Recap: Ducks Reach Milestone in 5-0 Victory Over Canucks

Not only did the Ducks come out of Vancouver with two important points following a 5-0 victory, they also set a franchise milestone in the process.
Antoine Vermette's goal in the third period was the 5,000th goal in franchise history (shootout goals excluded) and gave the team 901 all-time road standings points. The Ducks came into the game needing just four goals to reach the 5,000 mark. With the win, Anaheim improved to 19-14-8 (46 points) overall this season.

Adam Henrique, Rickard Rakell, Ryan Getzlaf and Derek Grant also lit the lamp for the Ducks, who have won three in a row and five of their last six (5-1-0). Rakell's goal pushed his goal streak to a career-best six consecutive games, the longest current streak in the NHL. Only Tampa Bay's Nikita Kucherov (7) has a longer streak in the NHL this season (Calgary's Johnny Gaudreau and Minnesota's Nino Niederreiter also had 6).
Former Canucks goaltender Ryan Miller, making his first start in Vancouver since signing as a free agent in the offseason, turned in a stellar performance. The 37-year-old netminder stopped all 31 shots to improve to 5-1-4 in 11 games this season. It marked Miller's second shutout this season and the 41st of his decorated NHL career, placing him in sole possession of second place among American-born goaltenders. In his three seasons with the Canucks, the East Lansing, Michigan native went 64-68-16 with a 2.69 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage from 2014-17.
"It means a lot to me coming out to Vancouver," said Miller. "It was a big point in my life, and my wife's life. Of course my son was born here and we have fond memories. I enjoyed myself here. The people have always been great. It was a fun night."
The victory also gave Anaheim its third win in four games during a stretch that sees the club face Pacific Division opponents in seven consecutive games (3-1-0). The Ducks improved to 47-38-19 all-time against the Canucks, including a 26-21-6 mark at Rogers Arena. The Ducks have gone 16-3-4 in the last 23 meetings overall and have earned points in 16 of the last 17 meetings in Vancouver (28 points, 12-1-4).
Vancouver lost for the second game in a row (both at home) and fell to 16-19-5 overall (37 points), including a 7-12-3 mark at home. Anders Nilsson made 15 saves before he was relieved by Jacob Markstrom in the third period.
The Ducks did not waste any time getting to work. They struck just 56 seconds into the game when Henrique's backhanded attempt from beneath the goal line somehow snuck past Nilsson for his ninth goal and 23rd point of the season. It snapped a six-game goal-less streak for Henrique, who came into tonight's game with one goal over his last 10 contests. With an assist, Josh Manson set a new career high in points in a season (18, 3g/15a). He had 17 points over 82 games last season.

Rakell gave the Ducks a 2-0 lead at the 13:44 mark of the first period when he finished off a nice feed from Getzlaf at the left faceoff dot. Rakell's six-game streak is Anaheim's longest since Corey Perry's seven-game run from Nov. 29-Dec. 11, 2013 and equals the fourth longest in club history. Only Teemu Selanne (twice, 11 and 8 games), Perry (7) and Paul Kariya (6) have had streaks of six or more.

The Ducks make it 3-0 five minutes into the second period when Getzlaf, stationed in the high slot, deflected Hampus Lindholm's shot from the left point. The goal gave Getzlaf 11 points in his last six games (1g/10a), while Lindholm's assist (his second helper of the game) placed him in a tie with Fredrik Olausson (90) for seventh on the franchise's all-time assists list for defensemen.

It took just 20 seconds into the third period for the Ducks to reach a milestone. Vermette finished off a nice feed from Getzlaf to score the 5,000th goal in franchise history, which also gave the veteran center two goals and five points in his last two games.

Grant made it 5-0 Ducks when he snapped a shot past Markstrom for his eighth goal of the season at the 7:21 mark of the third period. Manson's assist gave him three assists in the game, a career high.

Anaheim's three-game Western Canadian road trip continues on Thursday when it faces the Edmonton Oilers for the first time this season.