Canucks score 4 straight in 2nd, hold off Penguins for 4th consecutive win

VANCOUVER -- The Vancouver Canucks scored four straight goals in the second period, including three in a 1:05 span, before holding off the Pittsburgh Penguins for a 4-3 win at Rogers Arena on Saturday.

Elias Pettersson scored his first goal of the season, and J.T. Miller also scored for Canucks (4-1-2), who have won four games in a row after starting the season 0-1-2. Kevin Lankinen made 21 saves.

All four lines scored a goal for Vancouver.

“It's important for each and every guy to contribute,” said forward Kiefer Sherwood, who also scored. “It's something that we need to have over the course of a season. Depth is obviously very important for every team that wants to go far, so it's nice to see guys get rewarded and just continue to chip away at things.”

Evgeni Malkin had a goal and two assists, and Anthony Beauvillier had a goal and an assist for the Penguins (3-6-1), who were coming off a 4-0 loss at the Edmonton Oilers on Friday and have lost five in a row (0-4-1). Alex Nedeljkovic made 30 saves.

“A lot of it starts with a mindset. It's a certain attitude, it’s a certain resilience we have to have. We need some pushback,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan said. “It boils down to commitment, a level of attention to detail, and when we get that, I think we have a chance to pull ourselves out of this.”

Beauvillier gave the Penguins a 1-0 lead at 7:48 of the first period by deflecting Marcus Pettersson’s point shot past Lankinen’s blocker from the left hash marks.

Bryan Rust extended it to 2-0 at 1:56 of the second period after Pittsburgh killed a four-minute power play. Beauvillier’s shot off the rush went wide, but Rust collected the loose puck behind the net and wrapped it in with his backhand.

Pettersson cut it to 2-1 at 4:06 with a quick wrist shot over Nedeljkovic’s glove from the left face-off dot off Conor Garland’s pass from below the goal line.

“Good to get one,” Pettersson said. “Good play by Conor to find me.”

Sherwood scored 43 seconds later to tie it 2-2, finishing a 2-on-1 rush from the left hash marks off a pass from Teddy Blueger.

“We just try to play the right way, and when you do that it's predictable,” Sherwood said. “We're just trying to focus on having an impact every night.”

Miller then put Vancouver ahead 3-2 at 5:11 on a rush down the right wing. Nedeljkovic stopped his initial shot and tried to knock the rebound away with his stick, but it bounced in off Miller as he was tied up with Erik Karlsson driving to the net.

“You just can't chase a mistake with another one,” Penguins captain Sidney Crosby said. “There's got to be a certain awareness when we do give up one that we've got to follow it up with a good shift, or at least get momentum back and try to counter that. We can't get on our heels. Teams always get a boost after scoring a goal, especially when you're on the road, so we’ve got to find a way to stop it at one.”

Arshdeep Bains pushed it to 4-2 at 9:58 on a rebound off the rush. It was the first point in 12 NHL games for Bains, who grew up in the nearby suburb of Surrey, British Columbia, and signed as an undrafted free agent on March 11, 2022.

“I can't really even put it [into] words. It happened so fast and all the guys were so happy. It's just a special moment,” Bains said. “I’m going to go see my dad, give [the puck from the goal] to him right away and then let's see what he does with it.”

Malkin cut it to 4-3 at 13:22 of the third period on a breakaway.

The Penguins pulled Nedeljkovic for the extra skater for the final 1:40 but were unable to tie it.

“We had a good third, so try to build off of that urgency, that desperation,” Crosby said. “We’ve got to find a way to not allow momentum or chances to add up and pile up and make that the difference in the game, because we're working too hard to generate other chances, to do good things, to give it away like that.”

NOTES: Rust left the game favoring his right leg at 3:34 of the third period after going down awkwardly along the boards while battling for the puck with Canucks forward Nils Hoglander. Sullivan did not have an update after the game, saying Rust was “being evaluated for a lower-body injury.” … Pittsburgh forward Cody Glass missed the game with an illness after leaving following the second period against the Oilers on Friday. … Canucks forward Brock Boeser had an assist to extend his point streak to five games (two goals, three assists). … Sherwood extended his point streak to an NHL career-high four games (two goals, three assists).