VANCOUVER – Canucks insisted on a 5-2 victory over the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday, but the victory was not enough to keep Vancouver’s weak hopes for the playoffs alive.
Quinn Hughes scored a goal and two assists and set a franchise record for points from the Canucks defender. Oliver Ekman-Larson added one each, Sheldon Dries, JT Miller and Luke Shen scored, and Connor Garland provided three assists.
Jordan Eberley and Connor Geekey responded for the Kraken (26-47-6) in a penalty shootout.
Vancouver (39-30-11) played without all-star goalkeeper Thatcher Demko, who head coach Bruce Boudreau said was “a little angry”. Spencer Martin took the net of Canucks and stopped 31 of 33 shots for his second NHL victory.
Joey Dackord made 22 saves for Seattle, who lost their third in a row.
Despite the win, the Canucks were officially eliminated in the playoffs when the Dallas Stars secured a place after the season with a 3-2 penalty shootout victory over the Vegas Golden Knights.
This is the second year in a row that Vancouver will miss the playoffs.
Hughes finished his important night with a 15:59 goal in the third.
The defender and Garland escaped the defense zone in two on one, and Garland made a pass through the slot to Hughes, who scored it for his eighth goal of the season and his 66th point.
A happy rebound helped Canucks score their fourth goal of the night.
Daccord stopped a shot from Matthew Highmore, but saw the puck bounce off his wand and up over his head, falling into the crease behind him. Shen scored over the goal line 13:08 in the third and made it 4-2.
Vancouver took a 3-0 lead in the first break, but struggled to defend the lead. The hosts were 26-14 ahead in the second and third periods.
Penalties shattered Canucks’ game in the second. Vancouver was called for five separate fouls within the frame and had to endure three minutes and 42 seconds of a five-on-three game.
Kraken reduced the deficit to one goal by 9:12 in the second. Riley Sheehan scored a Geekie puck from the end boards and the striker sent a shot up and over Martin’s glove to make it 3-2.
Seattle got on board with a score of 4:59 in the period after Brad Richardson was called for tripping.
Eberle hit the top corner from a narrow for his 20th goal in the Kraken shirt.
Vancouver was 1 for 3 with a male advantage on Tuesday, and Seattle came out 1 for 8.
Ekman-Larson gave Kanuks a 3-0 lead in the middle of the first after Carson Saucy was called in for a cross-check.
Using a screen in front of the net, the Vancouver defender shot right from the inside of the blue line and scored his fifth goal of the season at 15:05.
Vancouver beat the visitors strongly in the first, as Kraken went through the first 11 minutes without hitting the door, despite a two-minute powerful game.
Canucks raised 2-0 in just 3:34 in the first when Garland threw a back pass to Miller and the energetic striker fired an explosion from the high slot, sending the puck past the Daccord glove.
Hughes received a second assist in the game, his 64th point of the season. The team set a new one-season record for points from a Canuk defender, surpassing the 1986-87 score by Doug Leedster.
Hughes set a franchise record for defender assists on Saturday when he celebrated his 56th of the season in Vancouver’s 6-3 loss to Calgary.
Dries opened the scoring with 2:46 in Tuesday’s match with a shot from inside the lifting circle after pressure from an odd man.
The Kraken will host the LA Kings on Wednesday. The Kings will then head north to face Canucks in Vancouver on Thursday.
NOTE: Seattle defender Vince Dunn missed the game and is listed as a daily with an upper body injury. … Kraken’s right winger Daniel Sprong played his 200th game of the NHL regular season. … Canucks, who is playing his first game in Vancouver since the death of Guy Lafleur on Friday, played a video tribute to the hockey legend during the signing of O’Canada.
Add Comment