A number of Vancouver Canucks prospects are gaining valuable playoff experience, and they'll continue to gain more after the Abbotsford Canucks defeated the Tucson Roadrunners in the first round of the AHL Calder Cup playoffs.
A low-powered Roadrunners team did well to steal a game from the Canucks, but the Canucks have too many prospects between the AHL and NHL to lose to such a group in the end.
Head coach Manny Malhotra has his team humming and through to Round 2, with plenty of standouts worth discussing from the first three games.
Arshdeep Bains
At 24 years old and 21 games into his NHL career, Arshdeep Bains may not ever become a guy at the next level. At the AHL, though, the former undrafted free agent continues to dominate.
Bains scored his first NHL goal for the Canucks earlier this season, which was the high-water mark for a 2024-25 campaign that saw him compile 11 goals, 32 assists, and 43 points in 50 AHL games.
His 11 goals were actually an AHL career-low, and with some better shooting luck, might have finished with another near-point-per-game season.
In three playoff games, Bains has four assists, including two in the Canucks' Game 3 win over Tucson on Saturday. Bains assisted Tristan Nielsen's first-period goal--the game-winner in the 5-0 shutout--and Max Sasson's second-period power play goal to help power Abbotsford to a series-clinching victory.
Max Sasson
Speaking of Max Sasson, the Canucks look like they found another versatile guy with the potential to become a regular NHL contributor.
Sasson, 24, has one goal, two assists, and three points in three playoff games so far, building on a solid sophomore AHL campaign. Sasson had three goals, four assists, and seven points in a limited role in 29 games with the Canucks this season, and his continued strong performances in the minor leagues show why he earned the chance.
Expect Sasson to compete with Linus Karlsson, who also has three points this postseason, and Aatu Raty for an NHL roster spot next season.
Arturs Silovs
There's no party in Abbotsford without Arty.
Arturs Silovs had an NHL season to forget this year, and his AHL numbers weren't the best, either. The affable Latvian has, however, stepped up when the Canucks needed him in the postseason once again.
Through three games, Silovs is 2-1-0 with a 2.01 GAA, a .921 save percentage, and a series-clinching shutout that came in Game 3. In the regular season, Silovs had only a 2.41 GAA and .908 save percentage to complement his .908 record, so it's clear he and his teammates have picked up the pace with the games now meaning more.
With Kevin Lankinen signing long-term and Thatcher Demko desiring a contract extension of his own, it's unclear where it all goes from here for Silovs.
The 24-year-old goalkeeper is doing himself a big favor so far with these postseason performances, in any case.