It wasn’t pretty, but the Vancouver Canucks (11-6-3) emerged victorious, defeating the Boston Bruins (10-10-3) 2-0 on Tuesday night. Jake DeBrusk and Conor Garland provided the offence, while Kevin Lankinen stopped 32 shots he faced for his fifth career shutout. With the win, the Canucks improve to 8-1-0 on the road and 2-0-0 on their current six-game road trip.
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The story of this game was Lankinen, who stood on his head in the victory. He made highlight reel saves and helped Vancouver capture their 11th win of the season despite being outshot 32-15. After some tough games earlier this month, it looks like Lankinen is returning to his early-season form, as he was unbeatable tonight in Boston.
When asked about his goaltender post-game, Head Coach Rick Tocchet was very complimentary, saying, “He was very good tonight. Saw the puck extremely well. He made a couple of nice where they think they were going to shoot it, and they went back, the cross-ice, and he just read it. That’s when you know your goalie is on tonight. So he made a couple of those saves. They’re tough saves tonight, really tough.”
As for the feel-good story of the night, DeBrusk scored the game-winner in his return to TD Garden. His sixth of the season came during the second period on the power play, which was also his first game-winner with the Canucks. Based on his teammate’s reactions after Garland scored the empty-netter, it is clear that this win meant a lot for DeBrusk and the team.
Tocchet also commented on DeBrusk scoring in his return, saying, “It’s always nice to come back to the place you are traded from or sign as a free agent. He had a lot of good years here. He loves Boston, he loves the fans, and it was nice to see him score.”
Vancouver’s penalty kill also deserves a ton of credit, as they were able to kill off all three Bruins’ power plays. While Lankinen did most of the heavy lifting, the Canucks penalty killers were able to get in shooting lanes and win board battles in order to force pucks back down the ice. While the penalty kill has been inconsistent of late, Vancouver’s ability to keep Boston’s power play at bay played a massive role in the win.
In the end, the Canucks did just enough to walk away with two points. Despite a high shot total, they played strong defensively and showed a willingness to sacrifice the body to block shots. While this time of game plan may not work in the future, the team and Lankinen deserve a lot of credit for shutting out the Bruins on Tuesday night.
Facts and Stats:
– Kevin Lankinen becomes the fifth goaltender in NHL history to win his first eight road games of the season
– Canucks record a season-high 26 blocked shots
– Dakota Joshua records at least nine hits for the third time in his career
– The Canucks beat the Bruins in Boston for the first time since October 20, 2018
Scoring Summary:
1st Period:
No Scoring
2nd Period:
5:53- VAN: Jake DeBrusk (6) from Conor Garland and Quinn Hughes (PPG)
3rd Period:
19:45- VAN: Conor Garland (6) from Pius Suter (ENG)
Up Next:
The Canucks continue their six-game road trip tomorrow with a matchup against the Pittsburgh Penguins. These two teams have already met this season, with Vancouver winning 4-3 back in October. Game time is set for 4:30 pm PT from PPG Paints Arena.
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