Quinn Hughes didn’t missed a beat after sidelined six games with an injury, while Conor Garland had extra jump for a two-goal night
It was already a good story and it had a better ending Wednesday.
And it was looking like a special night where everything was going right in Los Angeles. Hughes looked like he hadn’t missed a beat. And the Canucks built a 2-0 lead through two periods because road warrior goaltender Kevin Lankinen looked like he wouldn’t be beat.
It ended a two-game losing streak and put the Canucks back into the final Western Conference wild-card playoff position.
The Canucks appeared on their way to victory before a tough break pulled the Kings to within a goal. Adrian Kempe’s slot shot went off the stick of Myers and deflected high and over the outstretched glove of Lankinen. Warren Foegele then pulled the Kings even when he executed a deft deflection of a point shot.
The Canucks challenged for goalie interference but lost and the Kings went on the power play.
Hughes drama ends right way
Hughes took the morning optional skate and was listed as a game-time decision. He then took the warm-up skate, but didn’t participate in line rushes, which led to speculation that he wouldn’t play. But he did.
Hughes more than gutted it out. The Canucks dressed seven defencemen to ensure Hughes wouldn’t be overworked. He logged 21:38 compared to his 25:18 average.
Hughes hasn’t played since Jan. 31, so there was expected to be rust and fitness issues, but he wasn’t lagging or winded. His defensive positioning was on point. And on two occasions he bolted to the net, and before going around it, slipped a couple of sweet feeds into the crease for scoring chances.
Lankinen king of the road
Once again, Lankinen was calm, cool and collected as he improved to 14-4-4 on the road. Only Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets sports a better record away from home.
Lankinen didn’t have to be spectacular. But what he needed to do was track pucks through a maze of bodies, exhibit good rebound control and find loose pucks in his crease without losing his positioning.
Before the Kings mounted their comeback, Lankinen was at his larcenous best. He got a shoulder on a hot shot by Trevor Moore to open the third period and then a pad on a tipped point shot by Mikey Anderson.
Lankinen’s sharpness started early with a save through traffic and continued in the second period by denying Brandt Clarke and not allowing Foegele to get to the rebound. Then came a sharp shoulder save off Alex Laferriere and thwarting Phillip Danault on a short-handed breakaway after Filip Chytil lost his balance and the put in the offensive zone. Lankinen then turned aside Foegele off a turnover.
Happy Hoglander takes leap
There are many ways to celebrate a goal.
There’s the fist pump, dropping to one knee for a celebratory slide, and the leap of faith into the Plexiglas.
Hoglander chose the latter after opening scoring in impressive fashion by adhering to these demands of his bench boss to help the offensively-challenged club: Drive to middle of the ice with speed, don’t hesitate to shoot the puck, and above all, hit the net.
Garland, Joshua, Chytil chemistry
Joshua sprung Garland on a breakaway with a long lead pass and the diminutive winger nearly picked the short side. And then on a second period power play, it was Chytil making a perfect backhand pass from behind the net to find Garland open at the far side. The sequence started with good wall work by Joshua. The pesky Garland then drew a penalty.
‘Junior’ Pettersson major impact
He doesn’t like the nickname, but he is getting noticed for the right reasons.
Canucks rookie defenceman Elias Pettersson, 21, already looks the part of a roster staple, rather than an option and maybe a few cups of coffee before being returned to Abbotsford of the AHL. The growing vote of confidence played out again Wednesday with his insertion after sitting out Sunday in Salt Lake City. He logged a methodical and error-free 10:10.
His 6-foot-1, 185 pound presence, skating ability and willingness to play a physical game have checked a lot of boxes in eight NHL games, even with just one assists. He could benefit from just practising and learning at this level, but why wait? The kid can play.
“I’ve liked his game,” said Tocchet. “It’s not like he’s going to play every game, but I don’t want to keep yanking him out. He has done a nice job and you want to keep seeing the arrow going up. It’s important that he stays in and from there that sixth spot is competition. Hopefully, that ignite some guys.”
Silovs is going Duck hunting
Coaches seldom reveal goaltending decisions in advance of the next game, but this one makes sense.
For Silovs, 23, his numbers with the AHL affiliate — 10-4-0, 2.43 goals-against average, and .906 save percentage — are solid and speak of a willingness to constantly improve. And Sunday’s effort was a big step to improve on a woeful NHL start and 1-5-1 mark, 3.82 GAA and .862 percentage.