Canucks offense falls silent in loss to the Sharks
Posted February 5, 2015 10:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – Radim Vrbata scored with 1:57 to play to end Antti Niemi’s shutout bid, however, the San Jose Sharks cruised to a 5-1 win over the listless Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena.
The Canucks got off to a sluggish start, with San Jose jumping out to a 9-2 lead in the shot department in the opening five-and-a-half minutes of play.
It wasn’t until the Sharks’ 15th shot on goal that they finally beat Ryan Miller, as Matt Irwin picked up a loose puck on the left boards, walked in, and fired home a shot to make it 1-0 with 2:17 to play in the first period.
The Sharks made it 2-0 on Melker Karlsson’s deflection goal at the 6:24 mark of the second period, and then they avoided a scare as Alex Burrows had a goal quickly waved off after he knocked the puck in with his hand.
San Jose extended its lead just before the intermission on a two-man advantage. Joe Pavelski’s pass attempt was deflected by the stick of Nick Bonino and the puck went right between Miller’s legs to make it 3-0.
Chris Tierney and Andrew Desjardins added goals for San Jose in the third period, while Vrbata hammered home his team-leading 20th goal of the season for Vancouver.
Niemi turned aside 33 shots to earn the victory, while Miller was beaten five times on 38 shots.
The Canucks have lost three of the first five games on their current homestand. They’ll host the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night before heading out on the road for games in Minnesota and Chicago.
