Vancouver 5, Minnesota 2
When: 7:30 PM ET, Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Where: Xcel Energy Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota
Referees:
Mike Leggo, Justin St. Pierre
Linesmen:
Darren Gibbs, Brad Lazarowich
Attendance:
19014
By SportsDirect Inc.
Canucks 5, Wild 2: David Booth scored twice to record his first multi-goal performance in over two years as visiting Vancouver won its third in a row.
Zack Kassian, Ryan Kesler and Daniel Sedin also scored for the Canucks, who moved within four points of Phoenix for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference. Eddie Lack made 29 saves in his 14th consecutive start.
Charlie Coyle and Nino Niederreiter tallied for Minnesota, which fell to 2-2-3 at home in March. Ilya Bryzgalov made five saves in relief of Darcy Kuemper, who was pulled after allowing three goals on 12 shots over two periods.
Booth opened the scoring 15:39 into the game, when he streaked down the right side of the ice and fired a shot past Kuemper. Coyle tied the game less than two minutes later, but Booth restored Vancouver’s advantage 11:57 into the second as he capitalized on a giveaway by Wild defenseman Jared Spurgeon.
Kassian spun and fired a loose puck in off a faceoff in the final minute of the second period, which effectively ended Kuemper’s night. Sedin tipped in his 14th of the season with 8:48 remaining in the third and Kesler added a power-play goal 49 seconds later before Niederreiter capped the scoring at 12:25.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Canucks captain Henrik Sedin missed the game and is day-to-day with the leg injury he suffered on Sunday. … Wild captain Mikko Koivu notched an assist, giving him seven points in his last five games. … Minnesota fell to 10-4-5 against the Pacific Division.
Top Game Performances
Vancouver |
|
Minnesota |
David Booth 2 |
Points |
Charlie Coyle 1 |
David Booth 2 |
Goals |
Charlie Coyle 1 |
Dan Hamhuis 1 |
Assists |
Erik Haula 1 |
Ryan Kesler 1 |
Power Play Goals |
N/A |
N/A |
Short Handed Goals |
N/A |
Eddie Lack .935 |
Save Percentage |
Darcy Kuemper .750 |
Eddie Lack 29 |
Saves |
Darcy Kuemper 9 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Shots |
Goals |
Power Play |
Penalty Kill |
Penalty Mins |
Face Offs Won |
Vancouver
|
19 |
5 |
1-2 |
4-4 |
13 |
27 |
Minnesota
|
31 |
2 |
0-4 |
1-2 |
9 |
27 |
Upcoming Games
-
Minnesota will play their next game on the road against St. Louis. The Wild have a W/L % of .541 after a win and .472 after a loss.
-
Vancouver will play their next game on the road against Colorado. The Canucks have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .425 after a loss.