Tyler Toffoli scored two goals, including the winner in overtime, as the Calgary Flames continued their playoff push by rallying for a thrilling 5-4 win over the host Vancouver Canucks on Friday.
The Flames never led in the game until Toffoli’s winner 3:27 into overtime, but they came back to tie the score three times, including on Jonathan Huberdeau’s late-third-period goal that set the stage for the extra session.
This was a must-win for the Flames, who are battling Winnipeg for the final wild-card spot in the West. The Jets also played Friday, crushing the Detroit Red Wings 6-2, and they still have a two-point lead over the Flames (35-26-15, 85 points)
Troy Stecher had a goal and an assist and Blake Coleman also scored for Calgary. MacKenzie Weegar and Mikael Backlund each had two assists. Jacob Markstrom picked up the win but struggled early, allowing four goals on 20 shots overall.
Elias Pettersson, with his 36th of the season, Conor Garland, Aidan McDonough and Anthony Beauvillier scored for Vancouver (34-34-7, 75 points). Thatcher Demko turned aside 36 shots and was the Canucks’ best player on the ice for much of the game as Calgary outshot Vancouver 41-20.
The Flames won for the fourth time in five games while the Canucks slipped to 3-0-2 in their past five.
Garland opened the scoring, stealing the puck at his own blue line for an unassisted goal at 8:30 of the first period.
The teams exploded for six goals in the second period in which Calgary outshot the Canucks 15-6. But Demko made a couple of clutch saves, robbing Backlund with a glove save and stopping Huberdeau on a penalty shot.
Pettersson scored just 36 seconds into the second on the power play to give Vancouver a two-goal lead.
Toffoli scored his team-leading 32nd goal at 2:55 of the second to cut Vancouver’s lead to 2-1.
The Flames drew even at 2-2 at 9:00 of the second when Backlund made a nifty pass across the top of the crease to Coleman, who shot high but McDonough restored Vancouver’s one-goal lead 3-2 with his first NHL goal at 12:12.
They traded goals just 14 seconds apart late in the second to give the Canucks a 4-3 lead.
Huberdeau scored with just over three minutes left in the third period on the power play to make it 4-4 and send the game into overtime.
–Field Level Media
