Eddie Lack showed no signs of rust in his first start since Nov. 20, leading the Vancouver Canucks to a 3-0 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins at Consol Energy Center. Lack stopped 21 shots for his first shutout in eight starts. The Canucks defense took a lot of pressure off Lack by smothering the Penguins forwards and holding Pittsburgh to eight shots or fewer in each period. Penguins backup goalie Thomas Greiss, who made his first home start of the season, allowed three goals on 31 shots and dropped to 3-2-1. Vancouver (18-7-1), which is 11-4-0 on the road, dominated the second period, rarely allowing the puck to exit the Pittsburgh zone. The Canucks had two second-period goals that built on a 1-0 lead. Brad Richardson forced Penguins defenseman Simon Despres to turn over the over behind the Pittsburgh net. Richardson gained possession and shuffled a pass out front to Shawn Matthias, who took a wrist shot past Greiss to give the Canucks a 2-0 lead with 8:26 remaining in the period. Penguins forward Patric Hornqvist exited the game prior to the goal after being hit by Ryan Stanton near the Vancouver blue line. Hornqvist did not return with an apparent upper-body injury and was replaced by Steve Downie on Pittsburgh’s top line alongside center Sidney Crosby and left wing Nick Spaling. Johnston did not have an update on Hornqvist afterward. The Penguins (17-6-2) didn’t record a second-period shot until Paul Martin’s wrist shot with 8:01 remaining, and they surrendered a shorthanded goal to extend the Canucks lead to 3-0. Canucks forward Jannik Hansen pressured Greiss behind the net when he attempted to play the puck. Greiss tried to pass the puck along the boards, but Hansen knocked the goalie stick out of his hands. The puck settled after bouncing off the boards, and Greiss could not keep Hansen from centering a pass to Richardson, who poked the puck into the empty net with 6:06 left in the period. Richardson finished with two goals and an assist. Matthias stripped Penguins defenseman Olli Maatta of the puck behind the net before backhanding a pass to Richardson in front of the crease. Richardson had little space to shoot, but threaded a snap shot between the left post and Greiss' blocker 8:33 into the first period. Crosby had an opportunity to tie the game with Vancouver defenseman Alexander Edler in the penalty box. Hornqvist slapped a shot that ricocheted off Lack and came to Crosby at the right of the net. The net was vacant, but Crosby's shot went through the crease and hit the left post.
Pens Quotes
Mike Johnston: "The game was basically won in the second period. ... In the second period, they had a very good period. They took over the game at that time."Thomas Greiss: "You just have to put it away. Stuff like that happens. It’s a bad turnover, but you still have to move on and keep playing … We weren’t real sharp this game, but we just have to rebound and win the next one."
Sidney Crosby: "I had an open net tonight, you hit that usually. I’d love to get more chances, so I’m not too worried about not scoring. Eventually, the puck goes in, but I need to get more chances, for sure. … There’s no excuse. I’m not going to sit here and make up excuses or reasons."
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