It was a tale of two games tonight, as the Vancouver Canucks bested the undefeated Dallas Stars by a score of 5–3.
It was a tale of two games tonight, as the Vancouver Canucks bested the undefeated Dallas Stars by a score of 5–3. Filip Chytil, Brock Boeser, Max Sasson, and Conor Garland were part of the Canucks' four-goal second period effort. While Quinn Hughes tallied his first goal of the season on an empty net. Thatcher Demko stopped 28 of 31 shots faced.
The game started with Demko getting tested early on, as the goaltender was peppered with in-tight shots that were all stopped. He faced five shots in the first five minutes of the first period. While Vancouver finished the first frame with a 2–0 deficit, this was not at the fault of Demko, as the goaltender was tasked with stopping 14 total shots within the first 20 minutes of the game.
Dallas’ first goal came about in an unfortunate fashion. With many patiently awaiting his first goal of the season, Elias Pettersson got his stick on a Dallas pass to try and break things up defensively, but accidentally ended up tipping the puck past Demko and putting the Stars on the board. Despite the poor start for the Drew O’Connor–Pettersson–Garland line, they very nearly opened the scoring for the Canucks, as some smooth passes from Pettersson and Garland landed on O’Connor’s stick and directly on Dallas’ goal line. Later, the line combined for a solid O-zone possession effort that resulted in a goal for Garland.
The second period was undoubtedly Vancouver’s best of the entire season so far. As a whole, the group looked much more cohesive, with players taking steps towards filling their roles the way they were intended to. Evander Kane had himself a solid night, pouncing on the forecheck in a way that helped him draw three penalties throughout the game. Quinn Hughes, who has been noticeably quiet throughout the past few games, flaunted the smooth, speedy skating he’s best known for with effortless dashes from one side of the ice to the other to break up Dallas’ chances.
Sasson, the final forward cut from Vancouver’s roster out of pre-season, made his season debut tonight and proved to the team why he deserved to stick in the lineup. The speedy forward was joined by his Calder Cup teammates Arshdeep Bains and Linus Karlsson throughout the match, with the three-man unit doing what they do best and keeping play in their own zone. With a burst of speed, Sasson scored his first of the season and third in three straight games, as he also scored in each of the Abbotsford Canucks’ games last weekend. The Calder Cup line finished the game with a dominant corsi-for of 92.31% in 6:25 minutes played together.
Prior to tonight’s game, Vancouver was one of two NHL teams that had yet to score their first power play goal of the season, with the Toronto Maple Leafs being the other. That streak ended tonight, as Boeser potted his third goal of the season near the tail-end of Vancouver’s first power play of the game. One notable change about the power play this time around is the fact that Garland joined the unit in place of Kane, who had been on the Canucks’ first unit for the bulk of the past three games.
There were lots of things to like from Vancouver’s performance tonight. From the first-unit power play having a new look to it to the speed and forecheck of Garland coming back to try and score on an empty net, the Canucks had their most complete game of the season.
Stats and Facts:
- Brock Boeser scores Vancouver’s first power play goal of the 2025–26 season, 74th of his career
- Max Sasson scores his third goal in his third-straight game across the NHL and AHL
- Brock Boeser finishes the game with the highest TOI of forwards with 21:15
- Elias Pettersson records three blocked shots, the most of all forwards
Scoring Summary:
1st Period:
4:29 - DAL: Mavrik Bourque (1) from Thomas Harley and Radek Faksa
19:22 - DAL: Mikko Rantanen (2) from Jason Robertson and Roope Hintz (PPG)
2nd Period:
6:40 - VAN: Filip Chytil (3) from Evander Kane
8:50 - VAN: Brock Boeser (3) from Quinn Hughes and Elias Pettersson (PPG)
10:06 - VAN: Max Sasson (1) from Tyler Myers
18:54 - VAN: Conor Garland (1)
3rd Period:
17:53 - DAL: Wyatt Johnston (4) from Tyler Seguin and Jason Robertson (PPG)
19:23 - VAN: Quinn Hughes (1) from Conor Garland and Filip Hronek (ENG)
Up Next:
Fans won’t have to wait long to catch Vancouver’s next game, as the Canucks will take on the Chicago Blackhawks in the second-half of their first back-to-back of the season. Since Demko started tonight’s game, expect Kevin Lankinen to start tomorrow. Puck drop is scheduled for 5:30 pm PT.
Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.
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Category: General Sports
