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Instant Reaction: Canucks complete 3rd period comeback for deserving 4-3 SO win over Predators
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Photo credit: © Simon Fearn-Imagn Images
Tyson Cole
Mar 13, 2026, 00:47 EDTUpdated: Mar 13, 2026, 00:56 EDT
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Welcome back to Instant Reaction, the series here at CanucksArmy where we give you our instant reaction to tonight’s Vancouver Canucks game and ask our readers to do the same in the comments section below!

Starting lineup

Not too many changes to how the Canucks lined up on Monday against the Ottawa Senators. Evander Kane takes Nils Höglander’s spot in the lineup. Drew O’Connor and Jake DeBrusk swap places. Nikita Tolopilo gets the start in net.

First period

The game nearly kicked off with a bang, as the elevated Drew O’Connor won the race for the puck and was in on the breakaway. His five-hole attempt was shut down by Juuse Saros.
The Canucks seemed to build off this, as they put together back-to-back-to-back-to-back shifts in the offensive zone with threatening chances throughout the following five minutes. What was nice was seeing each line contribute to this sustained pressure. First, it was the Teddy Blueger line, followed by the Marco Rossi line, then Aatu Räty’s line, and finally Elias Pettersson’s line ended with an O’Connor and Evander Kane two-on-one, which just missed connecting on.
While all that pressure only resulted in one shot on goal to that point, the Canucks were still dominating territorially. It felt like it was only a matter of time before they connected. That proved true when Filip Hronek sent a shot-pass to Marco Rossi in the slot, who deflected the puck on net, only for Brock Boeser to get a second stick on it at the net front and beat Saros to open the scoring.
1-0 Canucks.
Not sure what the Canucks had for pre-game meal, but they were jazzed up in this first period like we haven’t seen before in a long time. They fed off this goal, and continued to put the pressure on the Predators.
Tom Willander wheeled around the back of the net and centred the puck to Max Sasson at the net front for a chance. Under pressure, Zeev Buium danced around traffic at the blueline to cut to the high slot and get a shot attempt off. Teddy Blueger forced a turnover at the Canucks blueline to spring Linus Karlsson on a breakaway – but he didn’t get all of the shot and lost his balance.
But the best chance was seeing 6’9″ Curtis Douglas carry the puck in on a two-on-one with Rossi.
Whether he meant to do the fake out on the first pass or he mishandled the puck, it was a nice recovery to still get the pass across and a heads-up play from Rossi to centre it back to Boeser in the slot for a shot on net.
At this point, the shots were 12-2 in the Canucks’ favour. They were far and away the better team in the period. But as is Canucks hockey in 2025-26, the one defensive mistake they make ends up in the back of their net.
Justin Barron picks up the puck and wheels down the right-hand boards. DeBrusk backs off the coverage, and Buium switches from his net front assignment to the puck carrier. Victor Mancini stays at the back post instead of covering Tyson Jost at the net front and he’s able to wack the puck past Tolopilo.
But I mean, with a name like Tyson, it’s kind of expected he scores, no?
1-1 tie.
Teams would walk into the intermission all tied up at one.

Second period

The start of the second wasn’t as kind to the Canucks.
Outside of Pettersson setting up Kane after a strong forechecking effort:
The Predators made their expected pushback. After an offensive zone faceoff, Ryan Ufko fires a point shot over the net. Despite there being four players in the area, none of them were able to corral the puck, and it bounces right to Jost in the low slot, who chips it up and over Tolopilo to give the Predators their first lead of the game.
Again, with a name like Tyson, this is just another day at the office.
2-1 Predators.
Then the rough stuff picked up. Jonathan Marchessault laid a hit on Elias Pettersson (D), who was slow to get up. Believing he was trying to sell a call, Marchessault continued to chirp at Pettersson. After Hronek fired a stretch pass to Liam Öhgren, Pettersson chirped back as he went to the bench.
Then, Ozzy Weisblatt crunched Marco Rossi along the boards. Rossi got up and was then hit to the ice again by Jost. Rossi got up and retaliated, taking Jost to the ice. Both players were assessed a roughing penalty, but Rossi an extra two minutes for attempting to supflex Jost to the ice.
The Predators’ power play was short-lived, and play continued at four-on-four, where we saw Buium get a chance in all alone, but couldn’t get the shot off.
But after the entertaining four-on-four, the Predators extended their lead. A loose puck in the corner lands on the stick of Matthew Wood, who sends it to the dangerous area of the net front where good things tend to happen. And, well, the Nanaimo, BC native’s pass attempt deflects off Öhgren’s stick and floats into the top left corner.
3-1 Predators.
After outplaying the Predators through the first 20 minutes, the Canucks found themselves trailing after 40.

Third period

The first half of the third period went pretty much exactly how the Predators would have wanted: low-event. Through the first 13 minutes, both teams had just one shot on goal apiece. And outside of a kick pass from Rossi to Öhgren in the neutral zone and a Hronek slap shot off the backboards that nearly ricocheted off the back of Saros, there wasn’t much excitement from Vancouver as they tried to claw their way back into this game.
But then, there was.
This time, it was a fortunate bounce that went in the Canucks favour.
After Jost nearly secured the hat-trick on a two-on-one, the Canucks found themselves back in the offensive zone. Fedor Svechkov batted a puck out of the air, which gets caught in Rossi’s skates and is loose in a pile of players in front of the Predators’ net. Öhgren finds the puck in traffic and fires it on net, and Rossi buries the rebound.
3-2 Predators.
And then, the Canucks have done something they’ve struggled to do all season: find the late equalizer.
With the goalie pulled, the Canucks had over a minute of sustained offensive zone pressure, getting their fair share of looks on Saros. After a Boeser point shot, Rossi fires the puck back to Boeser at the point, who loads up a wrist shot, but passes it off to Hronek. With an open lane, Hronek takes the space in front of him, picks his spot, and ties the game.
In what’s been such a depressing, lost season for the Canucks, seeing them all huddle and celebrate like that is so nice to see.
3-3 tie.
And off to overtime we go.

Overtime

The Predators ragged the puck for most of the extra frame, to which the fans let them hear it with their boo’s. But even when the Canucks had the puck and ragged it, fans were fed up and shared their frustrations. Which felt fairly warranted as it took nearly three-and-a-half minutes before the first chance came for either side.
Tolopilo stopped a Ryan O’Reilly shot off a two-on-one. Only to be answered by Saros on a Pettersson deke to the net front.
And off to the shootout we go.

Shootout

Öhgren: stopped.
O’Reilly: missed.
DeBrusk: scores.
Forsberg: stopped.
Pettersson: stopped.
Stamkos: stopped.
4-3 Canucks WIN.
Takeaways from tonight’s game:
– This was one of the better efforts from the Canucks we’ve seen in a while. They outplayed the Predators for most of the game and pulled off a rare third-period comeback. While most are rooting for team tank, it’s still nice to see the players happy after a win.
– Thought it was a really rough game for DPetey. He stepped up on a check twice in the first period, which left him out of position, leading to the Predators heading on the attack with numbers. Then he lost two routine defensive zone retrievals for easy pick-ups for the Predators, which had the Canucks back to playing defence when they should have been heading up ice. He’s seen better nights.
– Linus Karlsson continues to impress me. It may not always translate to the scoresheet, but his work along the boards, winning puck battles with defenders on his back. He’s safely carved himself a role as a strong bottom-six forechecker for years to come.
Loses the puck on two defensive zone retrievals along the wall, gets walked by Matthew Wood. Stepped up twice in the first period. Defensive zone turnover in the circle
What’s your instant reaction to tonight’s game? Let us know in the comments section below!
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