In Edmonton, Tyler Toffoli returned to the Vancouver Canucks’ lineup after a 10-game absence (unfit to play) and popped in a goal and two assists in a 5-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday night.
“Coming into the lineup, you want to do whatever you can to help the team win, especially in playoffs,” Toffoli said. “I felt we were confident coming into the game, and right from the first shift, we started off well, and then continued on and our team got a big win.”
Jacob Markstrom made 38 saves to help the Canucks get even at a game apiece.
“We just didn’t play well (in a 5-0 loss in Game 1 on Sunday) and we had a good meeting last night, talked to our group,” Canucks head coach Travis Green said. “Call it motivation, call it whatever you want, but we had to play better, we had to have a response. I was confident we’d get a response because we’ve always gotten it in the past after a bad game.
“It doesn’t mean you’ll win, but I like that we responded with a better game to even the series.”
The Vancouver defense blocked 40 shots on the night.
“I know it’s not fun to see guys with ice packs after games, people blocking shots, but as a goalie I appreciate that,” Markstrom said. “They’ve been helping me throughout the year and the playoffs. Hopefully, they’re going to keep blocking shots, helping me out.”
Alex Tuch and Max Pacioretty were the Vegas strikers.
“We knew Vancouver wasn’t happy with the way they played (in Game 1) … we knew they’d be flying,” Tuch said. “Vancouver definitely played better than us in the first, and after that it didn’t really matter.”
Pacioretty scored on the power play and the goalie pulled for extra attacker.
The Canucks jumped out to a 2-0 lead before the Knights managed a reply.
“We got exactly what I expected,” Vegas head coach Peter DeBoer said. “They came out with some gas in the first period. We knew it was coming and, for whatever reason, we didn’t look ready for it. That’s disappointing, spotting them (a 2-0 lead).
“There were some uncharacteristic reads and decisions by us, but they put pressure on us that we didn’t see in Game 1.”
Bo Horvat struck twice, once on the power play, for the Canucks.
“It feels great to put the puck in the back of the net again,” he said. “When I’m not scoring, I’m trying to do other things, whether it’s win face-offs or playing well defensively. Getting on the score sheet is going to help that, and I’ll try to do that whenever I can.”
Elias Pettersson added a single marker for Vancouver.
“It was nice to have [Toffoli] back in the lineup,” Pettersson said. “We wanted to bounce back from Game 1 and should be happy about it, but we need to have short-term memory and get ready for Game 3.”
Tanner Pearson closed out the scoring with an empty net goal.
[WATCH: All Canucks vs. Golden Knights Game 2 highlights]
Robin Lehner took the loss on 22 saves.
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