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Abbotsford Canucks past and present head coaches facing off at Friday’s home opener

Current head coach Jeremy Colliton leads Abbotsford against Trent Cull and Calgary this weekend
Ben Lypka
Ben Lypka
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Current Abbotsford Canucks head coach Jeremy Colliton (left) faces off against inaugural Abbotsford head coach Trent Cull when the Canucks host the Wranglers on Friday (Oct. 20) and Saturday (Oct. 21).

The only two head coaches in Abbotsford Canucks history will go head-to-head in Friday’s (Oct. 20) home opener for the AHL club.

Current head coach Jeremy Colliton and inaugural bench boss Trent Cull will be on opposite sides when the Canucks welcome the Calgary Wranglers to the Abbotsford Centre.

After spending four seasons as the coach for the Vancouver Canucks affiliate at the time in Utica, Cull followed the team to Abbotsford and put together a record of 39-23-6 in the 2021-22 season. He was then promoted to Bruce Boudreau’s staff as an assistant coach in Vancouver for the 2022-23 season, but was fired along with Boudreau on Jan. 22, 2023.

RELATED: Abbotsford Canucks head coach Trent Cull reflects on inaugural season

Colliton posted a 40-25-7 record in his first year as the Abbotsford head coach and the club swept the Bakersfield Condors in the first round of the playoffs. The Canucks were then eliminated 3-1 by the Wranglers in the Pacific Division semifinal round.

Cull takes over for Mitch Love, who left the Flames organization to be an assistant coach with the Washington Capitals. Love guided Calgary to a record of 51-17-4 last season, which was the best regular-season record in the AHL. Love also won the Louis A. R. Pieri Memorial Award, which is given to the league’s top coach, the past two seasons.

RELATED: Abbotsford Canucks eliminated by Calgary Wranglers in four games

The Calgary-Abbotsford rivalry heated up last season, but one of the more prominent stars from last year’s Calgary team has moved on. AHL all-star Matthew Phillips joined Love in Washington. He has two points in three games with the Capitals so far this season.

Some of the familiar faces from last season include: forwards Brett Sutter, Ben Jones, Emilio Pettersen and Connor Zary. Returning in the crease is reigning AHL MVP and Aldege “Baz” Bastien Memorial Award Dustin Wolf. His numbers were eye-popping in the AHL last season and, if not for a logjam in between the pipes in Calgary, it’s likely he would be in the NHL.

Two players fans love to hate also return in forward Alex Gallant and the hulking Adam Klapka. Gallant was suspended three games for a charge on Danila Klimovich on April 12, 2023. Klapka, a 6-7 Czech product, is one of the more physically intimidating players in the league.

Abbotsford Canucks defenceman Alex Kannok-Leipiert famously fought both players in memorable tilts last season.

Abbotsford enters Friday’s game after two strong performances to open the season against the Laval Rocket on Oct. 13 and 14.

Canucks forward Arshdeep Bains exploded for four points (one goal and three assists) to carry Abbotsford to a 7-4 win on Oct. 13. Forward Vasily Podkolzin added a pair of goals, while defenceman Cole McWard and Christian Wolanin had two assists apiece.

The Canucks also got goals from Nils Aman, Jack Rathbone, Linus Karlsson and John Stevens.

Goalie Arturs Silovs made 27 saves and the Canucks chased Rocket starting goalie Jakub Dobes from the crease in the second period.

RELATED: Tristen Nielsen’s hat trick lifts Abbotsford Canucks to 4-3 win over Laval

Tristen Nielsen was the star on Oct. 14, notching his second career AHL hat trick to lift the Canucks to a 4-3 win.

The Canucks were shorthanded nine times on Oct. 14, killing off seven of those opportunities. Abbotsford rookie Aidan McDonough also collected his first professional goal.

Canucks goalie Nikita Tolopilo made his first AHL career start and had a solid debut, making 41 saves and shutting the door in the third period when the Rocket were trying to make a late push.

The Canucks host Calgary on Friday and Saturday (Oct. 21) with start times of 7 p.m. The club then hosts the Colorado Eagles on Tuesday (Oct. 24) and Wednesday (Oct. 25). Both games also begin at 7 p.m.

In other Canucks news, the organization dealt Rathbone and forward Karel Plasek to the Pittsburgh Penguins organization for defenceman Mark Friedman and forward Ty Glover. It’s possible that Friedman and Glover may spend time in Abbotsford.

Rathbone leaves Abbotsford as the team’s eighth leading scorer all-time and second among defenceman. He was named to the AHL’s All-Rookie Team in 21-22 as a member of the Canucks. Plasek played eight games in Abbotsford in 21-22, but had not appeared with the team since.

RELATED: Canucks move some depth pieces in 4-player deal with Pittsburgh

Ben Lypka

About the Author: Ben Lypka

I joined the Abbotsford News in 2015.
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