Cooley breaks tie in 3rd, Utah defeats Canucks

VANCOUVER -- Logan Cooley scored the go-ahead goal at 5:08 into the third period for the Utah Hockey Club in a 3-1 win against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena on Sunday.

Sean Durzi's deflection of Nick Schmaltz’s point shot hit off the skate of Canucks forward Teddy Blueger and caromed to the bottom of the right circle, where Cooley buried a shot past a sprawling Kevin Lankinen.

It was Cooley’s first point in seven games, ending his longest drought of the season, and came after he was moved from center to left wing.

“Feels like it's been two years since I got one in the back of the net,” Cooley said. “It truly does feel like the weight of the world is off my shoulders now, and I could just play and get back to what I was doing that makes anyone successful and not thinking too much now.”

Kevin Stenlund and Clayton Keller also scored, Schmaltz had two assists, and Karel Vejmelka made 18 saves for Utah (30-26-11), which had lost three of four (1-1-2).

“That was one of our better games under pressure, the way we reacted,” Utah coach Andre Tourigny said. “They tried to push us around in the first period. We called their bluff, we stayed composed and we played really well the rest of the game.”

Utah, which swept the three-game season series against Vancouver, moved two points behind the Canucks and St. Louis Blues for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference. The Calgary Flames are also tied in points with Utah but have played two fewer games.

“Playoff hopes are on the line to an extent in a game like this, and so it brings us right back into the mix,” Utah forward Alex Kerfoot said. “We’ve just got to keep building because we're still trying to track down three teams.”

Quinn Hughes scored, and Lankinen made 20 saves for the Canucks (31-25-11), who had won two straight, including 6-2 against the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday.

“Obviously, we could have separated ourselves today, and I think that was something that everyone knew how big that would be,” Hughes said. “But now we're just still in the same position we've been in, which is do or die pretty much every day. And it's exciting, so everyone should be up in here and excited.”

Dylan Guenther appeared to put Utah ahead 1-0 at 1:26 of the second period on a rebound in tight, but the goal was waved off for goalie interference on Michael Carcone.

Instead, Hughes opened the scoring for Vancouver on a power play at 2:37. He scored with a shot from the left point that deflected off the hand of Utah defenseman Mikhail Sergachev and through the five-hole of Vejmelka.

Stenlund tied it 1-1 at 12:04 following a good forechecking shift by Utah’s fourth line. Nick Bjugstad, who was back in the lineup because of an injury to Liam O'Brien, wrapped the puck around the net to Stenlund, who was left all alone in the right circle for a quick shot into the open net.

“That line played really good,” Tourigny said.

Utah killed off three power plays in the third period, including a double minor to Keller for high-sticking at 10:43, during which the Canucks managed just four shots.

“When we took that, we never felt, ‘Oh my god,’ the panic or whatever,” Tourigny said. “It was 'OK, it's a key moment, let's do that, let's get at it,’ and that was more a challenge than a fear, so we're progressing in that sense.”

Tourigny singled out Kerfoot for his work on the penalty kill.

“I really didn't think they got many good looks,” Kerfoot said. “We did a good job denying entries, we're winning face-offs, getting clears, and the few looks that they did have I think were from the outside. So, did a really good job, [Vejmelka] was great, but a four-minute kill at that point in the game is game-breaking.”

Keller scored into an empty net from center ice with 31 seconds left for the 3-1 final.

“The coaches, we’re a little frustrated. There’s a lot of plays there to be made, we just didn't make them. ... We needed somebody to take charge of it,” Vancouver coach Rick Tocchet said of the power play. “Go down low and we have a 3-on-2 or 3-on-1. It's plain as day. I will say, we're a little frustrated, the coaching staff, because when you go hard up high the puck has to go low. You’ve got to make a play. It's there. So, I think we're a little bummed.”

NOTES: Vejmelka was making his 10th straight start. ... O’Brien is expected to miss four weeks with a lower-body injury. ... Hughes has recorded a point in all three games (two goals, one assist) since returning from a lower-body injury. ... Canucks forward Elias Pettersson had an assist to extend his point streak to four games (three goals, three assists). ... Canucks forward Filip Chytil did not play after sustaining an upper-body injury with 4:56 remaining in the third period against the Blackhawks on Saturday. He is day to day.