Canucks Can Panthers

     The Vancouver Canucks squeezed by the Florida Panthers 3-2 in overtime at Amerant Bank Arena on Thursday night. The Panthers came off a four-game road trip and began a three-game homestand versus Western Conference teams. It was the Canucks first victory this season. 

     Vancouver(1-1-2) ran out to a 1-0 lead with 8:18 left in the first period. Kiefer Sherwood shot the puck from the right point which was saved. Teddy Blueger carried the puck behind the cage and beat Sergei Bobrovsky with a wraparound backhand shot for his second goal this year. Jake DeBrusk had the secondary assist on the sequence. 

     Florida(3-2-1) evened it up 1-1 quickly 11 seconds later. Mackie Samoskevich made a wraparound pass from the left of the crease and Jesper Boqvist put in a wrist shot from the right goal line for his first goal in a Panthers uniform. Samoskevich collected his first NHL point on the play. 

     In the second period, the Canucks regained the lead 2-1 at the 6:30 mark. Nils Aman won the faceoff in the left circle and Danton Heinen steered it from the left wing. Quinn Hughes powered in his second attempted slap shot from the left point for his first goal of the campaign. 

     The Panthers tied it 2-2 on the power play with one minute to go in the second. Adam Boqvist forwarded a pass from the right-circle dot and Carter Verhaeghe pushed it from the right corner. Anton Lundell snapped a shot from the right circle past Kevin Lankinen for his fourth goal of the year. 

     Vancouver won the contest 3-2 at 2:09 in overtime. Hughes dropped a pass in the neutral zone. J.T. Miller sprinted into the Panthers zone and released a wrist shot from the right-circle dot for his second tally of the 2024-25 season.  Brock Boeser was credited with an assist on the play.