13 Mar 2015

The Province

PATRICK JOHNSTON AND ALMAS MEHERALLY

VANCOUVER DESI

Canucks netminder Lack makes teen’s birthday wish come true

Ariana turned 15 last month. As a birthday gift, her mother Zahida sent Ariana and a friend to

Monday night’s Canucks vs. Anaheim Ducks game.

The Vancouver teen had one hope: More than anything, she wanted to leave the rink with Lack’s

goalie stick. She made a bright pink sign that would be easy to spot.

She and her mother even took to Twitter, sending Lack a message that she’d be at the game and

about her birthday wish.

“He’s my favourite player, a good goalie and he’s so funny in interviews,” Ariana explained.

Through Twitter, Lack had wished her a happy birthday when it was her special day in February.

He clearly knew what was up, Ariana said. To her amazement, after Lack was announced as the

game’s first star in Vancouver’s 2-1 victory on Monday, he crossed the ice and tossed his stick over

the glass to her. He watched to make sure she got it, she said. He’d even taken a moment to sign the

stick.

“I was shocked, I started crying and banging on the glass.”

Ariana has been a devoted Twitter follower of Lack for nearly two years. She and her mother

share the account, Zahida said, so she can keep tabs on at least some of her daughter’s online time.

Zahida uses it for Bollywood news, but Ariana is all about hockey. When they first started sending

tweets to Lack, they never expected a response, but as Lack has shown many times, he’s always

happy to interact.

On the morning of the game, Zahida and Ariana tweeted a photo of the pink sign to Lack. He re-

tweeted the sign so his other followers could see.

With seats far from the ice, Ariana and her friend went to go talk to an usher, asking if they could

they go down to the glass after the game.

The usher did them one better: There were three seats in the front row which were empty. It

would be OK for them to sit there for the last few minutes of the game, she was told. It all worked

out.

“Eddie is very good with fans,” Zahida said. “He’s such a beautiful soul. I would never imagine

anyone doing something like this.”

Kings 4 Canucks 0: Dominant Kings shut

down Canucks

By Jason Botchford, The Province March 13, 2015

Reality check time.

At least it was in Thursday's second period.

There may not have been a more dispiriting 20 minutes of Canucks hockey this season.

Unless you think the third period counted. The Canucks went the first 10:25 without a shot.

It wasn't because of shot count. The Kings had 10 in the second. The Canucks had seven.

No, it was because of domination. It was because the Kings toyed with the Canucks in

Vancouver's end.

There, every time a Canuck got his stick on a puck, a King seemed to be there to pluck it away

like L.A. was Revenue Canada and collecting taxes.

It was because the Canucks couldn't get within 30 feet of Jonathan Quick, as though they were

stuck on Kits Point staring at Quick in the West End, with no clue how to bridge the distance.

It was because at no point did anyone think Vancouver was going to score.

The Canucks had no scoring chances and no power plays either in that second, though it's hard to

imagine it would have helped.

They got one in the first and didn't register a shot.

The Kings own the Canucks in a way that instinctually makes you grimace at the mere

suggestion they could meet in the playoffs.

It would not end well.

There's good reason for this. The Kings are big, fast, and pretty great.

They get up for games this time of year and they get up for the Canucks pretty much always.

The teams play twice more this season. If the Canucks are to win one, it will take luck, and some

sublime execution.

Unthinkable? It is for today.

Not respecting the Kings too much like they did Thursday could help.

On the Kings second goal, the only goal scored in that fatefully troubling second period, the

Canucks backed off Brayden McNabb like they lost him in a cloud of unknown gas.

With an acreage of space, McNabb surveyed the scene, caught Justin Williams sneaking toward

the net and hit him for a tap in.

It was not Eddie Lack's night. He should have had the third goal.

But it was not the Sedins night. It was not Dan Hamhuis's night. Same for Jannik Hansen, Bo

Horvat, and Nick Bonino.

I could go on.

You always can when it's the Kings in Vancouver.

WHAT THIS MEANS

Head coach Willie Desjardins just may be too patient.

Maybe it's because we got so used to Alain Vigneault's bingo ball machine. Things weren't

working, it was shuffle time.

And sometimes things were shuffled after a handful of shifts.

