Victory was at their fingertips.

Buzzing off a game one victory just one night prior, the Abbotsford Canucks had the chance to sweep their first round mini-series and send the Tucson Roadrunners packing.

Unfortunately, a red-hot goaltender had other plans.

Despite the Canucks jumping out the gate with some energy, the visiting team took advantage of some untimely giveaways and grinded the Canucks down goal-by-goal. Between their pipes, Jaxson Stauber was red-hot, stopping 38 of 39 Abby shots, taking home First Star honours with ease.

Special teams production, or lack thereof, played a significant role in the loss, as the home team could not take advantage of some key opportunities at various times in the game.

When all was said and done, Tucson willed their way toward a 4-1 victory, forcing a do-or-die Game three on Saturday night.

Let’s check in on the action.

Why change what works? The Abbotsford Canucks rode their hot hand, icing a near identical lineup. The one change came on the third line defensive pair, where Cole McWard slid in for rookie Kirill Kudryvtsev.

Unlike the Roadrunners, who swapped out netminder, the Canucks ran Arturs Silovs or back-to-back nights.

The home team wasted no time getting the crowd on their feet, with Arshdeep Bains setting up Jonathan Lekkerimäki for an early chance.

Bains got the inside track before sending the cross-crease feed, but Lekkerimäki was just slightly ahead of the puck and sent it just wide.

Unlike game one, the first period went quickly, with a good flow to the game and few stoppages.

Just over six minutes in, one of the lone stoppages came courtesy of a Roadrunners penalty. Arshdeep Bains was hauled down in his own end to send the Canucks on the game’s inaugural powerplay.

They enjoyed a few solid chances early, testing Jaxson Stauber with a few looks. None better than Sammy Blais, fresh off a two-goal game in game one, who rang a snapshot off the crossbar.

Just past midway, Linus Karlsson got caught with an undecided cross-check, sending him to the ice in obvious pain.

And of course, the Roadrunners capitalized on that missed call.

Despite the Canucks holding the majority of play in the first half, it was the Roadrunners who struck first blood.

Working the cycle, the puck found its way to the point where Kevin Connauton ripped a quick shot. While on the move in the slot, Ben McCartney managed to get his stick on the shot, redirecting it past Arturs Silovs.

The Runners have capitalized on neglected goals, scoring two just one night prior.

But the Canucks were not letting up.

Just moments after conceding a goal, they were right back at it, jamming away at another chance.

Aatu Räty provided the heads-up pass to find Jett Woo at the point, who sent a smart and quick shot toward the net. Sitting at the netfront was Bains, who jammed away furiously at the loose puck.

Although Stauber had no clue where the puck was, he was able to cover it with a bit of help from his defenceman.

But it was the visiting team gathering the best looks early.

Kickstarting the sloppy breakout, Jonathan Lekkerimäki and Victor Mancini combined for a pair of giveaways, forcing Silovs to stand tall.

But Lekkerimäki nearly redeemed himself, picking up two strong attempts from his spot on the half wall. He couldn’t beat the post or the goalie’s paddle.

The Canucks grabbed 16 shots in the period, and carried play For most of the opening period. However, the Roadrunners’ decision to start Jaxon Stauber stole the show, with him stopping all shots to enjoy the 1-0 lead.

Thanks to some extracurriculars at the first period buzzer, the Canucks enjoyed a full stretch of powerplay time with a clean sheet of ice.

Despite three shots on Stauber, their puck luck continued, and they just couldn’t beat the rested netminder.

And they would later pay for that missed opportunity, with the visitors doubling their lead.

Cutting into the circles was Andrew Agozzino, who collected the pass from McCartney. Although it had little force, he sent a perfectly placed shot above Silovs’ shoulder to take the two-goal lead.

If there was one goal that the Canucks’ netminder wants back in the game, it’s probably this one. Although it was well placed, as he’s battling a netfront screen, there isn’t much to the shot that finds its way up top.

Looking to get something going, Ty Mueller broke through coverage to find himself all alone. Forced to take man, Tucson did what they could to save a goal, hauling the forward down to send the Canucks to their third man advantage.

Nothing would come of it, as they went 0/3 on the night en route to five scoreless opportunities. As mentioned at the top, missed opportunities on the powerplay played a significant role in the loss.

Eventually, you got the sense that the calls would start turning on the Canucks, and that’s precisely what happened.

They would take consecutive penalties to wrap up the period.

Luckily, the Canucks have their newly found secret weapon in Victor Mancini, who had taken form as a one-Man penalty killing show.

They were also committed to the defensive game in their zone, killing both penalties. To counteract their inability to score on the powerplay, they went a perfect 3/3 on penalty kills.

Unfortunately, that didn’t matter. With seconds winding down, Tristen Nielsen coughed up the puck on an uncontested giveaway at the line.

Off to the races, Kailer Yamamoto made a pretty move to beat Silovs on the blocker side before slamming into the boards.

It’s a hard pill to swallow for Nielsen, considering the time remaining in the period. Instead of getting the puck deep, he elects for the cross-ice dish while his teammates are in the midst of a change, which leads to an unnecessary third goal. Not great.

Despite taking the 31-20 shooting advantage into the dressing room, the visitors had a 3-0 lead after two periods.

Contrary to the middle frame, the Canucks began the third period down a man, successfully killing their third penalty kill.

And thank goodness, as that kick-started the scoring for the home team.

Thanks to the in-zone keep from Victor Mancini, Sammy Blais feathered the puck down to Räty for a shot on net. Although the attempt was stopped, Linus Karlsson swooped in to pounce on the rebound and kickstart the scoring.

Just before the midway point of the period, the Canucks were handed their fifth powerplay of the game.

However, despite a very early chance for Max Sasson, they let another opportunity slide by.

With time their enemy, the Canucks nearly cut the deficit to one. Mancini threw the puck toward the net, and spinning for the rebound was Tristen Nielsen. Akito Hirose came in looking for the rebound, but couldn’t get free to pounce on the empty net.

And with that time running out, the Roadrunners delivered the dagger.

Right off the defensive zone face-off, McCartney flipped the puck up and over Mancini to spring himself on the break with the gaping net.

Despite The chance to put an end to Tucson’s season and enjoy the extended rest, the Canucks could not beat a well rested Jaxson Stauber.

When all was said and done, too many turnovers, unlucky puck bounces, and not enough from a few of their go-to threats led to a 4-1 loss.

Winner takes all the marbles on Saturday.

With the Tucson victory, this series heads to a do-or-die game three on Saturday, April 26th. Thanks to the Canucks’ 44 wins, they enjoy home-ice advantage, and they will need all of that boost to continue with their season. The puck drops at 7:00 pm at the Abbotsford Centre.