Catching up with Victor Mancini: OT wins, home-ice focus, and pb&j with EDM

ABBOTSFORD CANUCKS/ X

After a hard-fought split on the road to open the Calder Cup Finals, the series shifts back to Abbotsford with everything still up for grabs. 

The Canucks took Game 1 in thrilling fashion with a 3–2 double overtime win, before falling 4–3 in Game 2. 

We caught up with defenseman Victor Mancini ahead of Game 3 to reflect on the start of the series, the locker room mindset, and what’s ahead.

To start, we asked about Game 1 and how the group adjusted to the new setting and playoff atmosphere.

Jaslyne:

So game one, walk me through it. How did you feel? How was the team doing? What were some takeaways?

Mancini:

Overall it was good. The new building, new crowd, new system we're playing against. Overall, we handled it pretty well. Just our team, I feel like the whole playoffs we've just been calm, cool, collected in the locker room. Whether we're up a goal, down a goal, I've said that before. And then going into OT too, I feel like we're comfortable in those games, in those situations. It was nice to get that win.

Game 1 came with a 4-3 win, after a double-overtime battle. 

Jaslyne:

The double overtime, how was that for you guys?

Mancini:

Tiring. But again, like speaking to our mindset, we know that we've trained the whole year for games like those, to stay well conditioned and to feel prepared and to stay mentally sharp. Even though we're tired, still good vibes in the locker room going into that second overtime and on the bench. Knowing that if we kept doing the right things and sticking with things, we'll get some chances, and we did.

One of the most tense moments of the night occurred when a Charlotte goal went under review.

Jaslyne:

What was the feeling of when that goal got overturned?

Mancini:

[Laughs] Personally, I thought it was gonna get called back. There was a little bit of doubt. You never know what can happen, right? But yeah, I think I had some kind of confidence. It was obviously a very weird situation, but I had confidence that it was gonna get overturned. And even on the bench too, I think we kind of knew that wasn't the end. And we stayed in it. We stayed locked in.

Jaslyne:

Who was the calmest on the bench?

Mancini:

Yeah, I don't know. It’s kind of a group effort. Starts with the coaches all the way down to the players. We're a little confused, trying to figure out what's going on, but I think we kind of knew something was wrong there. And yeah, they overturned the call and just kind of put it out of sight and out of mind right away, and went back to it.

Shifting focus to Game 2, Charlotte came out hard and took a 3-2 win, fueled by fast, aggressive forechecks that challenged the defense. 

Jaslyne:

Charlotte brought a fast, heavy forecheck in game two. How did that test your decision making under pressure, and particularly on breakouts and puck retrievals?

Mancini:

Yeah, it's tough this time of the year. The physicality, the pace. You want to have, as a D man, you want to get back to pucks quickly, give yourself as much time and space as you can because you know they're going to try to take it away from you. For me, a big thing is just making sure I make good reads, I keep my head up. I see where the pressure is coming from. Because if I can play with a bit more poise and get it into my forwards' hands instead of chucking it up the wall, right, getting it off the wall, being able to put my forwards in better positions is something really important to me.

Games 3 through 5 will be played at Abbotsford Centre, giving the Canucks a chance to lean on their fans and set the tone at home.

Jaslyne:

What’s your focus heading into games three to five at home?

Mancini:

I think first, just start off with a good start for us. I think this series, they haven't seen us start as well as we could. So I think the crowd is going to play into that as well. I know we love to feed off the crowd again. But just to make sure we're doing the right things right off the bat. We don't have to find into the first period. Start with the right foot and continue to build off our very first shift and put together sequences and keep the pressure.

To wrap things up, Jaslyne threw in a few rapid fire questions for fun. 

Jaslyne:

A few fun questions. What's your game day ritual?

Mancini:

I'm not overly superstitious, but it involves the same warm up. I get to the rink at the same time. Tape my stick in the same place, usually on the bench. I eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich before every game, so it's a fun fact. But overall, nothing insane. [Laughs]

Jaslyne:

And then what’s the music choice when you're walking into a game?

Mancini:

I like to switch it up depending on a win or a loss, or if I felt good that game or if I didn't. But I usually like electronic music, excuse me, EDM, to get the heart rate up.

Abbotsford defense dominated in the third period setting up plays and icing out Charlotte’s forwards. Game 3 went to Abbotsford, Mancini logged an assist in their impressive 6-1 victory. Abbotsford Centre will be another impressive showing of their support with a sold out crowd, an exciting atmosphere for Game 4 on Thursday, June 19th.