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Edler pushes Canucks over Predators

Dec 10, 2008 - 5:30 AM NASHVILLE, Tennessee (Ticker) -- The Vancouver Canucks struggled mightily on the power play in the second period. Alex Edler made sure their troubles did not carry over into the third.

Edler snapped a tie 24 seconds into the third period and the Canucks went on to post a 3-1 victory over the Nashville Predators on Tuesday.

Pavol Demitra and Alex Burrows also scored and Curtis Sanford made 20 saves for the Canucks, who improved to 2-3-1 on their seven-game road trip.

"The power play could have been better, but it's kind of like a goalie making a big save - they delivered when they needed to deliver," Vancouver defenseman Willie Mitchell said. "We're able to head out of here with a win and a chance to go .500 on a road trip that didn't start out very well."

Radek Bonk tallied and Dan Ellis turned aside 25 shots for Nashville, which had won four of six.

Beginning with a seven-minute man advantage created when Predators captain Jason Arnott received an instigating minor and fighting major at 5:19, the Canucks went 0-for-5 on the power play in the middle period after also failing to convert their lone opportunity in the opening session. During the seven-minute chance, Vancouver registered just three shots on goal.

"It felt like we were shorthanded the whole second period, and quite a bit in the first," Ellis said. "When you're killing penalties, you're just draining the bodies of those killers constantly and you can't get any offensive momentum going your way. We got some momentum in the fact that we killed those penalties, but even toward the end of the period, after the seven-minute kill, we went and took another penalty and kind of shot ourselves for the start of the third."

"We should have scored on the seven-minute power play," Edler said. "Sometimes when you have that much time, you want to wait for the perfect chance, but you really just have to play like you do on a regular power play. I'm glad we got one later."

After Nashville's Antti Pihlstrom was called for tripping at the end of the second, the Canucks cashed in quickly after intermission.

"We had some great chances on the power play in the second," Vancouver coach Alain Vigneault said. "We had a couple of open nets that we missed. Sometimes that is going to happen. (But) when the game was on the line at the beginning of the third period, the pressure was on to score, and our guys got it done."

After Ellis stopped defenseman Kevin Bieksa's slap shot, Daniel Sedin corralled the rebound while on the doorstep. With Ellis expecting him to shoot, Sedin made a backhand pass to Edler, who fired the puck into the vacant right side of the net from the right faceoff circle for his second goal of the season and a 2-1 lead.

"Daniel made an unbelievable pass," Edler said. "He had two guys on him and passed it behind his back. I had an empty net, so that's not a very hard shot for me."

Burrows sealed the win with an empty-netter with 44 seconds remaining.

A physical play by Burrows helped set up Vancouver's golden opportunity early in the second.

The 27-year-old left his feet to deliver a high hit on J.P. Dumont but was not penalized. Arnott took matters into his own hands, pouncing on Burrows and throwing several punches before other players and the officials intervened.

"That's what we have to cut down on in this league," Arnott said of Burrows' hit. "Guys are getting hurt because of that, and then there's no calls for it. It's very frustrating because there's two (referees) out there and the game gets out of hand like that and we end up on the short end of the stick.

"All you keep hearing about is, 'Watch the head shots, watch the head shots.' Well there were three of them out there tonight and no calls, nothing. It's unbelievable."

Nashville coach Barry Trotz defended Arnott's actions.

"Those types of hits, leaving your feet, head-hunting, have to be out of the game," Trotz said. "Arnott thought that one of his teammates was hit in a dirty fashion, and we are going to stick up for each other. That was a good response by Arnott.

"I couldn't believe that we ended up with a seven-minute penalty, but I don't have any issues with Arnott's response at all."

Burrows did not believe his check was illegal.

"I thought it was (clean)," he said. "The puck was in the air. I don't want to injure the guy - I know the guy. We work out together in the summer. That's the last thing I want to do. I don't want to hurt a guy like that. I was just trying to finish my check."

Nashville actually recorded a shot while shorthanded before Vancouver posted its first during the seven-minute power play. Joel Ward and defenseman Greg Zanon also blocked two shot attempts apiece for the Predators during the Canucks' lengthy man advantage.

Demitra opened the scoring at 8:35 of the first period.

From the right circle, Kyle Wellwood slid a cross-slot pass to Demitra, who beat Ellis for his eighth goal of the season and a 1-0 edge.

Nashville pulled even during a 5-on-3 advantage less than three minutes later. Bonk received a feed from the left circle by Martin Erat and fired the puck past Sanford from alone on the doorstep with 8:57 remaining in the period for his second tally, ending a 22-game drought.