You couldn’t ask for a better start to a banner-raising season.

After securing back-to-back wins in Henderson, Nevada, the Abbotsford Canucks opened the 2025–26 campaign with a perfect 2-0-0-0 record.

Now, after a week of travel and recovery, they’ll look to close out their season-opening four-game road swing with a pair of contests in Laval, Quebec.

The Canucks visit a Rocket team that split their opening weekend in Manitoba and will be celebrating their home opener at Place Bell. Game 1 is set for Friday at 4:00 p.m. PT, followed by a Saturday matinee at 12:00 p.m. PT.

Still playing without several key names — including seven players currently up with Vancouver — the Canucks continue to rely on youth, internal development, and opportunistic depth to carry the load early on.

Much like their dominance over Henderson, Abbotsford has held a strong edge over Laval since entering the league.

The Canucks went 2-1-1-0 against the Rocket last season but dropped both games in Laval. That said, the all-time head-to-head paints a more favourable picture as Abbotsford holds a 12-3-1-0 record over Laval dating back to their inaugural season.

This two-game set marks the final stop before returning home to Abbotsford Centre for the team’s home opener and Calder Cup banner ceremony on Friday, October 24, which kicks off a six-game homestand.

With Arturs Silovs now in Pittsburgh, the starting role officially belongs to Nikita Tolopilo — and he wasted no time making a statement. The Belarusian netminder was outstanding in his season debut, stopping 36 of 37 shots in Henderson, many of which were high-danger chances.

With the net now his to lose, expect Tolopilo to get the start Friday night and build on a strong early showing.

With Christian Wolanin no longer in the mix and both Jett Woo and Guillaume Brisebois sidelined with long-term injuries, the Canucks’ blueline now leans heavily on its youngest defenders.

Chief among them is Kirill Kudryavtsev, who not only played in all situations during the opening weekend but led the team with three assists. The 21-year-old looks poised to handle major responsibilities moving forward.

The 11th overall pick in 2023, Tom Willander, made his long-awaited professional debut in Henderson. His weekend stat line showed a minus-2 with no points, while his performances featured both positive flashes and some understandable rookie miscues.

He’ll continue to log heavy minutes alongside Kudryavtsev, with the organization clearly looking to fast-track his development by giving him reps in all situations.

Coming off a career-best season where he led the team in goals, Danila Klimovich picked up two assists in Henderson, including a slick overtime-clinching backdoor feed to Max Sasson.

Known for his shoot-first mentality and offensive flair, Klimovich was one of the most dangerous skaters in both games. With several top-six forwards still in Vancouver, the Canucks will be looking to him to drive offence consistently.

Ty Mueller was already considered a trusted two-way centre within the system, and his usage last weekend reflected that — killing penalties, blocking shots, and setting up quality chances in the offensive zone.

With Max Sasson recalled to Vancouver, however, expect Mueller’s role to grow even further this weekend.

The Canucks’ back end has been dealt a pair of blows to start the year.

Jett Woo (upper body) was injured during the 2025 Calder Cup run, which he played through and is now listed as month-to-month.

Guillaume Brisebois is out with a lower-body injury. The full extent of the injury is unknown, but he is expected to miss significant time, with a possible return not anticipated until early 2026.

These absences create valuable minutes and development opportunities for young defenders like Kudryavtsev, Willander, Sawyer Mynio, and Joe Arntsen.

A significant chunk of Abbotsford’s core is currently with the big club, including:

Arshdeep Bains, Max Sasson, Linus Karlsson, Jonathan Lekkerimäki, Victor Mancini and Aatu Räty.

With this many call-ups, the Canucks are relying on organizational depth and a next-man-up mentality to keep things rolling.

Following this two-game set in Laval, the Canucks will return home for a celebratory home opener on October 24, where they’ll raise their first-ever Calder Cup banner in front of a packed Abbotsford Centre.

That game will also begin a six-game homestand, offering fans their first extended look at this season’s retooled lineup.

Vitali Kravtsov – Nils Åman – Danila Klimovich
Vilmer Alriksson – Ty Mueller – Chase Stillman
Josh Bloom – Chase Wouters – Anri Ravinskis
Joseph LaBate – Cooper Walker – Mackenzie MacEachern
Ben Berard – Jakson Kunz – Dino Kambeitz

Kirill Kudryavtsev – Tom Willander
Jimmy Schuldt – Nikolai Knyzhov
Sawyer Mynio – Joe Arntsen
Derek Daschke – Jayden Lee

Nikita Tolopilo
Ty Young
Jiri Patera

Be sure to check in with CanucksArmy with full game recaps after each game.