In Vancouver Saturday night, the Canucks’ Jacob Markstrom had a solid game in net and made 35 saves to guide the Canucks to a 2-1 win over the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs.
“Obviously you want to get rid of it and make it happen, but I’d take this any day of the week,” Markstrom said. “I’ve had maybe 10 or 20 games like this. You’re feeling great, seeing the puck, then a wrister from the blue line goes past our forward and [defenseman], and then a high tip. I mean, what do you have to do for it? It is what it is. 
You can’t beat yourself up.”
The Canucks built a 2-0 lead in the first period on goals from Markus Granlund and Alexander Edler.
“We got them on their heels a little at the beginning, and obviously they came hard the last two periods,” Vancouver coach Travis Green said. “I was proud of how we withstood their pressure.”
They let Markstrom do the rest.
“We didn’t get ready and the first period cost us, spent the whole night playing catch up,” Toronto coach Mike Babcock said. “We had lots of opportunity, the goaltender was good, but we weren’t ready to go at the start and catch-up hockey is usually losing hockey.”
James van Riemsdyk scored late in the third period to break up the Markstrom shutout bid.
“Our first period was pretty brutal. We picked it up in the second and third. That’s been the main focus for us, starting on time. Obviously, we didn’t tonight. That’s going to cost you regardless of how you play in the second and third,” the Maple Leafs’ Auston Matthews said after the game.
Without Markstrom, the Canucks might very well have lost the game from taking their foot off the pedal in the first.
“The last 40 minutes, I thought it was their game. We needed to be better, but [Markstrom] played a heck of a game and kept us in the game and won the game for us,” Daniel Sedin said of the team’s effort over the final two periods.
[WATCH: All Maple Leafs vs. Canucks highlights]
Frederik Andersen, after a shaky opening period, made 24 saves in taking the loss as Toronto dropped to 17-9-1 on the campaign.
“We just have to be better, get to the net better, create more havoc, don’t let him see the puck as well,” Matthews said. “He’s a big goalie. He can make those big saves.”
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