VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Pius Suter netted two goals, leading the Vancouver Canucks to a comeback victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets, winning 5-2 on Friday evening.
The Canucks also saw contributions from Brock Boeser, Kiefer Sherwood, and Jake DeBrusk, while Quinn Hughes provided two assists. Kevin Lankinen was impressive in goal, making 30 saves, which helped Vancouver to maintain a strong record of 3-0-1 over their last four games.
Columbus took an early lead with goals from Mathieu Olivier and Damon Severson in the first period, as the Blue Jackets sought to end their three-game skid. In contrast, Elvis Merzlikins managed just 12 saves by the end of the match.
Olivier and Severson found the net within a span of 5:08, putting Columbus ahead 2-0 with 7:42 remaining in the first period. The momentum shifted in the second half, as Boeser and Sherwood both struck in the second period, leveling the score for the Canucks. Suter then pushed Vancouver to a 3-2 lead early in the third, while DeBrusk extended the margin to 4-2 with a power-play goal midway through the final frame. Suter capped off the night with an empty-net goal with just 65 seconds remaining.
Takeaways from the match include DeBrusk scoring in Vancouver for the very first time, extending his goal streak to four games and leading the team with 12 total goals. Boeser, who assisted on DeBrusk’s goal, reached a milestone with his 400th point in the NHL.
On the other side, the Blue Jackets struggled on the power play, finishing 0 for 5 and ranking 29th in the league with a 17.2% success rate.
A pivotal moment occurred late in the second period, when Merzlikins left the crease to play a loose puck. His misplay resulted in a pass to Vancouver’s Teddy Blueger, who quickly set up Sherwood for the goal that tied the game at 2-2 with just a minute left in the period.
Statistically, the Canucks improved their record to 9-5-1 when conceding the first goal of a game.
Looking ahead, the Blue Jackets will travel to Winnipeg on Sunday, while the Canucks are set to face off against Tampa Bay at home.
