Tatar's late goal sends Red Wings past Canucks
VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Tomas Tatar scored with 1:14 left, and the Detroit Red Wings defeated the Vancouver Canucks 3-2 on Monday night.
Tatar took a pass from Justin Abdelkader and beat Canucks goaltender Jacob Markstrom on the glove side for his 200th NHL point.
Darren Helm and Martin Frk also scored for Detroit (8-7-1). The Red Wings are 4-1-0 in their last five games after going through a six-game losing streak (0-5-1). Detroit is also 11-2-3 in its last 16 games against Vancouver.
Daniel Sedin and Michael Del Zotto scored for the Canucks (7-5-2).
Markstrom, making his fourth straight start, stopped 26 shots for Vancouver. Jimmy Howard made 26 saves for Detroit.
The Canucks produced goals 2:14 apart in the third period to tie the score 2-2.
Daniel Sedin scored Vancouver's first goal at 7:16. Thomas Vanek tipped Sedin the puck at the side of the net, and Sedin slipped a backhand past Howard's toe. It was his first goal in seven games.
Del Zotto tied the score at 9:30. Bo Horvat took the puck into the Red Wings' zone then passed to Del Zotto. The defenseman beat Howard for his first goal with the Canucks.
Helm opened the scoring at 4:02 of the first period. Markstrom got a pad on a weak shot from Frans Nielsen. Helm corralled the rebound and ripped a shot past the Canucks goalie on the glove side for his third goal of the season.
The Red Wings took a 2-0 lead on a Vancouver own goal at 15:15 of the second period. With Detroit on a power play, Frk took a shot from the point through traffic. Markstrom made the stop, but Canucks defenseman Chris Tanev directed the rebound into his own net. It appeared Detroit's Anthony Mantha bumped Tanev's stick when Tanev was trying to clear the puck.
The Canucks challenged the play, arguing that there should be goaltender interference on Henrik Zetterberg, but the goal stood after a replay.
Vancouver had two breakaways during the period but came up empty both times. Jake Virtanen sent Henrik Sedin in alone, but Howard made the stop. Vanek also slipped behind the Detroit defense but put his shot over the net.
NOTES: C Brendan Gaunce was a healthy scratch after the Canucks recalled him from Utica of the AHL following a two-week conditioning stint. He is back after shoulder surgery. ... RW Jayson Megna was returned to Utica. ... With G Anders Nilsson's fiancee expecting a baby, G Thatcher Demko dressed as the backup. ... Vancouver D Patrick Wiercioch was a healthy scratch. ... Vancouver won 4-1 when the teams met Oct. 22 in Detroit. ... The Red Wings had nine shots in the first 11:33 of the first period then just two for the remaining 8:27. ... RW Gustav Nyquist played despite sustaining a knee injury in Detroit's 4-0 win over Edmonton on Sunday.... The Red Wings' heathy scratches were LW David Booth and RW Luke Witkowski.