This coach works differently, a lot differently. Against the Anaheim Ducks Monday, he was

rewarded by keeping Zack Kassian with the twins as the big guy shoved in the game winner.

But Thursday against the Kings, there were several things evident early.

Luca Sbisa is not a good fit playing with Dan Hamhuis because he has to play on his wrong side.

Linden Vey couldn't generate anything centring Alex Burrows and Radim Vrbata.

The Sedins also played like they needed a lift, or Burrows. But in the third period, Desjardins

started Kassian with the twins.

Desjardins got creative late, by playing four forwards and pulling his goalie with more than four

minutes left.

Too little, too late.

WHAT WE LEARNED

I had a feeling it wasn't a good idea to start Linden Vey down the middle against the Kings.

The Canucks had other options. They could have moved Shawn Matthias to centre, to create

some size down the middle.

Then, they could have moved Vey to the wing, or let him sit this one out.

Los Angeles is just not a good matchup for him because of size issues.

Vey struggled and his brutal line change in the second period put the Kings on a 3-on-2 and led

to their second goal.

He dragged his feet along the boards and then slowed down the player he was making a change

with.

ADVANCED STATS

5 This is how many even-strength shot attempts the Canucks had when Linden Vey was on the

ice. The only players who had a lower number were those on Bo Horvat’s line. They had four.

-7 Dan Hamhuis struggled with Anze Kopitar on multiple shifts. The Kings had seven more shot

attempts than the Canucks when Hamhuis was on the ice. Not good.

53% This is the ratio of shot attempts (Corsi-for) the Canucks have at even strength when Bo

Horvat is on the ice with Ronalds Kenins. When they are not together it’s 40.6 per cent.

53.4% This is Alex Edler’s Corsi-for percentage (the Canucks' ratio of shot attempts) when he is

on the ice with Chris Tanev. When he is not, Edler’s Corsi-for dips to 48.8 per cent.

13 Mar 2015

The Province

Jim Jamieson ON THE CANUCKS jjamieson@theprovince.com twitter.com/jamiesoncanucks

Kings lean heavily on their top D-man Doughty averaging league-leading 29:23 of ice time, often playing more than 30 minutes

For the Los Angeles Kings to fashion another late-season rally for a playoff spot, they’ll need all

their key players to perform their best.

There’s goalie Jonathan Quick and top centres Anze Kopitar and Jeff Carter, but none may be

more important than all-world defenceman Drew Doughty, who’s made a statement this season that

he should finally get Norris Trophy recognition as the NHL’s top defenceman.

With the Kings having to let solid veteran Willie Mitchell go via free agency in order to re-sign star

winger Marian Gaborik, and with top-four D-man Slava Voynov suspended due to domestic-abuse

charges, Doughty has been asked to step up and make a difference on a depleted back end.

The minutes he’s played this season have been ridiculous — leading the NHL in time on ice per

game, at 29:23. But that’s just an average.

In 26 of his 66 games—heading into the key clash with the Canucks on Thursday at Rogers

Arena—Doughty has played over 30 minutes. The most was 33:45 in a shootout loss to the Jets on

Jan. 10.

The ice time is a big jump from the 25 to 26 minutes per game Doughty has averaged the

previous four seasons, but he says he’s not having any trouble coping with the increased workload.

“I feel like I’ve been playing well, doing everything I can to help this team win,” said Doughty,

25, before Thursday’s game. “I’m getting better with the leadership and things like that. Managing my

minutes isn’t too tough. I’m used to playing those minutes now and I enjoy it. When I’m not out there

for 30 minutes, it’s weird to me now.”

The trade-deadline acquisition of Andrej Sekera should allow coach Darryl Sutter to dial down

Doughty’s minutes somewhat, but down the stretch he needs him on the ice more than ever.

“I love being counted on,” said Doughty. “I think I perform the best in pressure situations. But

we’ve still got a lot of games left and I’ve got to continue to elevate my game.”

Kings captain Dustin Brown said Doughty has adjusted to the bigger workload.

“He’s been a big part of it ever since he’s been here, but it’s even more emphasized this year with

all the injuries and what’s happened in our back end this year,” said Brown.

“He’s handled it well and he’s managed his minutes well. I think he’s kind of learning as he goes.

Early on, I think he was maybe trying to do too much, but he’s kind of settled into it most nights,

making every single play.”

