Adam Gaudette scored in a shootout to lift the Vancouver Canucks to a 3-2 victory over the host Ottawa Senators on Wednesday.
Bo Horvat had a goal and an assist, while Brock Boeser also scored in regulation for Vancouver (15-16-3).
Ryan Dzingel and Josh Norris scored for the Senators (10-20-3), who lost goaltender Joey Daccord to an injury in the third period.
The Canucks’ victory was their third in a row, sixth in their last seven outings, and fifth against Ottawa this season. The Senators, meanwhile, have won just twice in their last nine games.
Playing their second of a four-game road trip, the Canucks opened the scoring for the second consecutive night, when Horvat drove down the wing after a sloppy Ottawa pass attempt, and found Boeser open in front of the net. Boeser buried his 15th goal of the season — fifth best in the league — at 2:29 of the first period.
Vancouver padded its lead at 8:26 of the first when Thomas Chabot was knocked down at the boards by Nils Hoglander. The ensuing 2-on-1 ended with an easy tip-in by Horvat for his 13th of the year, while a frustrated Chabot was left glaring at the official.
The Senators’ puck movement improved in the second, and it paid off when Dzingel scored his sixth of the season to slice the difference in half at 3:00 of the period.
Much like Monday’s overtime loss to Vancouver, the Senators trailed by two but chipped away at the lead. Norris tied it up at 5:34 of the third with his seventh goal of the season, and third against Vancouver.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko improved to 7-1 in March.
READ MORE: Demko stellar in goal, Miller scores OT winner as Canucks edge Sens 3-2
Losing yet another goalie was bad news for Ottawa. Daccord, who had just earned his first NHL victory on Sunday against Toronto, left the game at 5:07 of the third period. Daccord appeared to twist a knee when he went down in the net, and grimaced while being helped off the ice.
Filip Gustavsson replaced Daccord for his NHL debut.
The Senators acquired goaltender Anton Forsberg off waivers from from Winnipeg earlier in the day to shore up its goaltending depth with both top netminder Matt Murray (upper-body injury) and Marcus Hogberg (lower-body injury) sidelined.
The Canucks, meanwhile, claimed winger Jimmy Vesey off waivers from the Toronto Maple Leafs earlier in the day, and the 27-year-old drove to Ottawa and participated in the warmup before being listed as unavailable for the game, due to a work visa issue. As a U.S. citizen, Vesey’s visa only applies to one NHL team. Vesey had five goals an two assists in 30 games with the Leafs.
Vancouver wing Tanner Pearson left the game in the third period.
The Canucks head to Montreal to face the Canadiens on Friday, while the Senators host Calgary on Monday.
THE CANADIAN PRESS
