The victory boosted the Canucks’ playoff hopes as they chased a Wilderness wild. Both the Golden Knights and the Cannibals look out, with Vancouver in a state of despair. Vegas (82 points) is one point behind Dallas in eighth place, while the Cannons (76) are seven behind the stars. Peterson made his third appearance with two goals in his last five games. He has 10 points in his last seven games. “We were really happy with the way we played,” said Pettersson. “I think today was a very good game for us for 60 minutes. We have to bring that in every game. The whole team worked. We know the situation we are in. Basically, we have to win every game. We can only focus on the next one. “Obviously we are happy with the result today, but we have to focus on the next game.” Bo Horvat, Brad Richardson and Tanner Pearson also scored for Vancouver. Thatcher Demko was excellent at suppressing the Golden Knights attack by stopping 33 shots. “For the season and for what we needed, it was a great game at all levels,” said Canucks coach Bruce Boudreau. “The goalkeeper had to be great, but the players around him also played well. We started on time.” The Golden Knights averaged 4.4 goals in their five games. In this, they looked more like the pedestrian team that endured 2-8 while averaging just 2.1 goals before the five-game series. Jack Eichel scored for Vegas and Robin Lenner made 26 saves. It marked Vancouver’s first victory over the Golden Knights since joining the NHL in 2017. “We were awful,” said Vegas coach Peter De Boer. “We were awful at the front of the net. We were awful at the outbursts. We were awful everywhere. I can not tell you it was one thing. We were not good. We will wash it and move on.” After hitting the post with a monometer he thought came in, but Demko left, Eichel ended up with a rebound after a series of shots and found the back of the net to give Vegas a 1-0 lead early. . The Canoxes took advantage of a power play at the end of the first period, after Ben Hutton was called to hold on. Pettersson’s shot from the point bounced off Lehner’s right shoulder and right into Horvat, who sent a punch to his goal to equalize. It took Vancouver 17 seconds to take the lead as Richardson sneaked into the backcourt behind Vegas defender Alec Martinez and fired a loose bun from the inside edge of his right circle and under his pads. The Cannons opened a two-goal cushion in the middle of the second half when Pettersson sent a beautiful pass into the box to Pearson, who ended the rush by beating Lehner with a shot on the wrist over his blocker. After assisting on two of Vancouver’s first three goals, it was Peterson’s turn to find the back of the net. Left alone in the front corner of the net after leaving Eichel, Peterson redirected Oliver Ekman-Larsson’s pass to the back door to make it 4-1. Just over a minute into the third, Vegas defender Braden McNabb went to the penalty spot for tripping. Seven seconds later, Pettersson scored his second goal of the night. NOTES: Since taking over the sacked Travis Green on December 5, Boudro has led the Cannons to 25-13-8, including 14-6-3 on the road. … Eichel played in his 399th career game and can reach 400 on Saturday at home against Arizona. NEXT Canucks: Visit the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday. Golden Knights: Host the Coyotes on Saturday.