Brown has no doubt that Doughty has had a Norris-worthy season — though he’ll certainly be

challenged by the likes of Mark Giordano, Shea Weber and Duncan Keith.

“It always seems like the Norris goes to a guy who has 50 or 60 points,” Brown said. “It’s about

the way we play. If you look at our leading scorer, Carter might have 50 points and he’s the top (goal)

scoring forward on our team. It’s just the way we play. I also think, if you look at a lot of guys in the

Norris conversation, I don’t think many of them have the impact that he has on the defensive side of

the puck.”

Canucks injured centre Brad Richardson can attest to that. He was with the Kings when Doughty,

a second overall draft pick, broke in as an 18-year-old rookie in the 2008-09 season and was a

teammate through L.A.’s first Stanley Cup win in 2012.

“Drew’s a special player,” said Richardson. “When he first came into the league, we all knew he

was a good player but we didn’t think he’d get quite to the level he is now.

“He’s turned into the best all-around D in the league. He can do it all. He’s playing 30 minutes a

night and he still competes every shift. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him breathing heavy — which is

crazy because he’s not known for his workout prowess. He’s just a gifted person and he know show to

play efficiently and the right way.

“To play against all the top players and guys are trying to hit him all the time, it’s just insane. It

looks like he could play the whole game if you asked him to.”

So how do opponents deal with a player like Doughty? “You try to be physical on him, but the

good players are hard to hit,” said Richardson. “So you just try to keep the puck away from him and

put him in awkward spots. Maybe try to get him wound up so he takes a penalty.”

Kings down Canucks 4-0 to move within one

point in Pacific race

By Iain MacIntyre, Vancouver Sun columnist March 13, 2015

VANCOUVER - Vancouver Canuck players claim the Los Angeles Kings are not in their heads.

With one win in eight games against them over two years, that’s hard to believe.

But no one can deny that the Kings are on the Canucks’ tails. And hunting a lot of other teams as

the National Hockey League playoffs approach.

The Canucks exorcised some California demons this season by beating the San Jose Sharks three

times – all on the road – and the Anaheim Ducks twice. But they are 0-3 against the Kings,

whose routine 4-0 win Thursday at Rogers Arena lifted the Stanley Cup champions into the final

playoff spot in the Western Conference, just one point behind the Canucks in the Pacific

Division race.

Only in the standings are the Canucks close to the Kings. Los Angeles leads the aggregate score

this season 12-3. The Kings are 7-1 against the Canucks the last 24 months.

That’s a lot to think about, no?

“I don’t think it’s a mental issue,” Vancouver winger Daniel Sedin insisted. “Today is probably

the best we’ve felt against these guys this year.

“This is the top team in the league. I know they are where they are in the standings. But the way

they play, that’s the top team in this league. No margin for error? I don’t know. They made us

pay today for sure. But at the same time, we had our chances (in the first period). We had

chances to capitalize and didn’t do it. And when you’re down against that team, they make you

open up and they make you pay.”

The Kings pumped pucks past Canuck goalie Eddie Lack once in each period, then added an

empty-netter as Vancouver momentum crashed after wins against the Sharks and Ducks.

Tyler Toffoli scored after a reckless penalty by Canuck Derek Dorsett in the first period. Justin

Williams scored in the second after a terrible line change by Canuck Linden Vey. And Anze

Kopitar scored in the third after an awful turnover by Dan Hamhuis.

The way the Kings were playing Thursday – and have played for five weeks since rousing

themselves from their post-Stanley Cup doldrums to take a run at a third title in four years –

there was no margin for error for the Canucks, who made several big ones.

Vancouver is clinging to second place in the Pacific, just a point ahead of the Calgary Flames

and Kings, who are fourth on a tie-breaker. But whether you look at the division or the wildcard

race, the Canucks are two points from falling out of playoff position.

If the mighty Kings aren’t in Canuck heads, give them time. The teams play twice more over the

final 15 games and those contests, like Thursday’s, will be critical in determining who goes to

the playoffs and who doesn’t.

“The only thing you can control is what’s in front of you,” Hamhuis said. “When you start

looking at the big picture, that’s when you get anxious or worried about results. Right now,

we’ve just got to stay focused on each game and what goes on during the game.

