Canucks fall to Panthers, lose first in regulation under Boudreau

SUNRISE, Fla. -- The Vancouver Canucks lost for the first time in regulation under coach Bruce Boudreau, 5-2 to the Florida Panthers at FLA Live Arena on Tuesday.

It was the Canucks' first game in 10 days since a 5-2 win against the Seattle Kraken on Jan. 1; they had games against the New York Islanders on Jan. 5 and the Ottawa Senators on Saturday due to attendance restrictions in Canada cities because of COVID-19.
"There were a lot of things we didn't do well," Boudreau said. "It's never fun when you lose. This brought us down to earth a little bit."
Jason Dickinson scored for the Canucks (16-16-3), who are 8-1-1 since Boudreau replaced Travis Green on Dec. 5. Thatcher Demko made 21 saves.
Sam Reinhart had two goals and an assist, Aaron Ekblad had a goal and two assists, and Aleksander Barkov had a goal and an assist for the Panthers (24-7-5), who are 19-3-0 at home and extended their overall point streak to seven games (6-0-1). Sergei Bobrovksy made 42 saves.
Florida has scored at least five goals in 13 of its 22 home games.
"I don't think we're doing anything special," Reinhart said. "I think we're playing a pretty simple game offensively. We're getting bodies to the front of the net and getting the puck there at the right times. We're all on the same page there and we're being effective."

Reinhart returned after missing three games in NHL COVID-19 protocol, and second-line center Sam Bennett played 14:52 returning from a three-game suspension for a hit on Montreal Canadiens forward Cedric Paquette on Jan. 1.
"They're both important pieces," Panthers coach Andrew Brunette said. "It's great to see both of these guys back. We're blessed with a lot depth right now, and adding those pieces just makes us even stronger."
Ekblad gave the Panthers a 1-0 lead at 5:18 of the first period with a point shot through traffic.
Reinhart made it 2-0 at 6:24 when he tipped Radko Gudas' point shot. It was Florida's second goal in 1:06.
"[Starting fast is] extremely important, especially at home," Ekblad said. "It's important for us. Making good, simple plays early, getting a good forecheck, it really puts a team on their heels, and scoring that first goal is huge."

Dickinson, who returned from missing one game in protocol, cut it to 2-1 at 11:31 with a shot from the left face-off circle.
Despite being outshot 16-13, Florida outscored Vancouver 3-0 in the second period.
"I thought we played a really good second period, kind of took over the game," Brunette said. "It was a hard game. We got those goals early, but they buzz. They play hard for Bruce. We'll take the win and move forward."
Reinhart made it 3-1 at 8:46 with a power-play goal when Jonathan Huberdeau's shot glanced off his jersey in front.
Maxim Mamin extended the lead to 4-1 26 seconds later at 9:12 before Barkov's shorthanded goal on a breakaway made it 5-1 at 19:00.
It was Barkov's third shorthanded goal of the season, tied for the NHL lead with Gustav Nyquist of the Columbus Blue Jackets.
"He's about as good a player as we're going to see in our game," Brunette said of Barkov. "He turns it on when he needs to. We have some ability to score shorthanded too, which is a nice little treat to have."

Juho Lammikko scored on a rebound at 4:34 of the third period for the 5-2 final.
"We have to come out of this game with something positive, we have to win the third period," Boudreau said. "Adversity reveals character. We did a good job in the third right to the last second. That's a positive to take out of tonight."
NOTES: Canucks forward J.T. Miller had a nine-game point streak end. … Vancouver forward Brock Boeser had three shots in 22:27 after missing three games while in protocol. It was his first game since Dec. 16; the Canucks had five games postponed from Dec. 18-27. … Demko was 7-0-0 with a 1.40 goals-against average and a .955 save percentage under Boudreau. … Anton Lundell and Frank Vatrano each had two assists for the Panthers. … Florida has scored five shorthanded goals this season.