Pettersson scores twice to reach 200 NHL goals, Canucks defeat Panthers

Marco Rossi had a goal and two assists, and Brock Boeser had three assists for the Canucks (21-38-8), who won for the third time in the past six games (3-2-1) after winning just three of the previous 26 (3-19-4). 

Kevin Lankinen made 21 saves for his first win in 10 starts.

“I was just happy to keep the puck out,” said Lankinen, who hadn’t won since Jan. 21. “Our team as a whole played a great game. ‘Petey,’ Brock, Marco, they stepped up in a big way and led the way.” 

Matthew Tkachuk had a goal and an assist, Carter Verhaeghe had two assists and Sergei Bobrovsky, playing his 800th NHL game, made 17 saves for the Panthers (33-31-3), who have lost the first two of a four-game road trip after winning their previous three games. 

Coming off a 6-2 loss at the Seattle Kraken, Florida gave up a power-play goal early and was down 3-1 after the first period against the last-place Canucks. 

“It doesn’t matter who you are playing, a team at home gets up, the crowd gets behind them, and then they really tighten it up defensively … it’s hard to generate anything,” said defenseman Seth Jones, who returned to play 20:16 after missing 26 games with a collarbone injury. “We had some decent shifts in the third period, [Tkachuk’s] line, some action around the net but it’s just too little, too late.”

Pettersson put the Canucks ahead 1-0 on a power play at 3:49 of the first period, one-timing a cross-ice pass from Rossi under the arm of a sliding Bobrovsky from the right dot for his first goal since Jan. 13.

“I’m just trying to find a seam, and he made a perfect pass in the wheelhouse,” Pettersson said.

Tkachuk tied it at 11:41 with a quick shot between Lankinen’s pads after a pass by defenseman Elias Pettersson bounced off Verhaeghe and right to Tkachuk unchecked in front of the net.