“I think we felt pretty good going into this game. I don’t think confidence was an issue at all.”

Hamhuis said he was unaware the Canucks had only one win against the Kings in two years.

Unlike earlier 5-1 and 3-2 losses, the Canucks were better than the Kings for one period. But

they couldn’t beat Los Angeles goalie Jonathan Quick and couldn’t kill off the penalty to

Dorsett, who took a retaliatory slash at Brayden McNabb behind the play at 15:36. Toffoli made

it 1-0 65 seconds later.

“It’s a bad penalty,” Dorsett acknowledged. “It’s a stupid penalty at a stupid time and it ends up

being the game-winner. It was a bad penalty.

“There’s a reason why they have won the Stanley Cup two times in the last three years.

Obviously, they’re a top team in the league. They play the right way. They’re big, physical. You

can’t make mistakes and tonight I took a bad penalty and it cost us.”

The Kings pretty much took over the game in the middle period -- territorially if not quite on the

shot clock. They worked the Canucks along the boards in the offensive zone, and weren’t much

troubled in their defensive zone.

Vancouver managed only 10 shots on net in the final 40 minutes.

“They’ve run the show in the playoffs the last three years,” Canuck winger Jannik Hansen said

before the game when asked about the Kings. “Yeah, Chicago beat them in the (conference final)

two years ago, but that Chicago team was pretty good, too. (The Kings) play playoff hockey.

Maybe that’s why they struggle in the regular season because it’s hard to play that way for 110

games or whatever it takes. But they play that style down the stretch and into the playoffs.”

They played it Thursday. They play it every time they face the Canucks, who have no answer for

it.

GAME ESSENTIALS

THE SKINNY

Tyler Toffoli, pictured, opened the scoring at 16:41 of the first period, roofing one past Eddie

Lack on the power play. The Kings made it 2-0 at 3:59 of the second as Brayden McNabb

walked in untouched from the right point and fed Justin Williams for a tap-in. Anze Kopitar iced

it on the first shift of the third and Marian Gaborik added an empty-netter. Jonathan Quick made

19 saves for the shutout.

PIVOTAL POINT

Although the Canucks are not a noted come-from-behind team, they put themselves right out of

this one at the 25-second mark of the third period when defenceman Dan Hamhuis, under

pressure, served up a classic pizza to Kopitar. The Kings centre accepted the gift and promptly

rifled the puck past Eddie Lack shortside to make it 3-0, and it was game over.

BY THE NUMBERS

Dan Hamhuis appeared in his 800th regular season game … The Kings have outscored the

Canucks 12-3 in their three meetings so far this season, taking all three in regulation … L.A.

improved to 23-3-7 when scoring first and 18-2-3 when leading after the first … The Canucks

tumbled to a dreadful 2-20-1 when trailing after two periods … The shutout was Jonathan

Quick’s fifth of the season … Faceoffs were 29-26 in the Kings’ favour. Fourth-line centre Nick

Shore was eight for nine.

QUOTABLE

“Vancouver is a team in our way if we want to make the playoffs and they still are. It’s been a

long season so far and we’ve turned it around here a little bit, but we know there is a long way to

go. There are a lot of games left and a lot can happen.” — Kings winger Justin Williams, who

had a goal, an assist and finished plus-1 Thursday.

WHO’S NEXT?

The Canucks continue their five-game homestand Saturday in a 4 p.m. start to accommodate

Dion Phaneuf and his Toronto Maple Leafs — and an eastern TV market. The bedraggled Leafs

will arrive after playing the night before in Calgary. It will be their third game in four nights in

three time zones. On paper, it should be a gimme for the Canucks — but so were the recent

outings in Buffalo and Arizona, both losses.

Elliott Pap, Vancouver Sun

Canucks' Yannick Weber close, Kevin Bieksa

getting closer to return

By Brad Ziemer, Vancouver Sun March 12, 2015

VANCOUVER - It’s about to get crowded on the Vancouver Canucks’ defence.

Injured defenceman Yannick Weber says he hopes to be back for Saturday afternoon’s game

against Toronto and fellow blueliner Kevin Bieksa is also getting close.

Both took part in Thursday’s game-day skate and are expected to practise with the team on

Friday.

“Today was a good practice and if I can practise with the team again tomorrow, I should be

ready for Saturday,” Weber said. “That’s our goal.”

