MONTREAL — For J.T. Miller and the Vancouver Canucks, sometimes it’s better to be a little lucky than good.
Miller scored 2:01 into overtime as Vancouver defeated Montreal 3-2 for its fourth straight victory Friday night. Miller notched his ninth of the season unassisted moments after Canadiens forward Josh Anderson failed to convert a breakaway attempt.
Miller drove down the left side, cut across the front of the net and put a backhand shot past Montreal goaltender Jake Allen to give Vancouver its seventh win in eight contests.
“It was not really textbook,” Miller said. “I was on the ice for a really long time but I wasn’t really doing a whole lot . . . I still felt fresh.
“It’s one of those things I knew I was going against a forward, then when I got by the first guy it’s a heat-of-the-moment move that doesn’t happen very often. I was pretty lucky to get it by and obviously it was a big goal for us but that’s not going to happen too often.”
Nick Suzuki forced overtime with a power-play goal at 19:03 of the third, his sixth. He scored with Montreal on a two-man advantage as Allen, who stopped 25 shots, was on the bench.
“It wasn’t like a deflating goal,” Miller said. “They had a six-on-four with some of the best shooters in the league up top.
“We weren’t deflated by it obviously. It takes more than 60 (minutes) sometimes and we knew we had to have a good start. It was kind of a weird start to overtime, they had the puck and were swinging around a lot so you just had to stay with it and bear down when you get an opportunity.”
Adam Gaudette and Nils Hoglander scored in regulation for Vancouver (16-16-2). Thatcher Demko stopped 29 shots for his eighth win in nine starts.
“It was a good team effort right from the drop of the puck,” Canucks head coach Travis Green said. “The team checked well, we just played a good road game.
“That’s the type of hockey we need to play to have success and we’ve been talking about it for a long time now. It’s nice to get the win.”
Corey Perry had the other goal for Montreal (13-8-9), which fell to 0-6 this season in overtime and has lost four-of-five contests overall. The Canadiens were coming off 4-3 overtime loss to Winnipeg on Wednesday to cap a six-game road trip (2-2-2).
Dominique Ducharme, Montreal’s interim head coach, feels his team’s overtime woes are mental.
“Obviously at one point it’s mental but what we need is to bury one and get that over with,” he said. “We do that tonight, probably everyone’s talking about what a character team we are coming back and tying the game.
“Our guys, for sure they think about it when the time comes. I’m sure a guy like Andy going on a breakaway, he’s probably putting more pressure on himself thinking, ‘I’m going to end it this time.’ Yeah, that’s apart of it but we have to stick with it and next time we’ll get it.”
Montreal opened a six-game homestand with its first contest at the Bell Centre since a 7-1 victory over the Winnipeg Jets on March 6. The Canadiens will host Vancouver again Saturday night.
“It’s a really fine line between winning and losing,” Miller said. “We’re playing the right way and if we believe in our game and have faith in our system and play the right way, most nights we’re going to get the results.
“It’s easy to get impatient but I think we’ve done a good job of staying with it and putting a good game in front of us more nights than not.”
Prior to the contest, the Canadiens honoured long-time equipment manager Pierre Gervais, who recently appeared in his 3,000th NHL game.
Allen and Perry combined to stake Montreal to a 1-0 first-period lead.
Perry opened the scoring on the power play at 4:15. After Jeff Petry’s shot from the point hit the post, Perry knocked the rebound past Demko for his sixth of the season.
Allen, appearing in his 300th career NHL game, was solid throughout the frame as Vancouver outshot Montreal 11-8.
But Gaudette pulled Vancouver even at 2:25 of the second. He redirected Antoine Roussel’s centring attempt past Allen for his fourth of the year,
Hoglander gave Vancouver its first lead of the game, deflecting the puck past Allen at 6:37, his sixth of the season.
Vancouver was minus forward Tanner Pearson (lower-body injury). He was hurt in the third period Wednesday against Ottawa and is expected to be out at least four weeks.
Pearson has 11 points (six goals, five assists) in 33 games this season. Forward Jimmy Vesey made his debut with Vancouver after being claimed off waivers from Toronto on Wednesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 19, 2021.
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
