The Canucks finished off their February homestand with a thumping win over a team Vancouver fans still love to hate.
It was a near-unanimous comment Saturday from the Canucks before facing the Boston Bruins, who would be tired after having to fight hard to defeat the Calgary Flames on Friday night: sure, they’re among the league’s best, but they have to take advantage.
And they did, knocking off the Bruins 9-3 in front of a raucous crowd at Rogers Arena, posting their biggest win over the team. The closest they’ve come was an 8-5 win in 2018. And the first time since 1996 they scored nine goals.
Led by captain Bo Horvat and the Insurance Line, the Canucks dominated the Bruins from start to finish.
In a vintage performance Horvat scored a first-period power-play, helped create goals for both his linemates, picked up an assist along the way and also had a fight. It was the first Gordie Howe Hat Trick for a Canuck since Denis Pederson in October of 2000.
The Horvat-Tanner Pearson-Loui Eriksson was matched up all night against the Brad Marchand-Patrice Bergeron-David Pastrnak line and while Pastrnak tallied twice, the Insurance Line truthfully controlled play throughout.
“He plays 200 foot game and he shows up in big moments and that’s the type of player I want to be, and I look up to guys like that,” Horvat said of his matchup with Bergeron. “You want to have your best games against guys like that so I was extra motivated today for sure.”
Eriksson hit the cross-bar early and then hit the post twice before finally burying a goal late in the second period.
“We were just laughing at that, because I think it was like the second or third shift of the game, he buried one off the crossbar and you’re just like oh my god, like poor Loui, he’s never going to get one, but it’s nice to see him get one,” Horvat said.
The Canucks fired 17 shots on goal in a high-flying first period, Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask reminding onlookers more than once why he’s among the league’s best.
Second periods have been a challenge for Vancouver this season but not on this night as the Canucks scored three times. The period also featured a dust-up between Bruins captain Zdeno Chara and Tyler Myers as well as the full-on fisticuffs between Horvat and Charlie Coyle.
“I don’t know what it is,” Horvat said about his fight, the third of his career but the second against a Bruin. “I just get amped up for these games, especially in front of a home crowd it’s great and it’s always nice to get the win after that, too.”
The Bruins picked up two goals in the third, but it was too little, too late.
On top of the three goals from Horvat and Co., the Canucks also got goals from Troy Stecher, Adam Gaudette, Elias Petterson, Jake Virtanen and two third-period tallies by Tyler Toffoli while the Bruins’ other goal was scored by Chris Wagner.
Here’s what we learned…
Slickest of mitts
It was a toss-up on what was the more impressive feat in the Gaudette goal: was it Quinn Hughes’ deft puck placement on to the centreman’s stick, or was it Gaudette’s equally deft finish, flicking the puck up and over Rask’s shoulder?
Either way, it was the latest reminder that Hughes is an incredible talent and that Gaudette has come a long, long way on offence this season.
I wish Gaudette would show some emotion when he scores……come on man!!!
Horvat couldn’t have been any more open when the puck landed on his stick before he fired it over Rask’s shoulder to put the Canucks back in the lead on the Canucks’ first-period power play.
J.T. Miller laid a perfect pass to the wide-open Horvat, who now has nine power play goals on the season, one off his career high.
Horvat agreed, he’d never been more open in his career.
“No, I don’t think,” he replied, smiling. “I was like J.T., if you didn’t pass me that puck I probably would have been pretty upset at you so I was glad he got it to me and I was glad I was able to score it.”
Miller said he was happy that he’d heard Horvat call for a pass.
“I had my back to the play and if he didn’t yell for it I probably would have took my time since it was a power play. I probably would have just tried to get it set up but he did a good job to get in the right spot and I just tried to give it to him and obviously he did a good job burying it.”
Toffoli’s Titanic week
A week ago, Tyler Toffoli tallied a hat trick for the Los Angeles Kings at the outdoor Stadium Series game in Colorado. Monday he was traded to the Canucks.
