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 The biggest grin might have belonged to right winger Radim Vrbata,
who recorded his first hat trick as a Canuck in a 5-2 win over the
Buffalo Sabres. The victory snapped a five-game Vancouver losing
streak.
"It's a big relief," said Vrbata, who has struggled scoring this
season. "It's something positive you want to build off.
"I think this will help going forward, for me individually and as a
group. We were struggling the last couple of games finding our game.
Tonight was a good game."
The Canucks reduced their turnovers, managed 31 shots on Sabres
goaltender Linus Ullmark and controlled long stretches of play. They
also showed some energy, something had been lacking while losing 13
of their previous 16 games before Monday.
"We were looking for a good performance for a win and to feel a
little better about ourselves," said Vrbata, who collected his sixth
career hat trick. "Even though it's just one game, it's a good
start."
Center Henrik Sedin, on the power play, and left winger Brandon
Prust, with his first goal as a Canuck, also scored for Vancouver
(10-11-8). Left winger Daniel Sedin had two assists.
Right wingers Brian Gionta and Sam Reinhart scored for Buffalo. The
Sabres (11-14-3) are 1-2-1 in their past four games.
Vrbata scored his third goal of the night at 14:28 of the third
period. He took a pass from right winger Adam Cracknell and beat
Ullmark with a low shot on the blocker side. His also scored twice
in the first period as the Canucks battled back from an early 1-0
deficit.
Vrbata's last three-goal game was Oct. 3, 2013, against the New York
Rangers when he was a member of the Phoenix Coyotes. A 31-goal
scorer last year, Vrbata had just three goals in the first 19 games
this year. He now has six in his past eight games.
"You do things in games before, and it just doesn't happen for you,"
he said. "When it does, you take it and you are happy about it. It
gives you confidence and a little extra jump.
"This is hopefully something positive for me and for everybody going
forward."
Henrik Sedin hopes the win restores some confidence to the Canucks.
"It's a good feeling to come in and see a lot of smiles," he said.
"It was huge just to get some guys scoring. There has been a stretch
here you can tell there's guys that have been thinking hockey
differently. Tonight, we were on the same page."
Gionta gave Buffalo a 1-0 lead at 6:48 of the first period after
swatting a puck out of the air behind Canucks goaltender Ryan
Miller. Soon after, the Sabres took a too-many-men penalty, and that
seemed to drain some of Buffalo's energy.
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Overall, the Sabres were whistled for six penalties, and they gave
up a four-on-three power-play goal.
"We ended up taking too many penalties," Buffalo coach Dan Bylsma
said. "They were real dominant with their power play, and we gave
them too many opportunities to do it. They got momentum and carried
the play because of it."
Gionta said the Sabres couldn't maintain their early momentum.
"It's about how we are playing right now, how we are managing the
puck," he said. "Too many turnovers, lack of assignments in the
D-zone. We've got to find ways not to shot ourselves in the foot."
Miller, a former Sabre, stopped 32 shots. Ullmark made 26 saves.
Vancouver right winger Jannik Hansen said the win was an important
stepping stone, but only if the Canucks continue to improve.
"We need to be mindful we don't fall into bad habits," he said.
"There is a lot of stuff you can clean up after tonight."
NOTES: LW Sven Baertschi, a healthy scratch in two of the previous
four games, returned to the Canucks' lineup, as did D Alex Biega.
... LW Ronalds Kenins and D Yannick Weber were Vancouver's healthy
scratches. ... Canucks LW Brandon Prust was fined $5,000 for
spearing Boston LW Brad Marchand in the third period of a 4-0 loss
Saturday. .... The Canucks have had three losing streaks of three or
more games this year. ...Vancouver's four-game homestand ends
Wednesday against the New York Rangers. ... D Mike Weber, who missed
13 games with a knee injury, returned to the Buffalo lineup. ...
Sabres C Zemgus Girgensons played despite needing 12 stitches after
being hit in the face by a puck in the third period Sunday during a
4-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers. ... C Cal O'Reilly and D Jake
McCabe were healthy scratches for Buffalo. ... The Sabres'
three-game road trip ends Thursday in Calgary.
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