Canucks 5, Flames 1
CALGARY, Alberta -- Left winger Daniel Sedin scored once and set up two goals, leading the Vancouver Canucks to a 5-1 season-opening win over the Calgary Flames at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Wednesday.
Right winger Brandon Sutter had a goal and an assist, while center Henrik Sedin also scored to give Vancouver's top line six points.
Right winger Jannik Hansen and left winger Alex Burrows also scored for the Canucks, who were eliminated in six games by the Flames in the opening round of the 2015 NHL playoffs. Goaltender Ryan Miller made 29 saves to record the win.
Right winger Jiri Hudler scored the lone goal for the Flames, while goalie Karri Ramo stopped 39 of 44 shots he faced in the Calgary net.
The Flames nearly took a 1-0 early in the game when Hudler centered the puck out front from behind the net and Vancouver defenseman Luca Sbisa inadvertently tipped it on net, but Miller was able to make the save to keep the game scoreless.
Just before the 10-minute mark of the first period, Ramo slid across his crease and made a great blocker save to deny a scoring attempt by left winger Daniel Sedin, who was set up nicely by his brother, center Henrik Sedin.
Vancouver then took advantage of a bad line change by Calgary as Hansen took a pass from rookie defenseman Ben Hutton and blasted a slap shot into the top corner, glove side behind Ramo at 10:34 of the first period.
The Canucks went up 2-0 with 1:59 to play in the opening period when Sutter swatted the puck out of mid-air past Ramo, who made the initial save to stop another chance by Daniel Sedin.
Calgary's top line then went to work early in the first period as Sean Monahan forced a turnover by Sbisa in Vancouver's zone before chipping the puck to left winger Johnny Gaudreau in the slot. Hudler then took a pass from Gaudreau and made a quick deke before depositing the puck through Miller's legs.
Daniel Sedin scored with five seconds left in the second to put the Canucks back up by two heading into the final period. Defenseman Dan Hamhuis took the initial shot from the point that deflected off Ramo and then Sedin before going into the net.
The Flames were victimized by a bad goal at 8:17 of the third when defenseman Dennis Wideman unintentionally redirected a harmless looking shot off the stick of Burrows past Ramo.
Henrik Sedin added an insurance marker with 3:29 to play in the game when he took a pass off the end boards from his brother and roofed a shot from in tight past Ramo.
Just two seconds into the game, Flames left winger Micheal Ferland and Canucks right winger Derek Dorsett dropped the gloves and exchanged blows in a spirited fight. It marked the fastest fighting majors to start a season in the history of both franchises.
NOTES: RW Brandon Sutter made his Canucks debut and started on the top line with C Henrik Sedin and LW Daniel Sedin. ... The Flames also welcomed a pair of offseason acquisitions to their lineup. D Dougie Hamilton played on Calgary's top pairing with the team captain, D Mark Giordano, while RW Michael Frolik started the game on a line with C Mikael Backlund and LW Lance Bouma. ... Due to G Jacob Markstrom being out with a lower-body injury, the Canucks called up G Richard Bachman from AHL Utica to back up G Ryan Miller. ... Flames G Joni Ortio and LW Mason Raymond were scratched, and C Joe Colborne (thumb), D T.J. Brodie (hand) and D Ladislav Smid (neck) also were out. ... In addition to Markstrom, the Canucks' scratches were RW Jake Virtanen and D Yannick Weber, while LW Chris Higgins sat out with a foot injury.