Wednesday he picked up an assist in his debut.
Saturday, he scored twice and also picked up an assist. Seven points, three games, making headlines. Surely he’s a candidate to be an NHL star of the week?
“I’ve been in a spot like this before personally and, you know, not play the way I wanted to play before my career and I want to do well right now and if I’m doing well, that means I’m helping the team and winning games … winning games is a lot of fun.”
Loui Eriksson #21 of the Vancouver Canucks shoots the puck in net past goalie Tuukka Rask #40 of the Boston Bruins during NHL action at Rogers Arena on February 22, 2020 in Vancouver, Canada.
Rich Lam /
Getty Images
Nothing like beating a goalie
Troy Stecher pointed out the reason for his great delight in scoring earlier this year was because it was the first time he’d beaten a goalie to score in some time.
When he opened the scoring against the Bruins, firing the puck from the side boards past Rask, he practically jumped through the end-glass in celebration. It’s been a trying few days for the Richmond blueliner, who finds himself in the midst of trade chatter for the first time in his NHL career, so it’s understandable why he might have been even more excited to score his fourth of the year.
That he had scored against the Bruins, the team he rooted against as a teenaged fan in the 2011 Stanley Cup Final, also was a factor in his exaltation, it would seem.
“Yeah, I threw a pretty big fist pump, like that one it felt pretty good. I want to play in Vancouver you know, I take pride in playing at home, I take pride playing for our city and I try to represent our city as best as I can. Every time I put that jersey on I definitely want to win and it feels a little sweeter when you play the Bruins, just obviously being from Vancouver,” he said with a grin.
He chuckled about the goal itself, knowing it was a shot that Rask really should have stopped.
“It’s called luck for a reason,” he said. “Honestly I was just trying to shoot far-pad, kind of blocker-side, looking for a rebound.”
He’s been a quiet dynamo on the Canucks’ blueline again this season and lately has been in a shutdown role alongside Alex Edler. A pending free-agent this summer, he wants to stay in Vancouver but if this proves to have been his final game at home in blue and green, he went out on the highest of notes.
Boston Bruins forward Danton Heinen (43) clips Vancouver Canucks goaltender Jacob Markstrom (25) with his stick during the first period at Rogers Arena.
Anne-Marie Sorvin /
USA TODAY Sports
In case you didn’t know…
Pastrnak is very good.
The move he pulled off to undress Jacob Markstrom on his first-period breakaway can be found in the dictionary under “big league moves.”
It’s no easy feat faking right then going left at full speed. Pastrnak added on a return move to his right, leaving the Canucks’ goalie sliding the wrong way.
It’s no surprise he has 44 goals on the season.
Markstrom laughed about the move.
“I think I went in the locker room and you know he got me in the corner,” he said with a grin. “Good play.”
Markstrom made a huge save on Pastrnak with time winding down in the second to keep the game at 5-1.
Pastrnak got his second goal on a third-period power play.
Just in case
Since emergency backup goaltenders are a topic of conversation after Toronto’s EBUG Dave Ayers got the win on Saturday for the Carolina Hurricanes over the Maple Leafs — a team he works for, by the way, raising no concerns about conflicts of interest or anything like that — the man who sits in the press box, ready to go just in case is usually UBC goalie Rylan Toth.
On Saturday it was Ben Maquignez, who is UBC’s third-stringer. He’s served in the role before, as has Toth’s normal backup Patrick Dea.
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LISTEN: Ed Willes joins Paul Chapman to talk about the current plight of the Vancouver Canucks.
Is the trade for Tyler Toffoli a wise move for the franchise? Ed is not sour on the deal, but having spent a lot of time watching Tyler Madden last year, he feels the kid has a lot of potential.
They also get into the injury and the issues plaguing Brock Boeser, the team MVP candidates, and revisit Sedins Week and talk about the ups and downs of the 2000s as part of the Canucks at 50 series.
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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.
