Canucks lose OT heartbreaker to Coyotes after valiant third-period comeback
The Vancouver Canucks did their best to pull off a comeback but came up just short.
They earned a single point as they fell 4-3 to the Arizona Coyotes in overtime on Wednesday night at Rogers Arena.
This sets up a huge game on Saturday night against the Edmonton Oilers, who are now just four points back in the Pacific Division title race with two games in hand.
The Canucks were facing a tough task heading into the third period down by a single goal. The Oilers earning two points earlier in the night just added pressure to make the comeback.
“Not between periods,” said Carson Soucy when asked if the team was checking the scores around the league during the game. “I think we saw they had a lead before the game, kind of was just focused on tonight.”
After the Coyotes ā who lost 5-0 last night against the Seattle Kraken ā doubled their lead to two goals, what ensued was a parade to the penalty box as the Canucks took three minor infractions in a four-minute span.
“Sometimes calls aren’t going to go your way and you’ve got to be really disciplined,” said head coach Rick Tocchet after the game. “Sometimes it’s going to not go your way but you can’t kill three or four penalties in a row, it’s tough, especially when you’re down.”
Despite sending so much time in the final frame shorthanded, the Canucks managed to claw their way back. They killed all of the penalties and eventually tied the game on an Elias Pettersson power-play goal with just a few minutes remaining in the third period.
The Canucks tie it with less than 4 minutes left š pic.twitter.com/1d33onDCxr
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) April 11, 2024
This forced an extra five minutes that would decide the winner of this contest.
Coyotes forward Dylan Guenther, who turned 21 years-old today, drew a penalty in overtime on a solo rush to the net.
Despite being down a skater, the Canucks had the best chance during those two minutes as Filip Hronek was awarded a penalty shot. The defenceman was stonewalled by Connor Ingram and the game continued.
Connor Ingram shuts down Filip Hronek's penalty shot in overtime#Yotes | #Canucks pic.twitter.com/GbCjwN6PU9
— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) April 11, 2024
The Coyotes ended the game shortly after, putting an end to any hope of a multi-goal comeback.
Vancouver’s sole goal in the first two periods came when J.T. Miller tied the game at one when he put home a rebound in front of the net. It was the forward’s 400th career Canucks point and his 101st point of the season.
Itās J.T. Miller time. ā° pic.twitter.com/TRiajWZdyB
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 11, 2024
The Coyotes quickly took the lead back less than a minute later on a shot from the point that beat Arturs Silovs.
The Latvian made 14 saves on the night. Coach Tocchet called the young goalie’s performance “fine” after the game.
Guenther set a career high with four points. The player who was drafted with the Canucks first-round pick given up in the Oliver Ekman-Larsson trade is already developing a reputation as a Canucks-killer.
“The way we played today wasn’t playoff hockey and wasn’t good enough,” said Elias Lindholm after the game. “We have three more games here to put ourselves in a good spot and feel good about our game and get some confidence. Obviously we’re going to play some good teams so it’s going to be a big stretch here for us.”
The Swedish centre played 18:30 in his first game back in the lineup, including more than four minutes on the penalty kill.
“I thought he really played hard tonight,” said the head coach about Lindholm’s return. “It’s a good step for him.”
The Canucks have less than two weeks before the postseason begins.
“I think we’ll be ready to ramp it up when it starts once it starts. We’re obviously looking to be at our best but I think once the intensity of playoffs, that’s good for our team we’ll match it,” said Soucy.
There were a few bright spots for the losing team. Captain Quinn Hughes was named second star after recording three assists, giving him 91 points on the season. He joins Bobby Orr and Ray Bourque as the only defencemen in NHL history to have at least nine games with three or more assists in a single season.
The Canucks controlled 72.13% of the expected goals at five-on-five and outshot the Coyotes 19-12 during those minutes. However, their head coach was not happy with some of the shot selection.
“A lot of attempts at the net but for whatever reason a lot of missed shots. I think it was 29 missed shots and you’ve got to have people around the net. The first two periods we didn’t.” said Tocchet after the game. “Got to hit the net, keep it low, Millsy scored, someone shot it low, hit a skate, he gets the rebound. It’s very simple. You can’t shoot high from the blue line and you’ve got to hit the net.”
The Canucks had 75 shot attempts but only 26 of them hit the net.
On a day where relocation rumours swirled about the Coyotes franchise, the team didn’t let it affect their on-ice play. This may have been the last time an Arizona-based team played an NHL game in Vancouver.
The Canucks have two days off before a season defining game against the Oilers on Saturday. The puck will drop at 7 pm PT for that matchup.
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