CHARLOTTE – The Abbotsford Canucks are Calder Cup champions, and two members of the team with Thunder Bay ties helped them capture the first American Hockey League title in franchise history.
The Canucks on Monday edged the Charlotte Checkers 3-2 to win the best-of-seven final in six games, Linus Karlsson scoring the championship-winning goal.
The architect of the team is former NHLer and current Abbotsford general manager Ryan Johnson. Jordan Smith, the former captain of the Lakehead Thunderwolves and second-round pick of the Anaheim Mighty Ducks, is an assistant coach with the Baby Canucks.
Smith played five seasons at Lakehead after his professional career came to an abrupt end due to an eye injury.
Johnson, born in Thunder Bay, spent parts of 14 seasons in the NHL, playing in 701 career games between 1997 and 2011 with five different teams, notably St. Louis and Florida.
