Abbotsford Canucks secure regulation win against the Tucson Roadrunners

JEN FIELD/GATG

On December 19, 2025 the Abbotsford Canucks began their final 2 game home series of the year against the Tucson Roadrunners. The last time these two teams faced off against each other they split the series 1-1.

Abbotsford was looking for a win after splitting their away series against the Calgary Wranglers in a pair of overtime games. 

A few new and returning faces appeared on the Abbotsford bench, with an Abbotsford Canucks debut for Lukas Reichel. Reichel signed with Vancouver in late October, after playing with the Chicago Blackhawks. This is his first game back in the AHL since the 2023/2024 season.

A familiar face returned to the lineup; Arshdeep Bains. Bains has been with the Vancouver Canucks since the start of the season. Bains was a key player in Abbotsford’s Calder Cup success last season. 

Jett Woo made his official return to the Abbotsford ice after being out with an injury. Ty Mueller also returned to the ice after an injury. 

Nikita Tolopilo started in net. He made some incredible saves early in the game.

Chase Wouters scored the opening goal at 3:15 in the first period. This was his third goal of the season. Vilmir Alriksson and Jimmy Schuldt assisted on the goal. 

Tucson’s Austin Poganski answered back at 6:19 in the first to tie the game 1-1. 

High energy and intense game play continued throughout the period. A hit left one of the Tucson’s players slow to get up, which led to a fight in front of the Abbotsford bench. 

Jett Woo and Tucson’s Robbie Russo got 2 minutes each for roughing, putting the game 4-on-4 at 8:08 in the first. 

Both teams looked to break the tie early on and battled hard to bring the puck into the opposing zone.  

Moments after the penalties ended Woo dropped gloves against Ben McCartney. Sending Woo back to the box and earning both players a 5 minute major for fighting at 10:13 in the first.

Despite both teams best efforts the period would end 1-1. 

The second period started strong with both teams continuing to battle hard for the tie breaking goal. 

Sawyer Mynio went to the box at 5:41 in the second for tripping, giving Tucson their first man advantage of the night. 

Nils Åman came close to a goal, however, Tucson’s Dimitri Simashev would draw a tripping penalty on the play at 6:55. 

Abbotsford was successful on the penalty kill and would go 5-on-4 with 1:05 left on the Tucson penalty. Tucson remained successful on the penalty kill, keeping the game 1-1. 

Tucson’s Simashev broke the tie at 10:35 in the second, putting the game 2-1. Abbotsford continued to battle hard, looking to re-tie the game. 

Russo went to the box at 13:22 for slashing. Giving Abbotsford their first man advantage of the night. Mackenzie MacEachern capitalized on the Tucson short hand, tying the game 2-2 at 15:05. The goal was assisted by Kirill Kudryavtsev and Nils Åman.

The game intensified as both teams again looked for the tie breaking goal before the end of the second period. However, the second period ended 2-2. 

The third period picked up right where the second period left off. Both teams battled hard for the leading goal. Tolopilo made some key saves early into the third. 

Jonathan Lekkerimäki broke the tie at 4:18 in the third period. The goal was assisted by Joe Arntsen and Arshdeep Bains. 

Arshdeep Bains scored 7 minutes into third unassisted. This is his first goal of the season in his first game back. This put the game 4-2 for Abbotsford. 

Tucson pulled their goalie with just over 2 minutes left in the game for an extra attacker. However, they could not capitalize with the extra man and the game ended 4-2 for Abbotsford. 

Alriksson commented after the game that it was a “team effort and [everyday] we [are] working hard for each other.” The team is finding their footing despite the rocky start to the season. 

When asked what it was like to come back and be trusted with such key moments, Bains stated; “Yeah, it’s nice. [A] little more weight on you, but I’ll get back into that shape and play hard again.” He proved to be an important player in the game securing 1 goal and 1 assist. 

Abbotsford and Tucson face-off again tomorrow December 20, at 2pm, PST at Rogers Forum for their final home game of the year.