Weber missed his second game Thursday night with an upper-body injury suffered in Saturday

night’s game in San Jose.

Bieksa, meanwhile, said he feels like he’s making good progress. He has been out since Jan. 20

with a broken hand.

“I am getting stronger every day now,” Bieksa said. “I think I have skated 16 or 17 days in a row

now so I definitely feel like I am in game shape. I feel like my timing is coming back and it’s just

a matter of making sure the hand is good to go.”

Earlier this week, Bieksa had said he was still not able to get good velocity on his shots. But on

Thursday he said that, too, is coming along.

“Again I feel stronger every day.” he said. “It has been a long process and it has been frustrating

at times. As I said, I have been skating a long time and the first few skates I wasn’t even gripping

my stick with that finger. Now I am and I feel like I am passing and receiving passes pretty good.

“My shooting is pretty good if it’s controlled. It’s just when you’re not in control and whacking

at pucks and there’s vibration and stuff like that. That is kind of the last step.”

When Weber and Bieksa both return it will leave the Canucks with nine defencemen. Adam

Clendening sat out Thursday night’s game as a healthy scratch.

INTERNAL COMPETITION: Injured forwards Chris Higgins and Brad Richardson also

skated with the main group on Thursday and both appear to be close to returning.

That will make for some internal competition for ice time and some tough decisions for coach

Willie Desjardins.

“It is a good thing, but it’s also a hard thing,” Desjardins said. “I think guys have shown when

they have been in the lineup when we have had injuries that they are capable of playing and in

lots of cases deserve to play. So it is always hard when you have to take players out. That is a

hard thing to do.

“But at the same time the guys know if they are not playing hard that is something we have to

do.”

HEALTHY SCRATCHES: A pair of Canuck first-round picks have been scratched in the last

two Utica Comets games.

Nicklas Jensen sat out Sunday’s game in Toronto, while Hunter Shinkaruk was benched for

Wednesday night’s game in Chicago.

It was the second time this season Shikaruk has been sat by Comets coach Travis Green.

Shinkaruk, picked 24th overall in 2013, has seven goals and 18 points in 58 games. Jensen,

selected 29th overall in 2011, has 11 goals and 22 points in 45 games this season.

Newcomer Sven Baertschi, acquired at the trade deadline from Calgary for a second-round pick,

has five points in his first four games with the Comets.

Quick, Kings keep Canucks off the

scoreboard in 4-0 win

Joshua Clipperton

VANCOUVER — The Canadian Press

Published Friday, Mar. 13 201

The Los Angeles Kings served noticed they have the Vancouver Canucks in their sights.

Jonathan Quick made 19 saves for his fifth shutout of the season, and Justin Williams and Anze

Kopitar each had a goal and an assist Thursday as the Kings defeated the Canucks 4-0.

Los Angeles improved to 3-0-0 against the Canucks this season with two meetings still to come,

and jumped over Winnipeg into the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference after the Jets

dropped a 4-2 decision to the Florida Panthers.

The Canucks sit second in the Pacific Division, but both the Kings and Calgary Flames are

nipping at their heels just a point back.

“The closer you get to playoffs the more you want to be in it,” said Los Angeles defenceman

Drew Doughty. “We’re not going to accept anything but to be in it and right now Vancouver is

one of those teams in our way, second in the division, and we still have a really good shot at

being in that spot.”

Tyler Toffoli and Marian Gaborik, into an empty net, also scored for Los Angeles (33-21-13),

which has won four of five and 12 of 16 overall to rocket up the standings after sitting 13th in the

conference in early February.

“We circle these ones that are division games, especially since we’re on the bubble,” said

Williams. “These are huge games. Vancouver is in our way if we want to try to make the

playoffs, and they still are.”

A big reason for the Kings’ turnaround has been their play on the road. The defending Stanley

Cup champions were 5-12-6 away from home as of Feb. 5, but are 7-2-0 since.

“I think the games just got more important,” said Doughty, whose team plays nine of its last 15

on the road. “I think the guys were sick of talking about why we were doing so bad on the road

so we decided to turn it around and start winning some.”

Eddie Lack made 16 saves for Vancouver (38-25-4), which generated very little against Quick

after the first period.

