An unpredictable 2026 Calder Cup Playoffs took another turn last night when the Chicago Wolves erased a two-goal third-period deficit and defeated the Toronto Marlies, 4-3 in overtime, to avoid being swept and push the Calder Cup Finals to a fifth game tonight at Coca-Cola Coliseum (7 ET,
, Sportsnet 360, NHL Network, SiriusXM NHL Network Radio).
Domenick Fensore (4-2-6) and Justin Robidas (7-9-16) scored 65 seconds apart early in the third period to tie the game before Viktor Neuchev (2-4-6) converted 3:18 into OT to give the Wolves’ their fourth win of the postseason when facing elimination.
In 25 Finals series that have been 3-0 after three games, Chicago is just the eighth team to force a Game 5 – and only the second to avoid a sweep by winning Game 4 on the road; Syracuse won Games 4 and 5 in Grand Rapids in 2013 before falling in six.
“Our approach has been a Game 7 mentality,” Wolves head coach Spiros Anastas said. “We’re 4-0 in elimination games. That’s our identity. That’s our team. We don’t give up; we fight back.”
Bradly Nadeau (7-10-17) gave the Wolves a 1-0 lead just 28 seconds into last night’s game. It was the fastest goal to begin a Finals game since Syracuse’s Kevin Lynch scored 17 seconds into Game 5 in 2017.
Chicago then withstood a barrage that saw Toronto register 15 shots on goal in the first 9:58 of the game, taking a 2-1 lead on goals by Jacob Quillan (2-6-8) and Luke Haymes (4-8-12). Cayden Primeau (9-8, 2.65, .916) made 19 of his 33 saves in the first period, and he now has a .906 save percentage in his three starts since returning to the crease in Game 2.
“We were down our leading point man (Felix Unger Sörum) to start the series, we were down our starting goaltender,” Anastas said. “[Primeau] comes back but he’s coming off an injury… I think he’s still shaking off some rust. But he made some big saves. As the series gets longer, the rust is going to shake off even more and it’s going to be even more dangerous in our favor.”
Ryan Tverberg (6-7-13) extended the Marlies’ lead to 3-1 late in the second period. William Villeneuve (2-19-21) recorded two more assists for Toronto – his 19 helpers are tied for third-most by a defenseman in Calder Cup Playoffs history – and Vinni Lettieri (10-15-25) picked up an assist for his eighth point of the series.
“(The game) turned the first five minutes of the third period,” Marlies head coach John Gruden said. “We were on our heels and they grabbed momentum. To be up two goals going into the third, you have to be at your absolute best. We’ve got to learn from that and make sure if we’re in that situation it doesn’t happen again.”
Artur Akhtyamov (14-7, 2.18, .924) stopped 22 of 26 shots for the Marlies, allowing four goals for the second time in the series.
“He’s been outstanding for us. We will be better in front of him,” Gruden said. “It’s nice that we go back right at it. No time to think about it. We can fix it real quick. It’s going to be a great game.”
“This is the fun part,” Anastas said. “When you get to play on June 18th, you learn more and more each game that passes, so we’re hoping that turns into advantage us.”
Quick Hits:
- Attendance at Coca-Cola Coliseum last night was 8,401. The AHL has welcomed over 7.3 million fans (regular season and playoffs combined) for the third year in a row.
- The road team has now won 14 of the 18 overtime games played during the 2026 Calder Cup Playoffs.
- With his assist on the tying goal last night, Chicago’s Ryan Suzuki (5-12-17) has seven points (4-3-7) in the Wolves’ four elimination wins this postseason.
- Nadeau, Fensore and Robidas – the Wolves’ goal scorers in regulation last night – were also Chicago’s three representatives at the AHL All-Star Classic back in February.
- Toronto’s 21 shots on goal in the first were the most in an opening period of a Finals game since 2014, when the St. John’s IceCaps registered 21 shots to begin Game 4 against Texas.
- Last night’s game marked the 11th time this postseason that a team has won after trailing by at least two goals. Chicago has three of those wins.
- The Marlies (1-for-12) scored their first power play of the series in Game 4. The Wolves are also 1-for-12.
- Chicago is 2-1 in the second game of back-to-back nights this postseason. Toronto is playing a back-to-back for the first time in these playoffs.
- Toronto and Chicago are now both bidding to become just the sixth team in AHL history to capture the Calder Cup after winning as many as four elimination games, after the 2002 Chicago Wolves (four), the 2000 Hartford Wolf Pack (five), the 1997 Hershey Bears (five), the 1989 Adirondack Red Wings (four) and the 1949 Providence Reds (four).