Klimovich scores a pair as Canucks split series vs. Roadrunners
The Abbotsford Canucks rolled into Tucson to close out their six-game road trip against the Roadrunners before returning home for a weeklong homestand. And with the Roadrunners navigating through struggles of their own near the bottom of the Western Conference standings, this weekend presented Abbotsford with a genuine chance to reset, earn a win and finally halt their most
Game one couldn’t have started better. Abbotsford pushed hard out of the gate, more than doubling Tucson in shots with a 17–6 opening frame. But the Roadrunners absorbed every punch, weathered the pressure, and turned the remaining forty minutes into one-way street, cruising to a dominant victory.
Saturday brought a different story. After falling behind early, the Canucks clawed back with five straight tallies to snap a five-game losing streak — just their second regulation win of the year and fourth victory overall.
Game One
Abbotsford came out firing, taking advantage of several undisciplined Roadrunner penalties. They generated plenty of looks, including 17 shots on target in the first period, but came out empty-handed.
Play evened out in the second, with both teams collecting nine shots, and that’s where Tucson finally struck.
While working on a late-period power play, AHL veteran Andrew Agozzino took a pinpoint saucer pass from Ben McCartney and lifted a far-side shot over rookie netminder Aku Koskenvuo for the 1–0 lead.
After an early third-period cross-checking penalty from Mackenzie MacEachern, special teams burned the Canucks. It was Agozzino again, who stepped into space inside the faceoff circle and ripped an upstairs bullet that detonated Koskenvuo’s water bottle for his second of the night.
But Tucson responded almost immediately. Agozzino collected a drop pass in stride, turned Nikolay Knyzhov inside out, and tucked another slick finish around Koskenvuo to complete the hat trick.
With time winding down, the Roadrunners finished things off with a trickler from the point that snuck past Koskenvuo. Firing the point shot, Max Szuber collected his fourth of the season to put the game out of reach and seal the 4-1 victory.
Aku Koskenvuo allowed four goals on 24 shots, while the Canucks’ offence managed just one goal on 31 shots.
Game Two
With an early promotion to Vancouver, Joanthan Lekkerimäki wouldn’t be available for Abbotsford
Noel Nordh opens the scoring up and takes the lead in the 1st! pic.twitter.com/AUEwYkFNiU
— Tucson Roadrunners (@RoadrunnersAHL) November 30, 2025
But unlike Friday, the Canucks didn’t let this one dictate the results of the game. Courtesy of another man advantage, they evened things up before the final buzzer.
Setting up shop at the netfront, Joseph Labate stuck with the initial
That score held until mid-second, where Dino Kambeitz followed up on the
With the precious one-goal lead, Danila Klimovich ripped the monkey off his back to offer some insurance for his team. Courtesy of an awful defensive giveaway, Klimovich intercepted the pass and went in for a dangerous look. Selling the forehand shot, he went to the backhand to grab his first of the season and showed off some much-deserved emotion with his first of the season finally under his belt.
Moments later, Phip Waugh sent an innocent shot toward the side of the net. Beating out his coverage, Nils Aman provided the skilled deflection, beating the Roadrunner netminder clean on the shortside top corner.
With the monkey officially off his back, Klimovich added another one. Just one second into a new power play, Kirill Kudryavstesev put the puck on a tee to set up the reaper for a clean one-timer that he powered through the Roadrunner goaltender.
The home team added one final goal in the dying seconds, but it was too little too late. The Canucks hung on for the 5-2 victory to snap their newest losing streak and head back to Abbotsford on a winning note.
Jiri Patera stopped 24 of 26 shots to pick up his second win of the season.
What’s next?
The Canucks return to Abbotsford for a mid-week series against the Calgary Wranglers. The Canucks welcome fans into the Rogers Forum for the first time since its newly minted name change. The first game of the series comes Tuesday, with puck drop at 7:00 pm PT.
This article first appeared on Canucksarmy and was syndicated with permission.
