Canucks beat Flames 3-1 in casual fashion to end infinity-game losing streak

February 14, 2021 12:34 am

Our precious Vancouver Canucks needed a win over the Calgary Flames so badly, and they weren’t trying to hide it.

The Canucks ran the show in the first period but could not best their own ex-goalie, Calgary’s Jacob Markstrom, until Quinn Hughes pulled off some Rambo maneuvers in the second. Less than a minute later, Sam Bennett’s shot from the slot beat Thatcher Demko to restore the tie.

With just about five minutes left in regulation, Elias Pettersson finally put Vancouver ahead by stealing credit for Tyler Myer’s shot. An empty-netter from Brandon Sutter made it official: the Canucks have snapped their losing streak.

Canucks win!

The scoreboard doesn’t tell this story, but this was absolute domination by the Canucks. With all the drama swirling around their front office, I suppose needed a statement game. They got it, mostly, through overwhelming puck possession.
Calgary lost center Mikael Backlund to a lower-body injury in the first period and center Elias Lindholm for a bit in the second. Lindholm missed just a shift or two, but Backlund did not return.
It’s been so long since I’ve had a chance to watch Nate Schmidt play on a regular basis, but I’m not surprised by his role in Vancouver. He’s the neutral-zone do-it-all guy, critically involved in every push into the offensive zone.
All that offense didn’t really pay off though, and the Canucks only broke through when fresh-faced ingenue Quinn Hughes stole a puck, faked a pass, and then unleashed hell on Markstrom. Amazing play.

Hughes fooled everyone except our cameraman on that 🚨! pic.twitter.com/ahKokBQAXB

— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) February 14, 2021

Then again, Sam Bennett’s goal came on just Calgary’s eighth shot of the game, underlining how one-sided this game was — and how desperate Vancouver seemed throughout it.
All that domination finally paid dividends with the Myers goal. The NHL is calling it a Pettersson goal, but I’m sure it’s Myers’.
In order to shake their losing streak, the Canucks decided not to dress up today. It worked, and now they will never dress up again. From the shadows, Brian Burke smiles.