VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Kiefer Sherwood achieved his first NHL hat trick in a match that saw the Vancouver Canucks overcome the Colorado Avalanche with a score of 3-1 on Monday night.
Goalie Thatcher Demko was instrumental in the victory, making 30 saves as Vancouver recorded their second win in five outings, bringing their record to 2-2-1.
For Colorado, Valeri Nichushkin managed to find the back of the net just 46 seconds before the final buzzer, while Mackenzie Blackwood made 22 saves throughout the match.
Sherwood’s feat included an even-strength goal, a short-handed goal, and a shot into an empty net, increasing his season tally to a career-best of 11 goals, surpassing last season’s high of 10 with Nashville.
In terms of team performances, Mikko Rantanen assisted on the Avalanche’s only goal, extending his point streak to six games, which now consists of three goals and nine assists.
In the wake of a disappointing 5-1 defeat to the Boston Bruins on Saturday, Canucks Coach Rick Tocchet publicly critiqued his team, mentioning that multiple players appeared “struggling to get emotionally invested.” The team responded robustly against the Avalanche, managing to kill off four penalties, blocking 18 shots, and delivering 30 hits on Colorado players.
On the other hand, the Avalanche’s inability to score more than once was surprising, given that they had recently celebrated four victories in five games, with a remarkable offensive output of 18 goals against just 9 allowed during that run.
A key highlight of the match came when Sherwood extended Vancouver’s lead with a short-handed goal at 3:56 of the second period. He intercepted the puck from Nathan MacKinnon near the bench, raced down the ice, and shot it past Blackwood’s glove, bringing the score to 2-0. The crowd responded, chanting “Kie-fer Sher-wood!” as he celebrated his accomplishment.
Another critical statistical note was Colorado’s struggle on the power play, going scoreless on four opportunities and now sitting at just 1 out of 19 on power plays in their last seven games.
Looking ahead, the Avalanche will face the San Jose Sharks on Thursday, while the Canucks are set to travel to Utah on Wednesday to kick off a two-game road trip.