“They showed why they win the Cups,” said Canucks head coach Willie Desjardins. “They had a

lot of patience, they had a lot of presence.”

Toffoli scored on the power play — his 20th of the season — in the first period to put his team

up 1-0, and the Kings doubled their lead at 3:59 of the second thanks to a bad change and some

suspect defensive zone coverage. Los Angeles defenceman Brayden McNabb took the puck

down the boards unchallenged and found a wide-open Williams, who had circled the Vancouver

net and was left all alone to tap his 17th of the season past a helpless Lack.

“I thought we lost the goaltending (battle), I thought we lost special teams, and that’s two huge

parts of our game. Didn’t come up in those two areas,” said Lack. “When you give them two or

three it’s going to be hard to come back.”

It marked the fifth time in the last six games the Canucks have found themselves down 2-0 and

the Kings put the game out of reach 25 seconds into the third when Kopitar intercepted a poor

clearing attempt by Canucks defenceman Dan Hamhuis and beat Lack shortside for his 14th of

the season.

The Kings nursed that advantage the rest of the way, keeping the hosts off the shot clock in the

period until Quick, who picked up the 36th shutout of his career, snagged Daniel Sedin’s effort

with 9:35 left before Gaborik scored his 21st into an empty net.

“I want to keep climbing,” said Williams. “It’s been a long season so far and we’ve turned it

around here a little bit, but we know there’s a long way to go, a lot of games left, and a lot can

happen and we’re going to keep trending in the right direction.”

Kings beat up Canucks, move into playoff spot

By Eric MacKenzie

Thursday, March 12, 2015

Here come those Los Angeles Kings, right on cue.

With a 4-0 win over the Canucks Thursday at Rogers Arena, the defending Stanley Cup

champions are back in a playoff spot and all of a sudden nipping at Vancouver’s heels.

And they certainly looked playoff-ready against the Canucks, scoring opportunistic goals and

giving up very few chances the other way. Kings goalie Jonathan Quick had very little work to

do, making 19 fairly routine saves for his fifth shutout of the year.

The Canucks had a promising start, too, even though they trailed by a goal after one period.

Tyler Toffoli netted a power-play marker for Los Angeles late in the period off a slick pass from

Justin Williams, but Vancouver held a 9-4 edge in shots through 20 minutes.

The rest of the way, however, the Kings were in complete control. Four minutes into the second,

they caught the Canucks napping in the defensive zone when Brayden McNabb found Williams

at the side of the net for a tap-in and a 2-0 lead.

Any thought of a Canucks comeback was gone in the first minute of the third. Anze Kopitar

pounced on a turnover in the Vancouver end and beat Eddie Lack short side just 25 seconds in.

There looked to be no urgency whatsoever from Vancouver in the third, as they produced just

three shots.

“The second and third, I thought we couldn’t get any sustained pressure in their end,” said

Henrik Sedin. “That was the difference from the first period.”

The Canucks pulled Lack for an extra attacker with nearly five minutes remaining, and Marian

Gaborik scored into the empty cage almost immediately to turn it into a laugher.

Lack finished the night with 16 saves.

“I thought we lost goaltending, I thought we lost special teams. That’s two huge parts of our

game and we didn’t come up in those two areas,” said Lack.

Los Angeles moved past the Winnipeg Jets for the final wild-card playoff spot, and are now tied

with Calgary for third in the Pacific Division. Both teams are one point behind Vancouver.

NOTES:

-Head coach Willie Desjardins said post-game that he felt it was the Canucks’ best outing against

the Kings this season. When pressed a little further, he offered up a couple of his more

passionate monologues of the year – by his standards, at least.

“What I would have asked for at the start of the season was a chance where our team was healthy

and we were fighting for a playoff spot. That’s what we have. That’s what I would have asked

for at the start of the year. So now it’s up to us to find a way and it starts with Toronto,” said

Desjardins, who then had some praise for the Canucks’ opponent.

“(The Kings are) a good team. They’re playing better now than they’ve played all year. That’s

just a fact. They’re a good hockey team.

“Calgary’s playing great right now. San Jose’s a real good team, so there’s lots of good teams.

So the only way we get in is if we battle hard every night. I said at the start when I came here

that I liked the character in this room; that character is what you need when you get into these

stretches. It’s up to us to do it.”

