Abbotsford Canucks: How Max Sasson savoured the biggest goal of his career
Max Sasson's heightened level of resolve was already a good story.
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Undrafted and undaunted to carve out a pro hockey career is a good book of work that includes his first NHL game and then his first goal with the Vancouver Canucks earlier this NHL season.
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However, the latest chapter is also a must-read.
The amiable Abbotsford Canucks centre, who struggled to score in the AHL Western Conference final series, finally found the back of the net when it mattered the most Sunday in Game 6 against the Texas Stars.
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Sasson snapped a 2-2 draw midway through the final period with a deft deflection of a point shot by Akito Hirose to send the Abbotsford Centre crowd into a frenzy. And when Arshdeep Bains scored his second of the night into an empty net, the Canucks punched their ticket to the best-of-seven Calder Cup final against the Charlotte Checkers. It opens Friday in North Carolina.
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Sasson's exuberant goal celebration was highlight-reel material because of its impact. Bigger than his first NHL game on Nov. 23, 2024, in which he had an assist, and bigger than his first goal a few weeks later on Dec. 14. How high does Sunday's marker rank?
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'It's got to be No. 1,' said the 24-year-old Sasson. 'I've been pretty snake-bitten. I've had a lot of shots and for one to go in at that moment, it felt really, really good. Obviously, a massive goal for the team. When we get a lead in the third we're a really hard team to break down with our structure.'
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Which, of course, prompted the big fist pump after Sasson's decisive goal. It was his first in seven games and fourth of the post-season. He had 13 goals in 41 regular-season outings because he's adept at tipping pucks.
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'I just let it all out,' he said of the celly. 'It felt like the monkey was off my back, and the crowd was insane, just the whole place. I kept on looking around and 'wow'. That was so cool.'
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Sasson was so caught up in the post-game celebration that he wanted to touch the conference final championship trophy, which of course is a no-no for any team with higher aspirations, so the traditional team photograph had to suffice.
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'Chase (captain Wouters) let us know we're not touching it,' laughed Sasson of getting his mitts on the Clarke Trophy. 'But I wanted to touch it pretty bad. I haven't won much and I just pretended to almost touch it just to mock him a little bit. But, yeah, we're looking for the next one (Calder Cup).'
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