VANCOUVER — Alex Burrows's two goals Monday night won't be making any highlight reels, but they did help send the Canucks into the holiday break on a high note.
He scored two deflected goals by crashing the net while Ryan Miller made 38 saves, as Vancouver hammered the Arizona Coyotes 7-1 at Rogers Arena.
Using his imposing presence around the crease, Burrows scored his first off starter Mike Smith in the first period and then his second off backup Devan Dubnyk. It was his first goals in 10 games and both were banked off an Arizona defenceman.
"I got a few whacks at a few pucks around the net and that's how I score my goals," said Burrows. "Tonight they were two really greasy, greasy goals."
Daniel Sedin, Kevin Bieksa, Brad Richardson, Chris Higgins and Shawn Matthias all scored for Vancouver, which won its second straight heading into the break at 20-11-2. Miller improved his record to 18-7 with the win.
After facing his highest shot total of the season, Miller says he feels good about his game going into the break.
"If you told me you are going to reach Christmas and the team is going to have 20 wins, I would have been really happy," said Miller. "I still have a long way to go building my game to a consistent level, where I want to be, but I'm happy with the progress I am making."
Defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson scored the lone goal for the reeling Coyotes (11-18-4), who have just one win in their last eight games.
Smith, who came into the game with one win in his last 12 starts, struggled mightily and was hooked early in the second after giving up four goals on 11 shots. Dubnyk came in relief and made 26 saves for Arizona.
"Everybody feels for what Smitty went through tonight," said Coyotes captain Shane Doan. "We know what he's done for us and everything he's done for this group. We were going to try to help him out but obviously we didn't."
Smith had a tough opening period and the Canucks capitalized.
First Burrows worked the puck from the corner boards and banked it off Coyotes defenceman Michael Stone to open the scoring, then at 17:17 Henrik Sedin found Bieksa alone and streaking down left side, as the defenceman put an easy one past Smith to make it 2-0.
Two minutes later Smith gave up a huge rebound off Radim Vrbata's long shot from the wing and Daniel Sedin swooped in front to bat the puck in for his eighth of the season.
Smith's night didn't last much longer.
Less than two minutes into the second, on Vancouver's first shot of the period, Richardson carried the puck down the ice and rifled it past Smith on the glove side to make it 4-0.
"The Richardson goal was a huge goal for us," said Canucks coach Willie Desjardins. "They looked like they were turning it a bit (early in the second). That was a timely goal by Richardson."
Richardson agrees he felt the team took their foot off the gas early in the second.
"We didn't start great in that period," he said. "It was probably good timing for the goal. We have a tendency sometimes ... we get up to set back. It's something we are trying to break for sure."
Richardson's goal brought in Dubnyk, who was immediately put to work with Vancouver converting on a power play at 12:19 when Burrows scored another goal by banking the puck off an Arizona defenceman standing in front of the net.
Ekman-Larsson wristed it past Miller at 15:03 to finally put the Coyotes on the board.
It was 6-1 after Higgins took a Linden Vey pass from behind the net at 7:09, and Matthias put the game way out of reach with another power-play goal just over two minutes later.
Vancouver finished the night 3 for 6 on the power play.
Coyotes coach Dave Tippett wasn't impressed with his team's parade to the penalty box.
"That's trying too hard. Trying to make something out of a bad situation," said Tippett.
