CHICAGO (AP) — Blackhawks captain Nick Foligno was not very pleased after his team allowed four first-period goals to the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday night at the United Center.
And though Chicago played better the rest of the way, the awful start was too much to overcome, as the Canucks went on to win their third straight, 6-3.
“When you’re playing behind against a good team that plays ‘heavy,’ it’s hard to come back on them,” Foligno told reporters after the game. “They stay with it, they get some strong sticks around the net and make you pay.
“It’s a lesson for us of how hard we need to play. We’re still trying to prove who we are and get the respect we need to get around the league. That’s not the way to go about it.”
Danton Heinen scored two of Vancouver’s four first-period goals and J.T. Miller had a goal and two assists for the Canucks, who closed out a 3-1 road trip. Brock Boeser, Conor Garland and Pius Suter also scored, and Kevin Lankinen made 31 saves in net against his first NHL team.
Heinen finished a pretty passing sequence 21 seconds into the game and picked up his second goal of the season at 10:46 of the opening period, giving Vancouver a 3-1 lead.
Taylor Hall, Ryan Donato and Tyler Bertuzzi scored for Chicago in its third loss in four games. Petr Mrazek made 24 stops in net.
Hall’s goal with 6:31 left in the first was his second of the season and his 700th career point.
The Blackhawks went 1-for-5 on the power play, and the Canucks were 2-for-3 with the man advantage.
Takeaways
Canucks: Boeser scored for the second straight game. He is off to a solid start, with four goals and two assists in six games.
Blackhawks: It was a rough night for the team’s defensemen, who were out of position on a couple of prime scoring opportunities in front.
Key moment
The Canucks had seven players on the ice shortly before Garland made it 4-2 with 4:43 left in the first. It was Garland’s third of the season.
The Blackhawks had already had an unsuccessful challenge when they thought Kiefer Sherwood was offsides on Heinen’s second goal.
Key stat
Vancouver has won eight in a row against Chicago. The Canucks’ last loss against the Blackhawks was a 1-0 setback on Nov. 21, 2021.
Up next
Vancouver opens a three-game homestand on Saturday night against Pittsburgh.
Chicago hosts Nashville on Friday night to conclude a four-game homestand. The puck drops at 7:30 p.m. at the United Center.