Henrik Sedin scored two goals, including the winner in overtime on a deflection, to help the Vancouver Canucks snap a four-game home winless streak on Friday.
Sedin's intended pass for brother Daniel appeared to hit Colorado Avalanche defenceman Kurt Sauer and elude goaltender Jose Theodore 82 seconds into the extra period to give the Canucks a 2-1 win, their third straight but just the second in eight home starts.
Canucks' Henrik Sedin beats Colorado goalie Jose Theodore for the first of his two goals.
(Sam Leung/Canadian Press)
"It felt good," said Henrik Sedin. "We should of had a couple of more [goals]. We had a lot of chances. Anytime you can win against a division rival it's always good."
The Canucks centre opened the scoring at 4:41 of the second period, batting the puck out of the air and past the outstretched glove of Theodore. It appeared that his stick may have been above the crossbar when it made contact with the puck, but the goal stood after video review to give Henrik his fifth point in two games against Colorado this season.
"It wouldn't have been a goal if the referee had said 'no' right away," he said. "It's a borderline call and it's tough for the guys upstairs to change it. I think it was key the ref said it was a goal right away."
Henrik Sedin thought he had scored with just 1:25 left in the first period. Just moments after Sauer was sent off for tripping, Sedin fired a shot from a scramble that squirted out of Theodore's glove and into the net.
The referee instantly waved the goal off, saying the whistle had blown.
It was the first time since last April 15 that Vancouver beat the Avalanche in OT.
Roberto Luongo stopped 24 of 25 shots in the Vancouver net after turning away 36 shots in Friday's 3-2 win in Calgary.
Canucks have regrouped
The Canucks clawed back to .500 by improving their record to 8-8-0.
They have won five of their last seven matchups with the Avalanche, including three straight at General Motors Place, and are 6-0-0 against Northwest Division opponents this season.
Dealt a blow by the loss of injured defencemen Kevin Bieksa (lacerated calf) and Sami Salo (broken nose), Vancouver has regrouped and put together its longest winning streak of the season.
"We got together as a group and we simplified our game a whole lot," said Henrik Sedin. "We put pucks in areas where we know it's going to end up. In the first 10 or 11 games we tried to force things. We tried to make a lot of plays."
Luongo said Vancouver is playing smarter defence now.
"We changed a few things in our system as far as the forecheck," he said. "It's helped us out as far as eliminating scoring chances and generating more scoring chances."
John-Michael Liles had the lone goal for Colorado (10-5-1), which dropped its second game in six days to the Canucks.
He took a pass from Milan Hejduk and wired a shot that appeared to deflect off Vancouver defenceman Willie Mitchell and past Luongo.
The Avalanche poured on the pressure in the third period. Defenceman Scott Hannan fed a perfect pass to the net but Vancouver's Taylor Pyatt was able to ride a charging Colorado forward out of the play before he could get a shot away.
Both goaltenders made good saves to keep the first period scoreless. Early in the frame, Luongo flashed a quick hand to glove a Andrew Brunette backhand.
Later, Theodore stopped a blast from an open Brad Isbister. He also got lucky when Daniel Sedin, left alone in front of the net, fired a shot past the open corner during a power play.
It was just Colorado's second loss in eight games but their road woes continue. The Avalanche are 2-4-1 away from Denver.
Vancouver returns to the ice Nov. 14 against the visiting Edmonton Oilers at 7 p.m. PT.
Related
More Hockey Headlines »
- Leafs lose Islander game, Toskala
- Mike Comrie scored with nine seconds left in overtime as the New York Islanders topped the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3 in a game where both clubs resorted to using their backup goaltenders.
- Senators cool off surging Sabres
- Dany Heatley notched three points — including an empty-net goal — for the Ottawa Senators as the Eastern Conference leaders snapped the Buffalo Sabres' six-game winning streak with a 5-3 road win Wednesday night.
- Tavares scores twice in Canada's opening win
- John Tavares scored twice in his world junior championship debut and goaltender Jonathan Bernier earned the shutout as Canada opened the tournament Wednesday with a 3-0 win over host Czech Republic.
- Capitals reward Boudreau with win
- Washington's grinders outlasted the league's top point-getter as the Capitals scored late to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 on Wednesday night.
- Leclaire records 7th shutout for Columbus
- Pascal Leclaire made 21 saves for his league-leading seventh shutout and the Columbus Blue Jackets beat the Atlanta Thrashers 2-0 on Wednesday night.
More Sports Headlines »
- Leafs lose Islander game, Toskala
- Mike Comrie scored with nine seconds left in overtime as the New York Islanders topped the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3 in a game where both clubs resorted to using their backup goaltenders.
- Senators cool off surging Sabres
- Dany Heatley notched three points — including an empty-net goal — for the Ottawa Senators as the Eastern Conference leaders snapped the Buffalo Sabres' six-game winning streak with a 5-3 road win Wednesday night.
- Tavares scores twice in Canada's opening win
- John Tavares scored twice in his world junior championship debut and goaltender Jonathan Bernier earned the shutout as Canada opened the tournament Wednesday with a 3-0 win over host Czech Republic.
- Leclaire records 7th shutout for Columbus
- Pascal Leclaire made 21 saves for his league-leading seventh shutout and the Columbus Blue Jackets beat the Atlanta Thrashers 2-0 on Wednesday night.
- Capitals reward Boudreau with win
- Washington's grinders outlasted the league's top point-getter as the Capitals scored late to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 on Wednesday night.
Sports Features
- NBARaptors Basketball
- Sun, Jan. 6 at 1:00 pm ET: Cleveland at Toronto
Blog Watch
Most Blogged about CBC.ca Articles
Note: CBC does not endorse and is not responsible for the content of external sites - link will open in new window
