Lankinen's 3rd shutout of season lifts Canucks over Panthers

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Carson Soucy and Danton Heinen scored in the first period, Kevin Lankinen stopped 27 shots for his third shutout of the season, and the Vancouver Canucks beat the Florida Panthers 4-0 on Thursday night.

Jake DeBrusk and Brock Boeser also scored and Max Sasson, Teddy Blueger, Quinn Hughes and J.T. Miller each had two assists for the Canucks. Lankinen's shutout was the sixth of his NHL career.

Sergei Bobrovsky made 15 saves for the Panthers, who were 6-0-1 in their last seven games and lost in regulation for the first time since Nov. 25. Florida was shut out for the first time this season.

Miller returned to Vancouver’s lineup after missing nearly four weeks for personal reasons.

Canucks: Defenseman Derek Forbort also returned to a Vancouver lineup that has been riddled with injuries and absences. All-star goalie Thatcher Demko made his first start of the season on Tuesday, leaving defenseman Filip Hronek (lower body) as the lone Canucks player on the injured-reserve list.

Panthers: It’s not often the offense sputters. Florida came into the game ranked fifth in the league in goals with an average of 3.66 per game. The Panthers also entered with the fifth-best power play (27.4%) but went scoreless on two man-advantages.

Lankinen was tested several times, including a Panthers power play midway through the second period. He snatched Sam Bennett’s shot out of the air at the 10:53 mark and held on tight to preserve the clean sheet.

The Panthers outshot the Canucks 27-19 but struggled at times to hold on to the puck, committing 19 giveaways across the game.

Panthers visit Calgary on Saturday night, and Canucks host Boston.

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