Arshdeep Bains caps an eventful few days with first NHL goal

After going winless in their first three games of the 2024-25 campaign, the Vancouver Canucks are now on a roll with four straight wins. The latest victory came on Saturday night at Rogers Arena, as they bounced back from a 2-0 deficit to score four unanswered goals and ultimately beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3.

There was plenty to take in and discuss following the game, but arguably the biggest talking point was Arshdeep Bains' goal. Not only did it represent the game-winner for the Cancucks, but it also doubled as his first career point in the NHL.

It was a case of being in the right place at the right time for the 23-year-old, albeit of his own doing after some major hustle to get to the Penguins net. Daniel Sprong saw his shot saved, with the rebound falling into Bains' lap -- in a manner of speaking -- for him to calmly shoot home past the Penguins goalie.

In a nice and thoughtful touch which showed Sprong was aware of the significance of the moment, he grabbed the puck which Bains had scored with and passed it to him back on the bench. Speaking to the media postgame, including Lindsey Horsting of NHL.com, Bains said: "Two seconds after the puck went in, he came up to me and I think it’s just those little things that mean a lot."

Bains discusses the goal ... sort of

When asked about the actual goal, the winger had a better time recollecting how he felt in the moment. As per Iain MacIntyre of Sportsnet, he said: "I can’t really even put it in words. It just happened so fast, and all the guys were so happy. It was a special moment. I think everyone, you know, they took time out, came over and gave me a hug. And it’s something I won’t forget."

Certainly it makes perfect sense why Bains would have been so emotional, given what he had to do, to get to this point. Undrafted out of college, he eventually signed with the Canucks and worked hard to rise up through the ranks and earn his NHL debut last season, against the Colorado Avalanche.

Interestingly, at one stage it seemed as if the Surrey, British Columbia native wasn't even going to play in Vancouver on Saturday night. On Thursday he was assigned to Abbotsford in the AHL, but then recalled the following day.

Canucks team extremely happy for Bains

What made the goal even more special was the reaction of Bains' teammates, which tells you everything about how much they are rooting for him. As per MacIntyre, Kiefer Sherwood said: "Seeing the guys’ reaction on the bench, I think we were happier than he was. He’s been a guy that’s just put his nose down and continued to go to work."

We would be remiss not to mention that Elias Pettersson also scored his first goal of the season. To say it was desperately needed would be an understatement, following his recent practice scuffle and all the issues he's had in general since signing his eight-year, $92.8 million deal back in March.

However, as far as we're concerned, Bains and his first NHL goal is the number one headline from Saturday night's clash with the Penguins. And just for good measures, he was also awarded the First Star of the Game.

There's still some work to be done yet for Bains, to establish himself in the Canucks lineup. However, Saturday night represented another positive step on his journey from undrafted free agent to being a regular in the bottom six.

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