The Abbotsford Canucks have scored seven goals in their past three games. It’s not a massive offensive output, but it’s been enough to help the team win two of its past three games. But scratch beneath the surface and it becomes readily apparent that the Canucks need to find a little more finish as their deadlocked Pacific Division Final shifts south to Colorado after a split of games in the Fraser Valley.
Of the seven goals Abbotsford has managed in its past three outings, three have come on the power play, two into empty nets, and the other two have been scored at 5-on-5.
In their elimination game against Coachella Valley in the previous round and in the series opener against Colorado, the Canucks posted 2-0 victories. In each of those games, Abbotsford opened the scoring with the man advantage and sealed the win into an empty net.
It was a blueprint that relied heavily on Arturs Silovs doing his part in goal. And it worked to perfection. Until it didn’t.
On Sunday, Colorado opened the scoring just 1:57 after the opening faceoff immediately putting the Canucks on their heels. And while Abbotsford tied the game late in the first period, Colorado surged in front for good with a pair of second period goals and another early in the third en route to a 5-3 road victory.
The Eagles were the highest scoring team in the AHL during the regular season and the best home ice team in the league, as well. It stands to reason that Abbotsford will need to find another offensive gear to win two of the remaining three games in this series.
It was good to see Jonathan Lekkerimäki score his first of the playoffs on Sunday. The 20-year-old rookie also added an assist. The hope has to be that those contributions signal the start of something bigger for both him and the hockey club.
Beyond that, Sammy Blais hasn’t scored since the opening round against Tucson. And all three of his playoff goals so far have come with the man advantage. On Sunday, the veteran winger got caught up in the emotion of the game and wound up taking 28 minutes in penalties that didn’t help the Abbotsford cause.
Arshdeep Bains led the club in regular season scoring but has yet to find the back of the net and has five helpers now nine games into the playoffs. The team needs more from Bains.
Linus Karlsson leads the team with four playoff goals. He scored in each of the first two postseason games, but has managed just an empty net goal and a late game power play goal since then.
Max Sasson has a pair of power play goals, but hasn’t scored at even strength yet.
And the undisclosed injury to Aatu Räty suffered in the last round hurts, even though Räty hadn’t scored, but did have three assists in the five games he had dressed for.
Coming off Sunday’s loss, the door seems like it ought to be open for the return to the line-up of Danila Klimovich who led the Canucks with 25 regular season goals. Klimovich is far from a perfect player, but for a team that isn’t generating much right now, he represents the idea of offence. And while he has just one goal (his lone point) in the five games he’s played, he deserves another look to help the team boost its output.
One thing Abbotsford has done well through the postseason is spread its scoring with 15 different players finding the mark at least once through the team’s nine playoff games. So they’ve proven to be deep in offence, but aside from Blais and his 10 points, none of the other scoring leaders are close to a point a game.
The Canucks came charging out of the gates scoring 17 goals in their first five postseason games (3.4 per game), but have managed 10 in the past four games (2.5). Some of that can be explained as they face better teams the deeper they go along the road to the Calder Cup. But it’s also going to be increasingly difficult to win games, especially in Colorado. The Eagles went 26-6-2-2 during the season and are 2-0 in the playoffs on home ice, averaging fewer than three goals per game as they have of late.
Tied at one, the Canucks are still in decent shape in this series even if Colorado feels it’s in the driver’s seat after getting the split over the weekend. But a win Wednesday feels imperative for Abbotsford and for that to happen, the Canucks will need more from the top of their lineup. This team has shown an ability to generate all season, and now needs to find a way to bring a little more finish to the games in Colorado.
In other words, the Canucks likely have to find a way to beat the Eagles at their own game.
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