GLENDALE, Ariz. -- This time, the Vancouver Canucks weren't about to let a three-goal lead slip away.
Sven Baertschi and Bo Horvat had a goal and two assists each and the Vancouver Canucks scored three times in a 3:31 span of the second period in a 4-1 win against the Arizona Coyotes at Gila River Arena on Wednesday.
Loui Eriksson, Horvat and Alexandre Burrows scored in the second to turn a 1-1 game into a rout and give Vancouver (8-10-2) its second win in nine road games.The Canucks had a 3-0 lead after two periods against the Chicago Blackhawks at home on Saturday, but lost 4-3 in overtime. This time, the Canucks played a tight, smart third period and never gave the Coyotes a chance to rally.
"We talked about that after the last game, how we never wanted to have that happen again," said Horvath, who leads the Canucks with seven goals. "We came out strong in the third, we didn't sit back and we kept the pace going and stayed on them. We played such a strong game for the first 40 minutes against Chicago and we had to take the positives from that and move on. And that's what we did."
Baertschi ended a five-game drought when he scored in the first period. He then assisted on goals by Horvat and Burrows in the second. That line combined for eight points in the game."I've liked that line for three or four games," Vancouver coach Willie Desjardins said. "I think Burrows helps them, he talks to those guys and prepares from for shifts. And the other two guys have a lot of talent. Horvat is playing well and Baertschi has found his game lately."
Goalie Ryan Miller made 35 saves and is 10-1-0 in 11 career games against Arizona.
Christian Dvorak scored for the Coyotes (6-10-2), who outshot Vancouver 36-25 but were victims of their own mistakes. Goalie Mike Smith allowed three goals on six shots in the second period and was replaced by Louis Domingue after Burrows made it 4-1 at 6:49.
"It was awful. I was sleeping from the first goal. It was not even close," Smith said. "We did a lot of good things I thought in front of me, but I didn't get rewarded for those things and that falls on my shoulders tonight."
Smith had 13 saves and Domingue made nine for Arizona. But coach Dave Tippett said the problems ran deeper than goaltending.
"There were parts of the game where we liked how we were played, but there were pure execution mistakes," Tippett said. "We've got to make plays. It's all well and good that everybody is willing to fall on the sword, but just do the job. Do the job together and we'll find ways to win."
After Baertschi scored early in the first, the Coyotes tied the game 58 seconds into the second period. With Anthony Duclair providing a screen, Dvorak was in front of the crease and deflected an Anthony DeAngelo pass by Miller. Dvorak's second goal made it 1-1, but Vancouver answered quickly and often.Goal of the game
The Canucks took advantage of a turnover to grab an early lead. Behind the Coyotes net, Oliver Ekman-Larsson lobbed a blind pass behind him and right on Horvat's stick. Horvat found Baertschi, who tipped the puck between Smith and the post at 3:08.Save of the game
Miller made a big save on Coyotes captain Shane Doan's rebound chance by jamming his skate to the post and making a pad save in close in the first period.
Unsung moment of the game
Center Michael Chaput won 10 of 14 faceoffs for Vancouver, which went 35-27 in the circle overall.
Highlight of the game
Smith didn't have a strong performance, but he made a big save on Canucks forward Brandon Sutter in the first period. Sutter cleaned up a rebound of a Troy Stecher shot in the slot, but Smith got just enough to deflect the puck over the crossbar.
They said it
"The coaching staff keeps talking about it getting pucks on net and good things are going to happen. That was really lucky and I think it kind of took a lot of wind out of their sails. It was good for us, but I'm sure he'd like to have that back." -- Canucks forward Alexandre Burrows on his goal in the second period