Friday, 14 November 2014

{coyotes} Dubnyk, Coyotes blank Canucks; Hanzal gets hat trick

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VANCOUVER -- Arizona Coyotes forward Martin Hanzal continued to torment the Vancouver Canucks on Friday.

Hanzal completed his hat trick with two goals nine seconds apart late in the second period to lead Arizona to a 5-0 win at Rogers Arena.

Shane Doan scored with 2.7 seconds left in the second period, Keith Yandle scored on a power play with 2:23 left in the third, and backup goalie Devan Dubnyk made 35 saves to help the Coyotes snap a three-game losing streak.

Vancouver outshot the Coyotes 35-22, but Ryan Miller was beaten on three straight shots to end the second period. Miller finished with 17 saves in his third loss of the season.

The Canucks came into the game with a chance to take the top spot in the NHL standings and had top-line forward Radim Vrbata back after he had missed two games to injury. They were facing an Arizona team that lost its third straight game Thursday against the Calgary Flames and was in last place in the Western Conference.

And it looked early like it might be a lopsided game.

Arizona was outshot 12-3 in the opening period, but led 1-0 after Hanzal beat Miller with 4:04 left in the period. Yandle's pass off the rush from the right point hit Hanzal in stride at the left faceoff circle, and Hanzal beat Miller short side with a quick shot.

Arizona got a scare when Yandle left late in the first period after a feet-first crash into the boards. But Yandle returned early in the second period, and the Coyotes took over after a controversial goal with 4:35 left.

Hanzal reached out to redirect Tobias Rieder's high, rising shot past a stunned Miller, who immediately signaled for a high stick. The referees on the ice called it a goal, and a lengthy video review was inconclusive, according to the NHL Situation Room:

If there was any doubt about that goal, Hanzal left none when he completed his second career hat trick nine seconds later.

After winning the faceoff, Hanzal was sent in on a 2-on-1 by Martin Erat, who had two assists. Hanzal held onto the puck as he cut down the right wing and fired a shot under Miller's blocker on the far side.

Dubnyk, who was making his first start in six games and second in 12, came in with a 2-0-1 record but a .879 save percentage after giving up five goals in his prior start, a 6-5 win against the Washington Capitals on Nov. 2.

Hanzal's two second-period goals were five seconds short of the franchise and NHL record for fastest goals, set by Deron Quint, who scored two goals four seconds apart against the Edmonton Oilers on Dec. 15, 1995.

It was Hanzal's first hat trick since Dec. 4, 2008.

Doan scored with a one-timer from the slot as the second period wound down, and Arizona did a good job preserving Dubnyk's first shutout since Dec. 27, 2013, in the third.

Dubnyk was busy but didn't see a lot of tough chances until midway through the game. He did well to get a right shoulder on a Nick Bonino redirection in the second period, and slid across right to left to get in front of Chris Higgins' shot off a cross-ice pass into the slot from down low with six minutes left in the second.

With the victory, Arizona coach Dave Tippett has 200 wins with the Coyotes, the most in franchise history.

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