The Wings took a 2-0 lead into the third period but stayed with it after the Canucks tied the game, getting the game-winner at 18:46 from Tomas Tatar.
Gustav Nyquist, who had to leave Sunday's game after going knee-on-knee with Edmonton's Eric Gryba, was able to play after testing it in the optional morning skate and warmups.
The Wings are now 8-7-1, 6-5-0 on the road.
1. Tomas Tatar: It was all worth the wait. Tomas Tatar had not recorded a point in the last seven games, stuck on 199 career points. But with 1:14 left in the third period in a 2-2 game, Tatar shot the puck, it deflected off one of the Canucks and beat Vancouver goaltender Jacob Markstrom. It was Tatar's fourth goal of the season and a milestone he will always remember.
Quotable: "I had it in my mind but things weren't not going well for me, so I kind of just get it out of my mind. I tried to play simply. Obviously a big win. That feels pretty good. I think I hit the guy's stick as I saw the replay. These kinds of goals are going in. You just need a fortunate bounce sometimes. I'm glad it happened." - Tatar
Quotable II: "I actually thought he had an excellent camp. He had a couple goals early. He's had chances and hasn't scored. He's that kind of player. He's a streaky player. It seems like when they go in, they go in bunches, so I'm hoping they start to go in tons. I thought he played great in Edmonton, I thought he played great tonight. I thought the two games prior he wasn't as good." - Wings coach Jeff Blashill
2. Jimmy Howard: Howard missed one practice to attend the funeral of his wife's uncle but did not miss a beat when he returned to the net in Vancouver. Howard picked up right where he left off. The Wings had some turnover issues in the second that led to odd-man rushes for the Canucks. Howard stopped Henrik Sedin on one and then got lucky on another as Thomas Vanek shot over the net on a different breakaway. Although the Canucks tied the game in the third period on goals by Daniel Sedin and Michael Del Zotto, Howard stood strong and was there late to prevent the Canucks from tying the game and forcing overtime.
Quotable: "You knew they were going to push. You knew they were going to funnel everything to the net. It's just about being big, staying calm, just trying to keep my arms up." - Howard
Quotable II: "I thought Jimmy was real good. I said at the beginning of the year you need elite goaltending to win in this league. You look at every team that's in the mix, they all have elite goaltending. We got two guys that have given us that so far, so it's great." - Blashill
3. Martin Frk: Before the game, Blashill said that Frk seemed to be regaining some confidence the last few games and had been given more ice time, which was contributing to that. Frk scored in Sunday's 4-0 victory at Edmonton, his first goal in 11 games, on a nice pass from Anthony Mantha. During the Wings' first power play in the second period, Frk shot the puck and defenseman Christopher Tanev, in an attempt to keep the rebound away from Mantha, shot the puck into his own net. Frk was credited with the unassisted goal, his fifth of the season, tying him with Frans Nielsen and Gustav Nyquist for second on the team to Mantha, who has seven. The Canucks challenged the goal for goaltender interference but after review, the goal stood.
Quotable: "We can't rely on one single line every night. We need everyone going and getting contributions from everyone. We've gotten that over the last couple of games." - Howard
Quotable II: "The one thing as we've gone through the year, it looks like a team that if we can build a match-up line, it's a little bit harder on the road, but you got some guys that can match a little bit, you got some guys that can produce offense, you become a four-line team, which is a positive thing. I think we got pretty good depth of scoring and I think Nielsen, Helm, those guys play really well together, whether it's with Abby or Glenny because they play the same way - they like to play north and they all have the ability to score. Nielsen, Helm and Abby have all scored a good amount of goals in this league. So it's something that's real important for us." - Blashill