Bulls trade proposal lands Domantas Sabonis from Kings in Vucevic swap
The Chicago Bulls walked into the season with quiet confidence, a healthy roster, and perhaps the strongest continuity core in the Eastern Conference. At one point, they were 6-1, looking like a team ready to erase years of inconsistency and finally make a legitimate playoff push.
But reality, as it tends to do in the NBA, hit quickly. The Bulls now sit at 9-10, struggling defensively and offensively, and falling back into a familiar limbo: not bad enough to bottom out, yet not good enough to scare the elite.
The situation has reignited internal discussions about roster upgrades, and the loudest rumor now floating across the league is bold, messy, and fascinating: a potential trade targeting Sacramento Kings All-Star Domantas Sabonis
According to reporting from Jake Fischer, multiple executives believe Chicago could explore packaging Nikola Vucevic, whose expiring $21.4 million contract has become a legitimate trade asset, in a deal to land Sabonis.
There’s even a belief that the Bulls could chase another big name in parallel: Anthony Davis, returning to his hometown. However, Sabonis is the most realistic and perhaps the most transformational target.
Why Sabonis fits the Bulls' identity and timeline
Sabonis is only 29, an elite rebounder, playmaker, and interior scorer whose game isn’t dependent on athleticism. That matters, especially for a Bulls team trying to build something sustainable without rushing toward a rebuild.
While Nikola Vucevic has been productive, shooting over 40% from deep for the second straight season and continuing to space the floor, Sabonis offers something Vucevic never fully brought: offensive gravity as a facilitator.
Chicago’s biggest issues this season haven’t been shot creation, shooting talent, or star ability. The problem has been stagnation. When the offense slows, everything becomes isolation-dependent. Josh Giddey can rescue possessions,
Sabonis changes that.
Every team he has played for has improved ball movement the moment he steps onto the floor. He bends defenses as a hub, not merely a scorer. Chicago hasn’t had a big man with that skill set since Joakim Noah, and even then, Sabonis offers far more scoring versatility.
If the Bulls want to build a modern offense, one defined by flow rather than rescue-ball, Sabonis is the kind of player who can reshape a franchise’s identity.
Would the Kings actually trade Sabonis?
That’s the uncomfortable part.
The Kings didn’t acquire Sabonis to flip him; they acquired him to end their historic playoff drought, and he helped do that. Sacramento believed he was their foundational star,
But the timeline has shifted.
The Kings are 5-15 to start the season, spiraling, and now Sabonis is injured. For a small-market franchise, injuries mixed with stagnation can quickly turn into existential urgency.
If Sacramento believes the current roster ceiling has been reached, trading Sabonis while his value remains high could be a painful but logical pivot.
The Bulls offer the kind of package that appeals to teams at a crossroads: expiring contracts, flexibility, and the chance to retool without detonating everything. Vucevic’s deal is clean, tradable, and attractive for salary matching without anchoring the future.
Young pieces or picks could sweeten the offer.
The biggest complication? The emotional weight. Trading Sabonis would signal that Sacramento is abandoning the version of the franchise it has spent three years trying to sell.
Is this the bold move the Bulls finally need?
Chicago has lived in NBA purgatory long enough. They've been too committed to running it back, too patient, too reluctant to accept that core chemistry doesn’t always equal core competitiveness.
The front office’s messaging has emphasized belief, belief in development, belief in stability, and belief in continuity.
But belief has a shelf life, and right now, it’s expiring.
Sabonis isn’t a superstar on the level of Giannis or Jokic, but he’s a franchise pillar, someone who can elevate the players around him. His passing would open up better looks for Giddey, simplify reads for Coby White, and give Chicago’s offense a structure it has been missing for years.
The medical concerns are real; a partially torn meniscus isn’t a light injury, but Chicago is in a position where risk is no longer optional; it’s necessary.
If the Bulls are serious about taking the next step, not just competing but mattering, then making a deal like this isn’t reckless.
It’s overdue. A Sabonis trade would be polarizing, expensive, and uncertain, but it would give Chicago something it hasn’t had in a decade:
A direction. The question now isn’t whether Sabonis is available.
It’s whether the Bulls finally have the conviction to stop waiting and start building.
