Ex-Canucks Prospect sets league on fire - Proving Vancouver should've signed him when they had the chance

Just before the start of the National Hockey League's free agency period, the Vancouver Canucks made the difficult decision not to issue a qualifying offer to prospect Aidan McDonough. The move made McDonough an unrestricted free agent on July 1st and instead of waiting for an NHL team to come calling, opted to sign a one-year AHL contract with the Charlotte Checkers, affiliate of the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers.

The American Hockey League's 2024-25 season got underway this weekend and it didn't take long for Aidan McDonough to impress his new teammates and coaches, along with the fans in Charlotte, North Carolina.

During Saturday's game against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, the Checkers mounted an impressive comeback to win their season opener by a score of 7 to 6. In the victory, Aidan McDonough picked up the AHL's first hat trick of the 2024-25 campaign.

Less than 24 hours later, the Checkers headed north Bridgeport, Connecticut to face the Islanders on Sunday afternoon and yes, you guess correctly - Aidan McDonough found the back of the net once again.

The Charlotte Checkers would go on to take Sunday's game against Bridgeport by a score of 3 to 0 to start the season 2-0-0. McDonough and the squad will now head home for back-to-back games this coming weekend against the Cleveland Monsters, AHL affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Last season, Aidan McDonough only managed to score 11 goals in 58 games with Abbotsford during the regular season, but this year with four goals in two contests, he's certainly on his way for a breakout year, which would bode well for him as he becomes an unrestricted free agent next summer.