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 Left winger Zach Parise worked hard to score a first-period goal,
and Charlie Coyle added a crucial goal on a second-period power
play, leading Minnesota to a 5-2 victory over the Vancouver Canucks
on Monday night.
The win snapped an eight-game Wild losing streak and give John
Torchetti a victory in his first game as interim coach.
"To get rewarded for hard work, all of us were excited and happy for
each other," said Parise, who ended a nine-game goal-scoring
drought. "There was life in the room and on the bench.
"Guys played hard, guys competed. I thought we were a tough team to
play against."
Defenseman Jared Spurgeon had a goal and assist for Minnesota
(24-22-10). Right wingers Nino Niederreiter and Justin Fontaine also
scored, while center Erik Haula and defenseman Ryan Suter had two
assists each for the Wild, who are 2-11-2 in their past 15 games.
Center Henrik Sedin had a power-play goal and an assist for
Vancouver (22-22-12). Defenseman Chris Tanev also scored on the
power play for the Canucks, who have lost five straight at home.
Torchetti took over as Minnesota's interim coach when Mike Yeo was
fired Saturday.
Coyle said Torchetti brought new energy behind the bench.
"He's always talking, always going over stuff with what happened,"
he said. "He still keeps the mood light, but he let us know when he
wants things done differently in a positive way."
Torchetti said he had a simple message for the players.
"Just keep attacking the net, have fun on offense, control the
puck," he said. "Just keep building and building that confidence."
The Wild outshot the Canucks 17-4 in the first period. Parise opened
the scoring when he flattened defenseman Matt Bartkowski with a
check, picked up the loose puck, then fired a rocket over Vancouver
goaltender Jacob Markstrom's shoulder for his 18th goal of the
season.
The Canucks showed some life in the second period, cutting
Minnesota's lead from 3-1 to 3-2. With Vancouver center Bo Horvat
off for hooking, Coyle took a pass from Spurgeon and fired a shot
that deflected off Tanev and past Markstrom.
The win leaves the Wild four points out of the final wild-card spot
in the tight Western Conference.
"We want them feeling good about themselves," Torchetti said, "then
we'll make corrections and adjustments."
Torchetti wants to keep the game fun for the team.
"I've always had fun," he said. "We want them in a good mood.
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"When you take over jobs, there is a reason why you are here, and
you have to make sure to try and build confidence in the team."
Sedin said the Canucks regrouped after the first period and managed
to make the game close.
"When they scored the fourth one, it's uphill again," said Sedin,
who scored his first goal in 21 games. "That's the way it's been
lately.
"We get close and then we let one goal in quickly, and all of a
sudden it's a two-goal game again."
Home ice hasn't been kind to the Canucks, who trail the final
wild-card spot by six points. The Canucks are 13-11-7 at home, and
they haven't scored more than three goals at Rogers Arena since Dec.
7.
"I don't know what it is," Vancouver right winger Jannik Hansen
said. "If I had the answer to that, I would share it with the other
guys.
"For some reason we haven't been able to pull it together at home.
We're not trying to change our game in any way, we're not trying to
be fancy, we're not trying to please the crowd in any way. We are
trying to play the exact same way we were doing when we were
successful on the road. Obviously, it's not happening."
NOTES: The Canucks' scratches were RW Adam Cracknell, D Yannick
Weber and RW Emerson Etem. ... C Alex Friesen, recently called up
from Utica of the AHL, became the eighth player to make his NHL
debut for Vancouver this season. He finished with a minus-2 rating
in 11:43 of ice time. ... Canucks RW Alex Burrows dismissed reports
he is prepared to waive the no-trade clause in his contract. ... The
Canucks face the Anaheim Ducks at home on Thursday. ... D Jared
Spurgeon returned to the Wild lineup after missing three games with
a deep bruise. ... Minnesota scratched LW Chris Porter, G Niklas
Backstrom and D Nate Prosser. ... Wild G Devan Dubnyk's previous win
was a 2-1 decision over Dallas on Jan. 9. ... The Wild play the
second game of their three-game road trip Wednesday in Calgary.
[© 2016 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
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