Kuzmenko's late heroics help Canucks snap two-game losing skid
The Vancouver Canucks are back on the right side of the .500 mark after a 5-3 bend but don't break victory in Florida on Saturday night. Here are some thoughts and observations about the team's third win of the season:
*Saturday was a masterclass in controlling a hockey game by captain Quinn Hughes. Good teams don't let losing streaks mount and it looked from the drop of the puck like Hughes was intent on insuring the Canucks came out on top Saturday. He opened the scoring on a first period power play, played a game-high 25:30, had six shots on 10 attempts on the night and seemed to have the Panthers chasing him every time he had the puck. His leadership was on display from the outset Saturday and he was a big part in the Canucks putting an end to their losing streak at just two games.
*The Canucks finished dead last in the NHL in goals from defensemen last season with 22. They had two on Saturday and now have three (including one from Tyler Myers on Thursday) on the season. More astonishing than the fact the blueline chipped in with a pair in Florida is the fact that Hughes and Soucy both scored on the power play. In doing so, the Canucks got as many power play goals from defensemen in two periods as they did from their entire D-corps all of last season.
*After a quiet start to his season, Andrei Kuzmenko kicked things up a notch in South Florida. He scored the winner with 4:57 to play showing great poise and patience before threading the needle to find the back of the net. He made a dazzling backhand spin move to set up Elias Pettersson's goal midway through the second period. He also stood his ground in front of the Florida net and drew an Oliver Ekman-Larsson penalty that led to Carson Soucy's power play goal. This was easily Kuzmenko's most involved game of the season. It would be nice to see him follow it up with another good one on Tuesday.
*Elias Pettersson had a goal and an assist on Saturday. That is now four multi-point nights in five games this season. Aside from the 2-0 shutout loss in Philadelphia, Pettersson has registered multiple point efforts in every other game to get to 10 points already. As of publishing, that tied him with Jack Hughes for the NHL scoring lead. Pettersson picked up a second assist on the Hughes goal, but also aided that goal by going to the netfront and creating a screen in front of Sergei Bobrovsky. Pettersson knew his body positioning perfectly and set-up shop millimetres outside the blue paint. As the puck whistled past him, Bobrovsky pleaded to the referee for goaltender interference, but Pettersson was positioned so perfectly as to take away the goalie's eyes, but not impede him in any way. The Panthers must have seen it the same way because they did not challenge the play and the goal stood as it should have.
*Rick Tocchet did a nice job of handling Ilya Mikheyev's return to action after knee surgery. Mikheyev played 13:03, had four shots on goal and an assist on Pettersson's goal. He also had a glorious scoring chance off the rush set up by Kuzmenko with about eight minutes to play. Mikheyev had a brief shift on the power play, but was not thrown into penalty killing duty in his season debut. That will come likely sooner rather than later. But he contributed to a victory, was able to shake off some rust and now has a baseline of where his game after a nine-month layoff. He was good on Saturday and he'll only get better.
*If Brock Boeser is going to reach the 30-goal mark for the first time in his NHL career, he's going to need a little luck along the way. Boeser scored an empty netter officially listed on the NHL game sheet as a 156-foot shot from deep in his own zone. The fact Boeser is out late protecting a 4-3 lead is a story in itself and something that he hasn't always been trusted with by other coaches in his NHL career. But he made no mistake dialling long distance and continues to have the Midas Touch scoring his sixth goal of the season. Like any good goal scorer chasing a significant milestone, Boeser will likely need a few more empty netters along the way. With six goals in five games, he's certainly setting himself up to take a legitimate shot at 30.
*Casey DeSmith continues to author a wonderful story as Thatcher Demko's back-up. DeSmith stopped 17 of the 19 shots he faced in a busy third period and 33 of 36 on the night. He is now 2-0 on the season with a 2.73 GAA and a sparkling .938 save percentage. The Canucks can't ask for anything more as DeSmith not only gives Demko needed rest time, but is also delivering victories when called upon. The decision to start DeSmith on Saturday was a smart one. As the Canucks will have their number one netminder fresh and ready to face a conference foe in the road trip finale in Nashville on Tuesday.