The Abbotsford Canucks had one final chance to split their back-to-back with the San Jose Barracuda, hosting them at home this afternoon before the break.
Nikita Tolopilo took the reins in net once again, squaring off against Laurent Brossoit at the other end. Abbotsford rolled out an identical lineup to last night, looking to earn the split.
The game picked up right where it left off. Less than two minutes in, Joe Arntsen dropped the gloves with Brandon Hache, setting the tone for another physical matchup. Tolopilo came up with a pair of big saves early, robbing the Barracuda on a rebound chance, before Jett Woo got into a tilt with Shane Bowers just a few minutes later. Both teams traded power-play opportunities, but it was Danila Klimovich who opened the scoring, firing a shot that hit the post and deflected into the net to give the Canucks a 1–0 lead at the end of the first.
The second period stayed heated. Jett Woo headed to the box, and Dino Kambeitz got into some rough stuff with Egor Afanasyev, carrying over tensions from the night before and sending the teams to four-on-four. With the extra space on the ice, Ty Mueller capitalized, tipping in a point shot from Nikolai Kynzhov to make it 2–0 Canucks. Tolopilo continued to shine, stopping all 22 shots he faced through the first 40 minutes.
Things boiled over again in the third. Barracuda forward Anthony Vincent was assessed a game misconduct for cross-checking Jett Woo, giving Abbotsford a five-minute power play. With five minutes remaining, Patrick Giles took a penalty, handing the Canucks a 5-on-3 for two minutes. Abbotsford applied plenty of pressure, but Brossoit stood tall to keep San Jose within reach.
Once back at even strength, the Barracuda finally broke through, with Igor Chernyshov sneaking one past Tolopilo to pull them within one. The Canucks dug in defensively down the stretch, and Tolopilo made several key saves. With under a minute to go, San Jose pulled their netminder, but Abbotsford’s defence held firm, securing a 2–1 win to split the series.
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