Brock Boeser and J.T. Miller both notched one goal and one assist while Thatcher Demko collected his first shutout of the season as the host Vancouver Canucks beat the Los Angeles Kings 4-0 on Monday to give new head coach Bruce Boudreau a win in his first game guiding the team.
Conor Garland and Juho Lammikko also scored for the Canucks in their first outing after head coach Travis Green and general manager Jim Benning were fired. Demko made 31 saves for his second career shutout in 90 starts.
The win was the 568th for Boudreau as an NHL head coach. Vancouver has three victories in its past four games.
Cal Petersen stopped 26 shots for the Kings, who have lost three of four games.
Boeser’s power-play tally early in the second period not only snapped his 13-game goalless drought but opened the scoring. Tanner Pearson, from beside the net, fed a pass to Boeser in the right circle, and he immediately one-timed a shot that ricocheted off the skate of Kings defenseman Drew Doughty at 3:17 for his fifth goal of the season.
Garland doubled the lead soon after. Shortly after Demko made a pair of saves on Viktor Arvidsson, the Canucks went the other way with the puck. After Vasily Podkolzin created a turnover, Garland jammed a loose puck into the net for his eighth goal of the campaign at 5:43 of the frame.
Elias Pettersson had a golden chance to extend the Vancouver lead when he drew a penalty shot late in the second period, but he missed the net with his shot.
Lammikko’s first goal of the season made it a 3-0 affair 6:59 into the third period. Taking advantage of a Rasmus Kupari giveaway that sent the puck to him in the slot, Lammikko zipped a shot inside the far post.
Miller added a power-play goal with 7:12 remaining — a rocket of a slap shot from the right faceoff dot — to net his ninth of the season and round out the scoring.
Just a couple of nights after the Canucks were jeered off the ice following a 4-1 loss to the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins, they left to a standing ovation.
–Field Level Media