Tsk Tsk T.J.
Roberto Luongo carried the Vancouver Canucks to victory in a defensive duel Thursday, holding off the Blues while the game was tied earning his team the extra time to secure a 3-2 overtime win.
Ken Hitchcock and the Blues came as advertised on Tuesday, sticking to a tight-checking style and stingy defensive-zone coverage to keep the Canucks at two goals through regulation.
The Hat Trick
Luongo Reaches Record
Roberto Luongo had a solid night from the Vancouver crease stopping 26 of 28 shots officially in the overtime victory.
The visiting goaltender out-duelled Brian Elliot despite an odd and embarrassing goal against in which Luongo carried a puck caught in his goaltending equipment towards the red line, allowing it to bounce across the boundary.
The goal gave St. Louis an early lead in the second period but wasn’t enough to lose the Canucks as Luongo kept his team in the game, stopping two short-handed breakaways in the process. The win was Luongo’s 211th as a Canuck tying Kirk Mclean for the franchise record.
Arnott Nets Pair
Jason Arnott put home a pair of back-to-back goals against the Canucks on Thursday, tying the game early in the first period only to gives the Blues a lead of their own in the second.
While Arnott was credited with the goal, Roberto Luongo played a large part carrying the puck over the goal line after it got caught in the goaltender’s gear.
It may have been the most unconventional goal of the veteran’s established career.
Burrows Battles
Alex Burrows found a loose puck beside Brian Elliot and roofed his 17th of the season to open the scoring against the Blues Thursday.
Canucks "Show-Me" how to play in St. Louis grab 3-2 win! - (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
After two periods of quiet pressure from the Canucks, Alex Burrows broke through with his second of the game with a slick tip on Alex Edler’s point shot.
Burrows wasn’t done there, drawing a late third-period penalty on David Backes to set-up the Sedins in extra time.
Daniel Sedin made the most of the power play provided by his linemate, firing home a historic feed from his brother in OT.
Daniel’s game-winner was his 700th career point and 100th career power-play goal in the NHL.
V’s Thoughts
In a battle of Western Conference leaders the Canucks and Blues left little to opposing forwards Thursday, forcing skaters to get creative in a tight-checking game featuring two solid goaltenders.
After a long road trip along the Eastern seaboard the Canucks seemed out of gas against the Blues but managed to salvage another two points in a battle for Western Conference supremacy. The goalscoring Canucks stats probably show that.
Quote
“Very surprised, I don’t know why he’d do that,” said Daniel Sedin regarding T.J. Oshie’s interesting rush to the bench shorthanded in overtime.
1st. Alexandre Burrows – GOALS: 2| PTS: 2| ASST: 0 SOG: 2| PLUS/MINUS: 2
2nd. Jason Arnott – STL GOALS: 2| PTS: 2| ASST: 0 SOG: 4| PLUS/MINUS: 1
3rd. Henrik Sedin – VAN GOALS: 0| PTS: 2| ASST: 2 SOG: 2| PLUS/MINUS: 1
BOXSCORE | Q’s POST GAME RECAP
Vancouver 3, St. Louis 2
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, January 12, 2012
Where: Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Referees: Don VanMassenhoven, Jean Hebert
Linesmen: Thor Nelson, Scott Cherrey
Attendance: 18231
About Kevin Vanstone
