Canucks throttle Kings to take 3-2 series edge
The Vancouver Canucks appear to have regained the form that earned them the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference. After falling behind 2-1 in their first round series against the 6th-seeded Los Angeles Kings, the Canucks rallied for a Game 4 win and then put a beating on the visitors in a 7-2 win in Game 5. As a result, the Canucks are on the verge of advancing to the second round.
In Friday’s rout, Mikael Samuelsson, recently promoted to the first line, scored two goals and added an assist to lead the way. It was a balanced effort for Vancouver, which scored at least two goals in each period and had five players find the net. Steve Bernier was the only other Canuck to register more than one goal. He finished with two.
Interestingly enough, none of Vancouver’s seven tallies came from Henrik Sedin, who led the NHL in goals this season. He did record two assists, though.
The Canucks now head back to Los Angeles for Game 6 on Sunday night, where they have struggled thus far. It took a 4-goal effort in the third period of Game 4 just to regain home-ice advantage.
Roberto Luongo had 24 saves in the victory.
