National Hockey League
Arizona 4, Vancouver 3
When: 10:00 PM ET, Thursday, April 6, 2017
Where: Gila River Arena, Glendale, Arizona
Referees: Francois St. Laurent, Furman South
Linesmen: Darren Gibbs, Trent Knorr
Attendance: 11959

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Ever since they fell off the playoff pace, the Arizona Coyotes insisted they were focused not on draft position but on progress. They made some more Thursday.

Radim Vrbata scored a pair of goals and Luke Schenn and Alex Burmistrov also scored as the Coyotes beat the Vancouver Canucks 4-3 at Gila River Arena.

The Coyotes (30-41-10) improved to 17-15-4 over their last 36 games and passed Vancouver (30-41-9) into 28th place in the NHL standings.

"It's a little bit of fool's gold so keep that in perspective," said Coyotes coach Dave Tippett, who believes that winning without the pressure of making the playoffs is easier. "But there's value in it, especially for the young players. Our young players are getting some experience."

Louis Domingue had 26 saves for the Coyotes to improve to 6-0-1 in his last seven games.

Nikolay Goldobin, Brock Boeser and Daniel Sedin scored for Vancouver, which got 18 saves from Ryan Miller but lost its sixth straight game.

"Again, it's the same story," coach Willie Desjardins said with obvious disgust. "We had chances and we just didn't capitalize."

The Coyotes grabbed a 1-0 lead on Schenn's first goal of the season, at the six minutes of the first period. Schenn crashed the net in time to collect the rebound of Brendan Perlini's shot at the right post and push it past Miller. It was also Schenn's first goal in his last 100 games.

"Better late than never," Schenn quipped. "You watch all the goals, goal scorers go to the blue paint. I had to sneak down there. No one saw me. I guess they thought I wasn't dangerous."

Vancouver tied the game at 7:51 of the first when Daniel Sedin's touch pass found Goldobin, who slipped a shot under Domingue's arm.

Vrbata restored the Coyotes' lead 55 seconds into the second period when Jakob Chychrun's shot from the point bounced off the end boards, around the net and onto Vrbata's stick at the far post.

Burmistrov widened the lead to 3-1 at 9:40 of the period when he tapped in Alex Goligoski's pass at the far post for his fifth goal in 25 games with the Coyotes -- and his fourth in his last four games.

Vrbata made it 4-1 at 16:11 of the second period when his shot from the left of the slot trickled under Miller and in for his 20th goal of the season. It is the sixth time that Vrbata has reached at least 20 goals. Five have come with the Coyotes, the other with the Canucks.

"I'll take it," Vrbata said. "It was something I was hoping I could get. Good thing I got it tonight and don't have to think about it and press in the last game."

Boeser stuffed in a loose puck at the side of the net to cut the deficit to 4-2 at 1:47 of the third period.

Daniel Sedin ripped a wrist shot past Domingue from the left circle at 12:40 to cut the margin to 4-3. Brother Henrik Sedin had the lone assist on the goal, marking the 706th time that the Sedins earned points on the same goal.

"Being down 4-1 against this team is tough," Daniel Sedin said. "I thought we had a good push back. It wasn't good enough, though."

NOTES: Canucks twin brothers Daniel and Henrik Sedin said they plan to finish their careers in Vancouver. The Sedins have full no-movement clauses in their contracts, which they would use to veto trades, and both said they would sign only with Vancouver when their contracts expire after next season. If the Canucks don't want them, they plan to retire. ... Coyotes RWs Shane Doan and Radim Vrbata returned to the lineup after one-game absences because of lower-body injuries. ... Coyotes rookie LW Clayton Keller was a healthy scratch. ... Canucks LW Loui Eriksson (leg), RW Jack Skille (ankle), G Jacob Markstrom (knee), C Brendan Gaunce (undisclosed) and D Joseph Cramarossa (foot) all missed the game. ... Canucks LW Sven Baertschi, left the game in the third period with an undisclosed injury. He will be re-evaluated in Vancouver on Friday.
Top Game Performances
 
Vancouver   Arizona
Henrik Sedin 3 Points Radim Vrbata 2
Daniel Sedin 1 Goals Radim Vrbata 2
Henrik Sedin 3 Assists Max Domi 2
Brock Boeser 1 Power Play Goals Radim Vrbata 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Ryan Miller .818 Save Percentage Louis Domingue .897
Ryan Miller 18 Saves Louis Domingue 26
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Vancouver 29 3 1-3 1-3 8 32
Arizona 22 4 2-3 2-3 18 23
Upcoming Games
  • Arizona will play their next game at home against Minnesota. The Coyotes have a W/L % of .367 after a win and .373 after a loss.
  • Vancouver will play their next game at home against Edmonton. The Canucks have a W/L % of .387 after a win and .367 after a loss.