VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — The Vancouver Canucks used their last game against the Florida Panthers as motivation for Sunday’s rematch.
“We’ve got some bad blood with them,” Vancouver defenseman Ben Hutton said. “Obviously, everyone knows that.”
When the teams last met in October, Vancouver’s star rookie Elias Pettersson was the victim of a controversial hit by Panthers defenseman Mike Matheson. No penalty was called and Pettersson ended up missing two weeks with a concussion.
The Canucks tried to outwork Florida, and Loui Eriksson had a goal and two assists as Vancouver defeated the Panthers 5-1.