'Nucks Beat Flames in Wild 3rd
Vancouver, BC (WCFHL Press)
The playoffs are coming closer and closer, and both the Canucks and Flames are fighting for a spot. They met in an important match, that saw the Canucks
edge out the Flames 5-4. The game's most exciting moments came in a wild third period that saw six goals scored, the winning goal by Sergei Samsonov with less than 2 minutes to go in the game.
In the first period, the Canucks jumped out to an early lead, scoring two unanswered goals. The first came on the powerplay, Samsonov's first of the night, scored during a scuffle in front of the net. Samsonov headed towards the net, just as Pallfy shot the puck. The puck lay in the crease for several seconds as Samsonov battled with Flames defenseman Garry Galley. Eventually Samsonov got his stick on the puck and pushed it past sprawling goaltender Grant Fuhr. The second Canucks goal of the period came off a blistering slapshot from Richard Matvichuk. Heavily requested at the trading deadline, Matvichuk ended up staying with the Canucks and is helping them towards securing a playoff spot.
The second period was a sleeper, with little to note except for Michael Nylander's 15th goal of the season, a tip-in off a Phil Housley slapshot. The period saw few shots, and very little action, as both teams seemed to fall asleep.
Both Grant Fuhr and Vancouver goalie Garth Snow must have fallen asleep in the third period however, as a total of 6 goals were scored, 3 for each team. Bruising defenseman Keith Carney opened the scoring only 19 seconds into the game with a 50-foot shot that somehow managed to get past Snow, who looked terribly embarassing on the play. The game went back-and-forth at that point, with Pallfy scoring his 48th of the season for Vancouver, followed by two Calgary goals from Bure and Iginla. With Bure's goal, he reached 40 for the season, an amazing achievement for the small Russian forward.
With the Flames taking their first lead of the game, 4-3, they went into their defensive shell. The defensive shell however did not prove effective, and at the 17:26 mark, Matvichuk scored his second goal of the night. The Flames continued to play defensive hockey, or at least try to do so, but were thwarted again with Samsonov's winning goal at 18:49 of the third. The game ended shortly thereafter, with the Canucks coming out on top, 5-4. This was a huge victory for the Canucks, as they edged slightly ahead of the Oilers and Blues for 6th place in the Western Conference, with 81 points. The Oilers and Blues trail by 3 and 5 points respectively. The Flames on the other hand, lost their second game in a row and fell 3 points back from the last playoff spot, currently held by the Blues.
NOTES ... Valeri Bure scored his 40th goal of the year, putting him easily in 2nd place overall in scoring after superstar Theoren Fleury for Calgary. The next highest goalscorer is Cory Stillman with 28.... Pallfy had 3 points on the night for the Canucks, including 1 goal, putting his total at 48, only 2 back from the magic number 50.... Alexei Zhamnov continues to play well for the Canucks, tallying an assist in the game to bring his total to 7 points in 5 games with Vancouver.
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canucks |
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scorers
calgary flames
michael nylander (15)
keith carney (6)
valeri bure (40)
jarome iginla (21)
vancouver canucks
s. samsononv (31,32)
r. matvichuk (12,13)
zigmund pallfy (48)
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goaltenders
grant fuhr (cal)
23 shots; 18 saves;
record: 21-30-2
garth snow (van)
22 shots; 18 saves;
record: 2-0-0
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| Phil Housley picked up 2 assists to lead his team in points. |
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It Happened Today . . .
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Van-Allen |
Van-Allen Leads Islanders
to a huge 6-0 victory over the Buffalo Sabres. Van-Allen, a checking forward, scored two goals in a row, his 8th and 9th of the year, to help propel his team to a rare win. The goals came on Van-Allen's only two shots of the game. After the game, Van-Allen said, "Well I've always done whatever I could to help this team win, and if that means I gotta score a couple, then dammit, that's what I'll do!"
Flyers Figure Out Caps
in a 5-0 victory. The Capitals -- the hottest team in the league -- were finally defeated as Curtis Joseph fell apart in the 3rd period allowing 3 goals. The Capitals did manage 30 shots but were unable to beat Philly goalie Ed Belfour who adds to his shutout total, now at 7.
Lightning Break Losing Streak
by defeating the Florida Panthers 5-2. The Lightning had set a record for futility, losing 22 games in a row. Lightning coach Al Arbour could not comment, as he was babbling incoherently with excitement. He was probably surprised at having not been fired yet!
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ian laperriere (tbl)
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Laperriere scored a hat-trick against the Panthers, to lead his team to their first win in 23 games. Not known for his offense talents, Laperriere scored his 5th, 6th, and 7th goals of the season against the sleeping Panthers. Laperriere scored all three goals on 5 shots in only 12 minutes of ice time. |
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ed belfour (phi)
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Stopped 30 shots against the super-hot Capitals, to record his 7th shutout of the season, and his 44th win. Belfour shut the door on the Caps, who had previously won 12 games. His performance in the 3rd period, stopping 16 shots, was particularly amazing. |
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sergei samsonov (van)
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Scored 2 goals in a crucial victory against Western Conference rival, the Calgary Flames. Samsonov scored the first and last goal of the game to help the Canucks defeat the Flames 5-4. Samsonov added an assist on the night, for a total of 3 points. |
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