afternoon.
Make sure to join the Rink Wide postgame live stream immediately following tonight’s game. Rink Wide will provide a full breakdown and comprehensive coverage of the Abbotsford Canucks through the AHL playoffs. When the final buzzer sounds, be sure to log onto Rink Wide and join the YouTube live chat to discuss the game with other Canucks fans. Subscribe to the Rink Wide YouTube channel and never miss an episode.
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