VANCOUVER – Four weeks after turning a three-goal lead into their most embarrassing night of the season by disintegrating and letting the Pittsburgh Penguins pour in five goals in the final 14 minutes, the Vancouver Canucks took a conservative approach in the rematch with Evgeni Malkin’s team on Saturday.
They did not allow the Penguins a first-period shot.
Malkin finished with one point instead of five, and the Canucks beat the Penguins 4-1 at Rogers Arena. Those two things were directly related.
But the story underlying both continued to be goalie Jacob Markstrom, who made 28 saves in his seventh straight start. Six of those have come since Canucks backup Thatcher Demko suffered a concussion from friendly fire during practice.
When the Canucks have needed Markstrom the most, the goalie has played his best stretch of the season.
Vancouver is only 3-4 in those seven games, but it’s possible the Canucks wouldn’t have won any had Markstrom not been in supreme form. He has stopped 216 of 234 shots for a save percentage of .923.
And he is doing this after an emotionally-agonizing autumn when Markstrom’s father lost his battle with cancer back in Sweden.
“I don’t think he ever really got in a rhythm just with the way his year has gone,” Canucks coach Travis Green said. “Unfortunately, with what happened to him, he has left the team a few times and that probably has derailed him from getting into a rhythm a bit. He’s definitely in one right now.”
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Veteran centre Jay Beagle said: “This guy, he battles so hard in practice. He works hard off the ice. He’s just a true pro; I only have good things to say about him and his game. It’s hard for anyone, obviously, to be in and out of the lineup. You do get rolling once you play some consecutive games. There is a certain thing where rhythm makes a big difference. He’s playing more now and looking like himself. He’s won us a lot of games.”
The Canucks have won two games this homestand when it seemed possible a few days ago they’d win none.
The team was teetering towards a full-blown crisis when it opened with a 3-1 loss on Tuesday against the Montreal Canadiens, the Canucks’ fourth defeat in five games.
But the Canucks won 5-4 in overtime Thursday against the Vegas Golden Knights, who they had beaten only once since the National Hockey League opened an outlet in Nevada, and on Saturday managed their win against a Pittsburgh team that was 7-1 in its previous eight games.
You just never know with these Canucks.
“Of course that last game (in Pittsburgh) was in the back of our heads,” centre Elias Pettersson said after scoring for the fourth time in four games. “We didn’t want to think about it too much, but we used it as fuel tonight.”
After a shotless opening 10 minutes, the Penguins must have gotten bored because they started taking penalties to get the game going.
Starting with a high-sticking double-minor to Dominik Simon at 12:24, the Penguins took eight minutes in penalties in a span of 87 seconds, leaving the Canucks with a two-minute five-on-three and an uninterrupted power play of 4:36.
By the time the Penguins’ penalty box was empty, the Canucks led 2-0.
After an opening goal by J.T. Miller was wiped out by a coach’s challenge — Quinn Hughes put himself offside 62 seconds before Miller scored at 14:05 — Jake Virtanen’s one-timer at 15:10 was as beyond doubt as it was beyond Pittsburgh goalie Matt Murray’s catching glove.
Miller doubled the lead at 17:00 with a second power-play goal, a deft, top-shelf redirection of Oscar Fantenberg’s shot-pass to the high slot.
Penguins record 0 shots on goal in a period for the first time since Nov 23, 2002 vs Sharks (3rd period)
The Canucks did not allow a shot on goal in the first period, marking the first time since 2002 that the Penguins did not test the opposition goalie at least once during a 20-minute frame.
Markstrom required that 20 minutes of rest in order to play the second period, when the Penguins had two more power plays and outshot the Canucks 20-6.
Jake Guentzel guided a rebound into the net from Jared McCann’s power-play blast to halve the Canucks lead to 2-1 at 15:28.
But the Canucks, who collapsed when the Penguins leaned on them late in that dismal 8-6 loss on Nov. 27, displayed impressive resilience by answering just 44 seconds later when Pettersson roofed a Tyler Myers rebound after getting free from Penguins defenceman Marcus Pettersson (no relation).
Three of Elias Pettersson’s last four goals have been greasy. The 21-year-old is learning to play in hard areas.
“If I was accepting, like, being stamped out, boxed out, I wouldn’t be able to score that goal,” he said. “So I’m always trying to be hard on myself and work hard.”
“I think he’s evolving,” Green said. “He’s a very bright, young player. He listens. In hard games, he knows he’s got to go to hard areas, and he is. All the top players in the league, they play in those types of games and they go to hard areas.”
Brock Boeser made it 4-1 with 5:29 remaining, intercepting a Pittsburgh clearance before working a give-and-go with Pettersson.
“We did a lot of good things and it was nice to get the win,” Beagle said. “But we’ve got to continue to build here. We’ve got to be better. We can’t be satisfied with 14 shots (and) Marky standing on his head.”
Well, the goalie-standing-on-his-head part is pretty good.
The Canucks finish their pre-Christmas homestand Monday against the Edmonton Oilers.
