AHL Morning Skate: May 18, 2025

A1-Hershey Bears vs. A2-Charlotte Checkers
Game 3 – Wednesday, 7:00 ET,
(Charlotte leads series, 2-0)

Game 1 – Fri., May 16 – CHARLOTTE 3, Hershey 2 | Recap
Game 2 – Sat., May 17 – CHARLOTTE 2, Hershey 1 (OT) | Recap
Game 3 – Wed., May 21 – Charlotte at Hershey, 7:00
*Game 4 – Thu., May 22 – Charlotte at Hershey, 7:00
*Game 5 – Sat., May 24 – Charlotte at Hershey, 7:00
*if necessary... All times Eastern

N1-Laval Rocket vs. N2-Rochester Americans
Game 3 – Wednesday, 7:00 ET,
(Series tied, 1-1)

Game 1 – Wed., May 14 – Laval 5, ROCHESTER 4 | Recap
Game 2 – Fri., May 16 – ROCHESTER 5, Laval 3 | Recap
Game 3 – Wed., May 21 – Rochester at Laval, 7:00
Game 4 – Fri., May 23 – Rochester at Laval, 7:00
*Game 5 – Sun., May 25 – Rochester at Laval, 4:30
*if necessary… All times Eastern

GAME NOTES
The Stars and Admirals resume the Central Division Finals with Game 2 in Cedar Park this evening... Texas jumped out to the early series lead with a 4-2 victory on Thursday behind two goals and an assist from AHL rookie of the year Justin Hryckowian (3-6-9)... It was the second consecutive three-point game for Hryckowian, whose goal with 3.6 seconds left in the first period of Game 1 put Texas ahead for good... Matthew Seminoff (1-1-2) and Matěj Blümel (2-4-6) also scored for the Stars, and former Admirals goaltender Magnus Hellberg (2-0, 1.08, .953) stopped 23 shots in his first start of the postseason... Mark Friedman (1-2-3) notched a goal and an assist for Milwaukee in the loss... Cal O’Reilly (2-1-3) scored a power-play goal on Thursday while playing his 111th career Calder Cup Playoff game, passing former teammate Darren Haydar for 12th place all-time... Former Texas netminder Matt Murray (3-3, 3.17, .879) made 23 saves for the Admirals in Game 1 but lost for the first time in four starts back at H-E-B Center this season... Tonight’s contest is just the Stars’ fifth of the postseason; the regular season ended four weeks ago.

GAME NOTES
The Canucks host the Eagles in Game 2 this evening looking to extend their series lead before the teams head to Colorado... Artūrs Šilovs (6-1, 1.50, .942) made 22 saves for his second consecutive shutout and third of the postseason, lifting Abbotsford to a 2-0 win in Game 1 on Friday... Šilovs, who also blanked Coachella Valley in the Canucks’ series-clinching win on May 9, has not allowed a goal in his last 136 minutes and 36 seconds of play, and has stopped 76 of 77 shots since being pulled after giving up three goals in the first period of Game 2 vs. the Firebirds... Ty Mueller (1-2-3) broke a scoreless deadlock with a power-play goal at 15:25 of the second period on Friday, and Victor Mancini (1-2-3) tacked on an empty-net goal with six seconds remaining in regulation... The Canucks shut down all three Eagles power plays in Game 1, extending their streak to 23 consecutive kills to begin the postseason... Abbotsford improved to 22-3-0-1 in its last 26 games... Trent Miner (3-2, 1.78, .942) turned aside 22 of 23 shots in the opener for Colorado, which was shut out for the first time in 120 games, since a 2-0 loss to Coachella Valley on Jan. 12, 2024.

The Canucks had not seen Colorado since Feb. 17. With a three-month gap, they got a quick lesson on what will be required to handle the Eagles in their best-of-five Pacific Division Finals.

“They’re a very talented group that plays at a high pace,” head coach Manny Malhotra said following Game 1. “They put us on our heels early in the game. Give them a lot of credit. They took it to us for a while there. That’s definitely not a recipe that we want to continue to flirt with.”

Eventually the Canucks did adjust. Until then, they had Artūrs Šilovs, who recorded his second consecutive shutout with 22 stops. Since being pulled in Game 2 of the division semifinals against Coachella Valley, Silovs has handled 76 of 77 shots in his past three games.

“He’s been a rock back there,” captain Chase Wouters said.

Abbotsford also had physical defenseman Jett Woo back in the lineup following a two-game absence, but they remain without Christian Wolanin, the former Eddie Shore Award winner who has missed the last six games.

Win or lose, Karl Taylor’s disposition is holding firm.

The Admirals head coach oversaw his team playing three elimination games in the Central Division Semifinals to slip past Rockford. A 4-2 loss to Texas in Game 1 on Thursday left him maintaining the same stoic approach afterward.

“We lost, so let’s get ready for [tonight],” Taylor said following Game 1. “Some adversity came our way. We’ve got to keep it cool, stay focused.”

With a couple of days to process the loss, Admirals forward Jake Lucchini mostly liked how his team handled Game 1, albeit with a need for some improvement. They impressively killed off a first-period Texas 5-on-3 situation only to then surrender a goal with 3.6 seconds to go before the intermission that put the Stars ahead, 2-1.

“I don’t think we played poorly,” Lucchini said, “but I think we could have done a little more.”

Life is good right now for the Stars, who are 4-0 this postseason.

Having played only four games in the last 28 days, strong practice habits and a commitment to intensity have been a must. Head coach Neil Graham and his staff have worked to keep the team sharp. And after tonight’s game, the Stars could face as many as three games in a five-night stretch to finish the series in Milwaukee.

“I liked our intensity,” Stars defenseman Kyle Capobianco said Saturday. “I like how we stayed level-headed, and I liked how throughout the game, we got better. I think that’s a testament to our coaching staff getting ready, and also us for competing in practice and never letting the foot off the gas.”

Texas has largely been able to have strong starts. Doing so again will be imperative tonight given that the Admirals will be trying to avoid going back home facing elimination.

“That’s the fun part about playoff hockey,” Capobianco explained. “It really challenges you, the physical grind and mental grind.”

― with files from Patrick Williams

In the Stanley Cup Playoffs yesterday, 2023 AHL All-Star defenseman Thomas Harley scored 1:33 into overtime to send Dallas into the Western Conference Final with a 2-1 win over Winnipeg... Harley played 131 games with the AHL’s Texas Stars.

In yesterday’s action at the 2025 IIHF World Championship, Calgary Wranglers forward Adam Klapka tallied two goals and an assist in Czechia’s 8-1 win over Kazakhstan... Henderson Silver Knights forward Jonas Rondbjerg notched two goals and Joachim Blichfeld added a goal and two assists as Denmark beat Norway, 6-3... Conor Garland recorded a goal and three assists and Joey Daccord made 18 saves as the United States defeated Germany, 6-3... Two-time AHL All-Star Brandon Montour registered a goal and an assist in Canada’s 7-0 victory over Slovakia... Samuel Ersson (15 saves) and Sweden shut out France, 4-0... Juuse Saros made 34 saves in Finland’s 2-1 victory over Latvia.