-Brandon McMillan and Adam Clendening were Vancouver’s healthy scratches Thursday.

-Dan Hamhuis played his 800th NHL game.

-The Canucks host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday for a 4 p.m. face-off at Rogers Arena.

Canucks bow down to L.A. Kings as playoff

race tightens up

By Cam Tucker Metro Vancouver

Including Thursday, the Vancouver Canucks play the L.A. Kings three times in their remaining

16 games. Call it a best-of-three series with playoff implications, since it’s quickly getting to that

time of year.

Game 1 didn’t go so well for the host Canucks.

And what has already been a precarious hold on second place in the Pacific Division is a little

more uncertain for Vancouver.

No room for moral victories, especially now. The Canucks lost to the Kings by a final score of 4-

0 at Rogers Arena on Thursday. The result brings L.A., defending Stanley Cup champs, within

one point of Vancouver in the standings.

“They’re a big, physical team. They wear on you,” said Derek Dorsett.

“They’re a good team and it shows. They’ve won the Stanley Cup two of the last three years.”

It is possible the Canucks and Kings could meet in the opening round of the playoffs, depending

on where they finish in the division. Three times in as many games this season, L.A. has defeated

Vancouver, and only once has the margin of victory been by a goal.

The Kings have made it a habit of victimizing the Canucks in recent years, just as they have

plenty of other Western Conference teams since the 2012 playoffs, on their way to winning two

of the last three Stanley Cup championships.

While the Kings entered this game out of a playoff spot, they look to be working their way into

the spring tournament, where they could once again do damage.

The Canucks are fighting to get into the post-season, but how threatening can they be, especially

after Thursday’s showing?

The Canucks had a decent enough start. They were physical and tried to test goalie Jonathan

Quick. Their early surge quickly faded, and another ill-fated power play that failed to generate

much of anything very well could’ve been a contributing factor.

“I thought we played really well in the first period so I don’t think that,” said Daniel Sedin, when

asked if the club’s failed first-period power play attempt turned momentum.

“The second and third (periods), we felt we couldn’t get any sustained pressure in their end,”

added Henrik Sedin.

“There was a lot of getting the puck deep, winning a battle and then we couldn’t get those second

and third chances. That was the difference from the first period.”

On the other hand, the Kings took advantage of their second power play opportunity to open the

scoring late in the first period.

Justin Williams found Tyler Toffoli on a cross-ice pass, and the emerging 22-year-old centre

went top corner on goalie Eddie Lack, playing in his 10th consecutive game.

Williams struck again less than four minutes into the second period.

With the Canucks caught in the midst of a poor line change, Williams got lost in behind

Vancouver’s defence as the play proceeded toward Lack.

Williams then emerged, unnoticed, at the side of the Canucks net.

Brayden McNabb, who had plenty of time to waltz in from the blue line, found Williams with a

pass, and he calmly deflected it into a wide-open net.

Just 25 seconds into the third period, Anze Kopitar provided the backbreaker, scoring to make it

3-0 Kings.

Quick made 19 saves for the shutout. The Canucks managed only 10 shots through the final 40

minutes.

“I thought we lost goaltending. I thought we lost special teams and that’s two huge parts of our

game,” said Lack.

“It’s a tough team to play and when you give them two and three (goal leads) it’s going to be

hard to come back.”

Quick, Kings shut out Canucks, move into

wild card

Friday, 03.13.2015 / 2:15 AM

Kevin Woodley - NHL.com Correspondent

VANCOUVER -- The Los Angeles Kings moved into a Stanley Cup Playoff position with a 4-0

win against the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday, but they have no intention of stopping there.

Los Angeles, which is 4-0-1 in its past five, jumped the Winnipeg Jets for the second wild card

into the playoffs from the Western Conference and is now one point behind Vancouver for

second place in the Pacific Division. The Kings are 3-0-0 against the Canucks; they play two

more times, on March 21 in Los Angeles and April 6 in Vancouver.

"The closer you get to playoffs, the more you want to be in it," defenseman Drew Doughty said.

"We're not going to accept anything but to be in it, and right now Vancouver is one of those

teams in our way, second in the division, and we still have a really good shot at being in that

spot."

The Kings were 13th in the Western Conference on Feb. 5, but they are 12-3-1 in 16 games since

to move back into a playoff position.

