Canucks find the back of the net seven times, extend streak to five games

Second Period:  Breaking It Open

The Canucks were dealt with an unfortunate blow to start the middle frame in the form of an injury to Horvat. The 30 plus goal scorer hobbled off the ice and into the dressing room after taking a shot right above the skate. He did not return and was later announced with a lower-body injury.  Post game, Boudreau remained hopeful about the situation.

Much like the opening period, the first couple of minutes of play felt like it was in cruise control. Nevertheless, an Arizona too many men call got the ball rolling from there.

Elias Pettersson notched his 60th point of the season with a slap shot rocked home from his spot on the left side. Picking up the secondary assist on the play, Quinn Hughes continued to get one step closer to chasing the Canucks record for most points and assists by a defenceman in a season at the ripe age of 22.

Down by three, Coyote forward Nick Ritchie was inches away from getting his team within two after his shot rang off the corner of the post and crossbar. The Canucks would hem Arizona in the following shift, but a cross-checking penalty on Hughes, ultimately allowed the away team to get themselves on the board.

Fortunately, it would be the only goal Arizona would pocket, and on the ensuing Canucks powerplay, Vasily Podkolzin hopped off the bench and muscled his way to the front of the net to tuck the puck in and restore the three-goal lead.

Vancouver wasn’t done there. Just 14 seconds later, Garland beat the Coyote goaltender cleanly over the glove.

Vancouver would tally their fourth goal of the frame with less than a minute to spare after Podkolzin finished a one-timer feed by Miller after some sloppy puck play by the Coyotes in their own zone.

On the back of a four-point performance thus far by Miller, the team was primed to close out the final 20 in the driver’s seat.

Third Period: Living To Fight Another Day

With the game blown wide open, a good stretch of the third carried on without a whistle. At this point, the Canucks had full control of the game and even managed to out chance the Coyotes on their only powerplay of the frame.

Vancouver still found a way to get one by the Harri Sateri who came in the game in relief of Vejmelka.  Chaisson and Miller connected for the last goal of the game on a one-timing passing play nearly identical to Podkolzin’s.

As the game ticked down with more than a few Canucks forwards on hat trick watch, Rogers Arena contributed with the “Bruce, there it is” chants to add the finishing touches to an offensive outpouring at home.

Takeaways

The Canucks put their best foot forward in an offensively dominated game against a depleted Arizona team, not allowing them any breathing room. Part of the driving force behind that effort was Miller, who was awarded the WWE Championship Belt post-game.

The fact of the matter is, Vancouver has kept itself at striking distance. With an injury to Drew Doughty and a disheartening beatdown at the hands of the Colorado Avalanche, the Kings are the team for the Canucks to chase down.

Now sitting four points back with a game in hand, Vancouver will need to match the Kings and the Knights with wins Two wins back of their previous seven-game win streak under Boudreau at the beginning of the season, fans have to beg the question, can the Canucks carry this momentum for the remainder of their games?

What’s especially been refreshing as of late is having lots of different scorers. The big guns are stepping up to the plate and a few depth players like Podkolzin and Chiasson are becoming consistent scorers for the team. With the recent team injuries, Vancouver is going to need all hands on deck in the final seven games of the season.

At this stage, with Demko being stretched thin to give the team a chance to win each night, winning a heavily favoured matchup in that sort of fashion, will give the team the morale boost They need to tackle the Dallas Stars next for their second to last game of the current homestand. Dallas currently holds the final wild card and the Canucks are five points behind. Puck drop is at 7:30 pm PST.