Marco Rossi scored with 10 seconds left in overtime as the last-place Vancouver Canucks played the role of spoiler Sunday with a 4-3 victory over the host Anaheim Ducks, who needed a win to snap a seven-year playoff drought.
Rossi rifled a slapshot past Ducks goalie Lukas Dostal after taking a pass from Jake DeBrusk for the Canucks’ second power-play goal of the contest.
The Ducks’ (42-32-6, 90 points) next chance to punch their ticket to the postseason with a win will be Tuesday when they visit the Minnesota Wild.
Brock Boeser, Curtis Douglas and DeBrusk also scored and Rossi added an assist for the Canucks, who won their second straight game. Goaltender Nikita Tolopilo made 24 saves for Vancouver, which improved to 24-48-8, with 56 points.
Cutter Gauthier scored two goals, Leo Carlsson scored one and Chris Kreider added two assists for the Ducks, who were trying to punch their ticket to the postseason for the first time since 2018. Goaltender Dostal made 22 saves for Anaheim.
Gauthier, the Ducks’ leading scorer, opened the scoring with a power-play goal 3:41 into the first period. Alex Killorn took the initial shot and Kreider got the rebound and backhanded it over to Gauthier, who had an open net for his 39th goal of the season.
Canucks enforcer Douglas scored his first NHL goal in his 41st career game at 10:49 to tie it 1-1. Douglas used his long reach to outbattle defenseman Tyson Hinds in the crease and poke a loose puck over the goal line.
With the Canucks on the power play, DeBrusk got the tip of the blade of his stick on a Rossi shot and it deflected past the blocker of Dostal at 14:37 of the first to make it 2-1 Vancouver.
Boeser scored a short-handed goal at 4:28 of the third period to make it 3-1 for Vancouver. Boeser stole the puck from forward Carlsson at the Canucks’ blue line then raced in alone and beat Dostal with a forehand deke.
Just 37 seconds after Boeser’s goal, Gauthier scored his second of the game and 40th of the season, beating Tolopilo with a slap shot to the short side on a power play to cut the Canucks’ lead to 3-2.
Carlson redeemed himself, after the miscue on the Canucks’ third goal, by scoring on a backhand at 6:56 of the third to tie it 3-3 and set the stage for overtime.