The French league’s legal commission has ordered Paris Saint-Germain to pay Kylian Mbappé the 55 million euros ($61 million) in unpaid wages that he claims he’s entitled to, the league said Thursday.
The league confirmed the decision to The Associated Press without more details, a day after the France superstar rejected a mediation offer by the commission in his dispute with his former club.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Former football star Reggie Bush was at his Encino home Tuesday night when three male suspects attempted to break in, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday.
“Everyone is safe,” Bush said in a text message to the newspaper.
The Los Angeles Police Dept. told the Times that a resident of the house reported hearing a window break and broken glass was found outside. Police said nothing was stolen and that three male suspects dressed in black were seen leaving the scene.
Bush starred at Southern California and in the NFL. The former running back was reinstated as the 2005 Heisman Trophy winner this year. He forfeited it in 2010 after USC was hit with sanctions partly related to Bush’s dealings with two aspiring sports marketers.
VANCOUVER – A fresh face has been gracing the B.C. Lions‘ highlight reels in recent weeks.
Midway through his second CFL campaign, wide receiver Ayden Eberhardt has contributed touchdowns in two consecutive games.
The 26-year-old wide receiver from Loveland, Colo., was the lone B.C. player to reel in a passing major in his team’s 37-23 victory over the league-leading Montreal Alouettes last Friday. The week before, he notched his first CFL touchdown in the Lions’ win over the Ottawa Redblacks.
“It’s been awesome. It’s been really good,” Eberhardt said of his recent play. “At the end of the day, the biggest stat to me is if we win. But who doesn’t love scoring?”
He’ll look to add to the tally Friday when the Leos (7-6) host the Toronto Argonauts.
Eberhardt signed with B.C. as a free agent in January 2023 and spent much of last season on the practice squad before cementing a role on the roster this year.
The six-foot-two, 195-pound University of Wyoming product has earned more opportunities in his second season, said Lions’ head coach and co-general manager Rick Campbell.
“He’s a super hard worker and very smart. He understands, has high football IQ, as we call it,” Campbell said.
The fact that Eberhardt can play virtually every receiving position helps.
“He could literally go into a game and we could throw him into a spot and he’d know exactly what he’s doing,” the coach said. “That allows him to play fast and earn the quarterback’s trust. And you see him making plays.”
Eberhardt credited his teammates, coaches and the rest of the Lions’ staff with helping him prepare for any situation he might face. They’ve all spent time teaching him the ins and outs of the Canadian game, or go over the playbook and run routes after practice, he said.
“I’ve played every single position on our offence in a game in the last two years, which is kind of crazy. But I love playing football,” he said. “I want to play any position that the team needs me to play.”
While B.C.’s lineup is studded with stars like running back William Stanback — who has a CFL-high 938 rushing yards — and wide receiver Justin McInnis — who leads the league in both receiving yards (1,074) and receiving TDs (seven) — versatility has been a critical part of the team’s back-to-back wins.
“I think we’ve got a lot of talented guys who deserve to get the ball and make big plays when they have the ball in their hands. So it’s really my job to get them the ball as much as possible,” said quarterback Nathan Rourke.
“I think that makes it easy when you can lean on those guys and, really, we’re in a situation where anyone can have a big game. And I think that’s a good place to be.”
Even with a talented lineup, the Lions face a tough test against an eager Argos side.
Toronto lost its second straight game Saturday when it dropped a 41-27 decision to Ottawa.
“We’ll have our hands full,” Rourke said. “We’ll have to adjust on the fly to whatever their game plan is. And no doubt, they’ll be ready to go so we’ll have to be as well.”
The two sides have already met once this season when the Argos handed the Lions a 35-27 loss in Toronto back on June 9.
A win on Friday would vault B.C. to the top of the West Division standings, over the 7-6 Winnipeg Blue Bombers who are on a bye week.
Collecting that victory isn’t assured, though, even with Toronto coming in on a two-game skid, Campbell said.
“They’ve hit a little bit of a rut, but they’re a really good team,” he said. “They’re very athletic. And you can really see (quarterback Chad Kelly’s) got zip on the ball. When you see him in there, he can make all the throws. So we’re expecting their best shot.”
TORONTO ARGONAUTS (6-6) AT B.C. LIONS (7-6)
Friday, B.C. Place
HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE: The Lions boast a 4-1 home record this season, including a 38-12 victory over the Redblacks at Royal Athletic Park in Victoria, B.C., on Aug. 31. The Argos have struggled outside of BMO Field and hold a 1-5 away record. Trips to the West Coast haven’t been easy for Toronto in recent years — since 2003, the club is 4-14 in road games against B.C.
CENTURION: B.C. defensive back Garry Peters is set to appear in his 100th consecutive game. The 32-year-old from Conyers, Ga., is a two-time CFL all-star who has amassed 381 defensive tackles, 19 special teams tackles and 16 interceptions over seven seasons. “Just being on the field with the guys every day, running around, talking trash back and forth, it keeps me young,” Peters said. “It makes me feel good, and my body doesn’t really feel it. I’ve been blessed to be able to play 100 straight.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