"Are we back in now? Well all right, but I want to keep climbing," said forward Justin Williams,

who set up Tyler Toffoli's power-play goal late in the first period and scored early in the second.

"We've turned it around here a little bit, but we know there's a long way to go."

Los Angeles has turned things around on the road since Feb. 5. The Kings were 5-12-6 away

from Staples Center to that point, but they have gone 7-2-0 since, and that bodes well for them

since nine of their final 15 games are on the road.

"If we can turn on a switch, it's nice to have," Doughty said. "I think the games just got more

important and guys were sick of talking about why we were so bad on the road, so we decided to

turn it around."

Jonathan Quick made 19 saves for the Kings (79 points), who are tied with the Calgary Flames

for third in the Pacific Division. The Flames hold the tiebreaker with 33 regulation and overtime

wins (ROW) to the Kings' 31.

"Every game right now is big where we are in the standings," said Anze Kopitar, who scored 25

seconds into the third period and assisted on Marian Gaborik's empty-net goal with 4:24 left. "It's

not where we want to be, but that's the way it is."

Goalie Eddie Lack made 15 saves for the Canucks, who are 1-6-1 against the Kings over the past

two seasons.

"I thought we lost the goaltending, I thought we lost special teams, and that's two huge parts,"

Lack said. "They're a tough team to play against. You've got to give them credit."

Neither team managed a shot on its first power play, but the Kings converted on the first shot of

their second opportunity after Canucks forward Derek Dorsett took a slashing penalty away from

the play.

Kings defenseman Jake Muzzin started the play with a cross-ice pass from the left point to

Williams at the right faceoff dot, and Williams one-touched it back across the ice and through

the legs of Canucks defenseman Dan Hamhuis to Toffoli inside the bottom of the left faceoff

circle. Toffoli quickly lifted a shot high over Lack's blocker for his 20th goal, first in 10 games,

with 3:19 left in the first period.

"I'm disappointed," Canucks coach Willie Desjardins said. "I thought we had a real good first

period. I thought we played well, but we came out, we got a penalty, and they score on their

power play."

Williams doubled the lead 3:59 into the second period, this time as the recipient of a nice

backdoor pass from Brayden McNabb. The Kings defenseman was allowed to walk in

unchallenged from the point to just below the left faceoff dot, forcing Lack to come out and

challenge, before passing to Williams as he emerged on the other side, after circling behind the

net, for an unchecked tap-in goal.

McNabb was surprised to have so much time and space.

"A little bit, yeah," he said. "I knew [Williams] was coming back around and wanted to wait for

him, and it worked out."

Los Angeles outshot Vancouver 76-35 in the first two games, but the Canucks controlled play for

long stretches early in the first period Thursday, outshooting the Kings 9-4. But they couldn't

beat Quick, who robbed Jannik Hansen with his blocker 2:15 into the first period and denied

Daniel Sedin alone in the slot five minutes later.

"He showed today why he is one of the best in the world," Sedin said of Quick. "This team

showed they are a top team in the League, there is no question about that. The way they played,

especially when they are up. They are a tough team to get chances against."

Los Angeles began to take over in the second period, winning battles along the boards and

pinning Vancouver in its end for long shifts with an aggressive, hard-hitting forecheck. It paid

off early in the third when Hamhuis was pressured by Trevor Lewis in the corner and had his

backhand pass intercepted by Kopitar, who held off the Canucks defenseman before beating

Lack blocker side from 15 feet.

"The icing on the cake was the goal by Kopitar," Williams said. "Two-goal deficits and three-

goal deficits are just mentally so different."

Lack blamed himself for the third goal.

"I thought he was going to go high, and he sniped it low," Lack said. "It's on me and it's

definitely something I need to work on."

Not that it would have made a difference the way the Kings defended late. Vancouver didn't get a

shot the first 10:25 of the third period, when Quick made a great glove stop on Sedin in the high

slot to preserve his fifth shutout of the season, the 36th of his career.

"They showed why they win the Cups," Desjardins said. "They had a lot of patience, they had a

lot of presence. I did though think that's the best game we've played against them this year."

The Canucks have two more chances to be even better, but the Kings expect to keep raising their

level as the playoffs get closer.

"We have a team that I feel is able to get to another level when we need to," Williams said