National Hockey League
Vancouver 5, Pittsburgh 2
When: 7:00 PM ET, Wednesday, November 22, 2017
Where: PPG PAINTS Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Referees: Marc Joannette, Peter MacDougall
Linesmen: Derek Amell, Greg Devorski
Attendance: 18606

PITTSBURGH -- Brock Boeser has found his inner chill. It's working wonders.

"I've learned that if your confidence gets too high, you won't produce and stuff like that. So I like to stay even keel, have the same approach every game," Boeser said Wednesday night after he scored twice to keep his hot streak alive and help the Vancouver Canucks down the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-2 at PPG Paints Arena.

"I think about some of the things I have to be better at and fix those, and continue to improve my game."

Boeser, who leads the Canucks with 21 points, has six goals and seven points in five-game point streak. He scored two goals for the second straight game.

"There's a lot to be excited about with Brock," Canucks coach Travis Green said of the 20-year-old, who has played just 28 NHL games. "He's playing well offensively. I'm happy with that part, but I'm really happy with the rest of his game."

Defenseman Derrick Pouliot, a 2012 Penguins first-round draft pick who never panned out with Pittsburgh and was traded earlier this season, scored the winner on a power play at 7:08 of the second for a 3-1 lead.

Loui Eriksson and Brandon Sutter also scored for Vancouver (11-8-3), which improved to 8-3-0 on the road, and goaltender Anders Nilsson made 43 saves. Michael Del Zotto and Thomas Vanek each had two assists.

Jake Guentzel scored twice and Phil Kessel had two assists for Pittsburgh (11-9-3), which lost in regulation for the second home game in a row after starting 6-0-1 at PPG Paints Arena.

Matt Murray stopped 32 Canucks shots.

Vancouver took a 1-0 lead at 3:52 of the first on a wrist shot by Boeser from the inner edge of the right circle after he got a perfect saucer pass from Sven Baertschi.

On a Penguins power play, Kessel sprang Guentzel down the slot. Guentzel got around defenseman Erik Gudbranson for a clear shot on Nilsson, who stopped an initial shot, but Guentzel swatted the short rebound inside the left post to tie it 1-1 at 6:28 of the first.

The Canucks regained the lead, 2-1, on a fluke play. Sidney Crosby's stick broke in his own end, and the puck glanced off the shaft lying on the ice and went right to Vanek. He drove to the net but was stopped by Murray before Eriksson scored on the rebound at 8:33 of the first.

Pouliot upped the lead to 3-1 with a power-play goal, and his first goal with the Canucks, at 7:08 of the second. His wrist shot from the left circle went far side and caromed in off the shin of Pittsburgh defenseman Brian Dumoulin.

"It was a great game," Pouliot said. "I was very excited to come back here and play. Both teams played really well. They came at us hard and we answered. So, it was an awesome game to be a part of."

Boeser struck again at 9:47 of the second, another Canucks power-play goal, for a 4-1 lead. He roofed a one-timer from the top of the left circle over Murray's glove.

"Me being a shooter, I like to get pucks to the net," Boeser said. "So when that slides over, I just want to make sure I make good contact with it."

Pittsburgh has allowed two power-play goals in four of its past six games.

"The goals were just weird bounces," Murray said. "Our start could have been a whole lot better, but also pretty much all the goals they got were kind of hilarious. That one with the broken stick ... that's about as unlucky as you can get.

"You've got to look at some of those goals and just laugh."

Guentzel got his second, on a power play, 1:24 into the third to make it 4-2. After Crosby won a faceoff, a Kessel pass deflected in off of Guentzel's skate.

"We had a good push," Dumoulin said. "We had some good chances to crawl back in the game, but anytime you have to come back from three, it's tough."

Sutter, another former Penguins player, added an empty-netter with 1:20 left.

NOTES: Penguins C Evgeni Malkin, who missed his first game this season because of an upper-body injury, skated on his own before the morning skate. He will be re-evaluated Thursday. ... There was no update on Canucks RW Derek Dorsett, who returned to Vancouver because of neck stiffness. ... Pittsburgh C Carter Rowney, who was a game-time decision, missed his 14th game because of a broken hand. ... Vancouver LW Loui Eriksson played in his 800th NHL game.
Top Game Performances
 
Vancouver   Pittsburgh
Brock Boeser 2 Points Jake Guentzel 2
Brock Boeser 2 Goals Jake Guentzel 2
Michael Del Zotto 2 Assists Phil Kessel 2
Brock Boeser 1 Power Play Goals Jake Guentzel 2
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Anders Nilsson .956 Save Percentage Matthew Murray .889
Anders Nilsson 43 Saves Matthew Murray 32
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Vancouver 37 5 2-3 3-5 10 33
Pittsburgh 45 2 2-5 1-3 6 31
Upcoming Games
  • Pittsburgh will play their next game on the road against Boston. The Penguins have a W/L % of .455 after a win and .500 after a loss.
  • Vancouver will play their next game on the road against New Jersey. The Canucks have a W/L % of .455 after a win and .545 after a loss.