Puppeteer Power Shakes Up Game, Panthers Fall 5-2 in Exciting Showdown!

The Vancouver Canucks have their second win in their past three games, having taken a 5–2 win against the Florida Panthers tonight. Elias Pettersson led the way with two power play goals, Marco Rossi scored in his third-straight game, and Aatu Räty and Drew O’Connor also found the back of the net. In goal, Kevin Lankinen recorded his first win since January 21, stopping 21 shots on 23 faced.

One of a few positive outcomes from tonight’s game was the fact that the Canucks broke a four-game goalless streak on the power play by scoring two on the man-advantage thanks to Pettersson. Both of the forward’s goals came as a result of hard shots fired from the faceoff dot, with the first flying powerfully past Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky and the second trickling behind him on a similar shot. “It was nice to get a bounce to go the right way, but I’m trying to play the right way.

I know I still have a lot to do to be where I want to be, but definitely nice to see it go in tonight,” Pettersson said after the win. Even Vancouver’s second-unit power play got some good looks. During the Canucks’ third man-advantage of the game, Linus Karlsson got some good tip-attempts off on Bobrovsky.

While the goal didn’t technically take place on the power play, as it had just expired prior to it, O’Connor scored Vancouver’s fifth of the game to tie a career-high in goals with 16 on the season. Vancouver’s third goal of the first period came off a lapse in defensive coverage for the Panthers. An ill-timed pinch left Rossi all alone in the slot in front of Bobrovsky, with the Canucks centre making a quick move before flicking the puck past the goaltender’s blocker.