Abbotsford Canucks Notebook: Bains, Khaira, Winning Streak, Calder Cup Hopes & More

They traveled different paths to get to where they are now, with Khaira being drafted in the third round by the Edmonton Oilers and embarking on a 337-game NHL career, and Bains fighting his way to an NHL contract after being undrafted, but they are both savouring the experience right now playing close to their hometown with their family in the stands.

“It’s cool, it’s amazing,” Khaira said about playing in the organization. “It’s nice to be close to home and see family. I think it’s cool for my parents to be able to come out and watch. They did so much of that growing up and they sacrificed so much. Now for them to spend evenings out here, seeing us play, that’s the big thing in my eyes — to give them something to do and have them come out, watch. Talking to them, I can see how excited, how happy they are. I share that with them as well.”

Khaira appears to be a bit of a good luck charm for his hometown team, too, which now boasts three of the four Punjabi players to suit up for a game in the NHL. Those being Khaira, Bains, and head coach Manny Malhotra. Now they just need 59-year-old Robin Bawa to join the squad in some capacity, and they will have the full quartet.

Bottom line, the Surrey duo has made a huge impact on the Canucks’ success down the stretch and could be one of the reasons the Lower Mainland gets to celebrate a Calder Cup win for their affiliate – something that hasn’t been done in their history before.

High-End Reinforcements Coming Soon

As mentioned, the Canucks are winning without a huge chunk of their talent. Including Lekkerimaki, Karlsson, and Raty, they also haven’t had Elias Pettersson, Victor Mancini, and Nils Aman in the lineup, which is a significant part of their top-six and defence corps. But, with Vancouver almost guaranteed not to make the playoffs, they will get all of them back before the Calder Cup Playoffs begin – except maybe Aman, depending on the severity of the injury he suffered in practice on Friday (April 4). That’s basically a top line and second defence pairing bolstering an already stacked roster that has won 11 straight, and counting.

The question will be, who comes out of this lineup that has been successful for so long? Usually, coaches don’t like changing a winning formula, but when that much high-end talent is available to return, how can you not? They are only going to make the team better and deeper. Having said that, Malhotra and his coaching staff will still have some tough decisions to make on who they will scratch for Game 1 in a couple of weeks.

Western Conference/Pacific Division Title Within Reach

The Canucks have seven games remaining (four home, three away) against the Laval Rocket (twice), Calgary Wranglers (twice), Bakersfield Condors, Coachella Valley Firebirds, and Ontario Reign. They have a game in hand on the Western Conference-leading Colorado Eagles, who are five points ahead of them, so if they can keep this winning streak alive for a little longer, they might have a chance to clinch their first conference/division title as a franchise. That would be a pretty significant achievement considering the adversity they have had to face this season with so many of their players being called up to Vancouver.

Could the Canucks Win the Calder Cup?

As for the ultimate prize, the Calder Cup, the Canucks will be faced with a litmus test later tonight and tomorrow against the Rocket, who sit atop the AHL with 92 points. They are without a doubt the favourites going in, so it will be interesting to see how this squad (still without a lot of their big names) will match up. If they perform well, it will be a good indication of whether they are legitimate contenders or not.

All in all, it should be a fun time to watch the Canucks over the next few weeks – and hopefully long into May – as they march toward the playoffs and their first bid for an AHL championship.