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Canucks prospect Lekkerimäki leads Abbotsford to Game 4 win in Calder Cup Final

Jonathan Lekkerimäki had two goals for the Abbotsford Canucks in the 3-2 win over the Charlotte Checkers.
Daniel Wagner
Daniel Wagner
lekkerimaki-abbotsford-canucks-jun-10-2025
Jonathan Lekkerimäki stepped up in a big way for the Abbotsford Canucks in Game 4 of the 2025 Calder Cup Final.Abbotsford Canucks/Twitter

The Abbotsford Canucks are one game away from winning the Calder Cup.

On Thursday night at the Abbotsford Centre, the Canucks took a stranglehold in the Calder Cup Final, beating the Charlotte Checkers 3-2, giving them a 3-1 series lead. They’ll now have three chances to clinch the Calder Cup, with their first chance coming on home ice on June 21.

The story of the game was written by three Canucks prospects: Jonathan Lekkerimäki, Arshdeep Bains, and Arturs Silovs.

Lekkerimäki got the Canucks on the board early with the first shot of the game. Christian Wolanin sprung Ty Mueller and Lekkerimäki on a 2-on-1, and Mueller put the puck on a tee for the Canucks’ top forward prospect, who did what he does best, firing the puck into the back of the net.

It was a stupendous start for the Canucks, and exactly what Lekkerimäki needed after his playoff run was marred by an injury and a series of healthy scratches. He had his best game of the Calder Cup Playoffs at a crucial time.

Despite a four-minute power play after a Mike Benning high stick, the Canucks couldn’t extend their lead in the first, but they didn’t let the Checkers even things up either. Discipline has been a problem for the Canucks, and they played with fire early, giving the Checkers three power plays in the first period.

Bains was buzzing in the second period, forcing a big glove save by Kaapo Kähkönen midway through the middle frame. But Kähkönen couldn’t stop Bains’ next big chance.

Linus Karlsson picked off a puck in the defensive zone and flipped it out into the neutral zone, where it bounced off Max Sasson and went to Bains, who drove in one-on-one with Matt Kiersted. Bains undressed the veteran defenceman with a couple of quick dekes under Kiersted’s stick, then fooled Kähkönen with an off-speed shot through the five-hole.

Down 2-0, the Checkers grew desperate, leading to utter chaos in the final minute of the second period. The Checkers had multiple chances, but Silovs turned them all aside, despite taking a slash to the back of the knee from Rasmus Asplund away from the puck.

Silovs was incensed as the period ended, and the Canucks clearly spoke to the officials heading into the intermission, leading to Charlotte forward Oliver Okuliar making a crybaby-like motion to taunt the Abbotsford bench — a bold move down 2-0.

Lekkerimäki came through with another big goal early in the third period. After a Silovs save on Asplund, Mueller took off up the ice and fed the puck ahead to Sammy Blais. 

Lekkerimäki darted in behind Checkers defenceman Mikulas Hovorka and took Blais’s pass for a breakaway, sliding the puck five-hole before Kähkönen could drop fully into his butterfly to seal his leg to the ice.

Lekkerimäki’s second goal proved crucial. After a controversial tripping call on Mueller, the Checkers finally cashed in on the power play. 

After a scramble around the crease where Silovs was knocked into his own net, the Canucks got the clear, only for the Checkers to quickly regroup in the neutral zone and set up a one-timer for Kyle Criscuolo that got past Silovs before he could get across.

Silovs continued to stand on his head to maintain the lead, but the Checkers, with Kähkönen pulled for the extra attacker, took advantage of their greater numbers, with Jack Devine banging in a rebound before anyone could tie up his stick. The goal came with just 26 seconds remaining in the third period, leading to some nerve-wracking final moments.

But the Canucks kept the Checkers to the outside, with Karlsson jumping on a loose puck to clear it the length of the ice and kill off the final seconds of regulation.

Silovs finished the game with 32 saves on 34 shots, improving his playoff save percentage to .933 and bringing his Calder Cup Final save percentage to a sparkling .943.