A couple of British Columbia boys were instrumental in the New York Rangers defeating the Vancouver Canucks on Friday night. Glenn Gawdin from Richmond, B.C., scored his first two career NHL goals, while Victoria, B.C., made 27 saves in the 5-1 victory.

Game Stories: Chytil and Willander Return, Crotty’s Canuck Debut, Hometown Remix Premiere, Garand’s Party

The Canucks got a boost for their lineup, with Filip Chytil and Tom Willander returning. They missed five and four straight games, respectively. Leevi Meriläinen started his seventh game in the last eight. Cameron Crotty, whom the Canucks claimed on waivers on Tuesday, made his debut with the team tonight. He slotted in on the third defensive pairing alongside Jamie Oleksiak.

There was a large crowd for Victoria, B.C., native Dylan Garand, who played his first NHL game in his home province tonight for New York. Around 50 family and friends attended the game, proud of the young goalie, who has had to hold the fort with injuries to both Igor Shesterkin and Joonas Korpisalo early in the season.

The Canucks showcased their Hometown Remix jerseys for the first time tonight. Frankly, I have mixed feelings about them, because while the colors are pretty slick, the jersey numbers were incredibly tough to make out. Not easy to track plays when you can barely tell who is on the ice.

Garand has been a great story for New York, but interestingly enough, the Canucks had a chance to claim him on waivers in the preseason. Instead, the Canucks opted to claim Leevi Meriläinen off waivers, who also has been a positive story for the team. You have to wonder, though, what state of panic New York would have been in if the Canucks had claimed Garand.

A Sharp First Period For the Canucks

It was a good start for the Canucks, as they played with speed and intent early. The Canucks easily surpassed their shot total of six through two periods against the Philadelphia Flyers in a matter of minutes against New York. Zeev Buium was flying out there, which was what a lot of Canucks fans expected from the 20-year-old this season.

Buium was an important part of the first Canucks goal, as he shot the puck toward the net, and Elias Pettersson tipped it in. That was the first even-strength goal for Pettersson in 57 games. His last game with an even-strength goal was on January 13, 2026, and it was scored against… guess who… Leevi Meriläinen. Funny how these things work.

With an assist on that goal, Brock Boeser recorded his 500th career NHL point. A great achievement only achieved by seven other Canuck players. Every Canuck player who has achieved this milestone either has their jersey number retired or is in the Canucks Ring of Honor. Congratulations to Boeser on a fantastic tenure with the Canucks so far.

Gabriel Perreault would tie the game late in the period, as he ripped one home short-side on Meriläinen with 1:13 left. A tough break for the Canucks, who had played a great period up until that point.

It All Unravelled in the Second Period

Talk about an awful period for the Canucks. The utter breakdown began as the Canucks allowed yet another power play goal. Oliver Bjorkstrand ended up with way too much time in the slot, and wired it home to give New York the lead.

Glenn Gawdin would score his first NHL goal in his hometown shortly after. The Richmond, B.C. native took advantage of a turnover from Meriläinen to make it 3-1. It may look bad for Meriläinen here, but if you look closely at how this play transpired, New York was changing, and the Canucks forwards were up the ice looking for a breakaway. Unfortunately, his pass hit Filip Chytil in the skate, and Gawdin was able to put it home.

New York’s fourth goal was a breathtaking one, as the Perreault-Zibanejad-Lafreniere line showed off their chemistry. They capitalized on a Canuck turnover and extended the lead to 4-1, with Lafreniere putting it home.

The hometown boy would get his second goal of the game on a deflection. That marked three goals in 3:10, as the floodgates opened up and the Canucks got rattled. 5-1 New York after 40 minutes.

No Luck in the Third Period

There was no scoring in the third period, but it was clear that the Canucks were outmatched. On top of that, they also did not get the bounces as they hit iron twice. With the loss tonight, more history was made, as the Canucks have lost eight in a row at home, something the team has never done before. Now, they have hit another negative milestone in this unprecedented start.

Stats & Game Flow

The first graph from NaturalStatTrick.com is the shot attempt advantage. The second is the expected goals advantage. The Canucks actually had a lot of shot attempts and had a significant advantage in that department. However, New York had a lot more quality looks. The expected goals were 4.66-2.87 in favor of New York, according to MoneyPuck.

Looking Ahead to the Next Game

The Canucks will face off against the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday at 7:00 p.m. Pacific Time (PCT). You can catch that game on Sportsnet.