Elias Lindholm may not have played his best hockey after he was traded to the Vancouver Canucks on Jan. 31, but he showed everyone why the team made a big move for the pending free agent on Sunday.
The former Calgary Flames centre scored the Canucks’ first goal and then caused a turnover that led to Dakota Joshua’s go-ahead goal in a come-from-behind 4-2 win over the Nashville Predators in Game 1 of their Western Conference quarterfinal.
“These are the games why you acquire Lindholm,” Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said. “He had a really good 200-foot game, really good.”
Lindholm got the first Vancouver home playoff crowd in nine years into a frenzy 47 seconds into the second period when he fired a shot from the top of the circle past Predators goalie Juuse Saros to tie it at 1-1.
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Then, in the third period, mere seconds after the Canucks had tied it at 2-2, Lindholm raced in after the faceoff and checked Nahsville’s Jeremy Lauzon into the end boards as he was trying to retrieve the puck. That allowed Conor Garland to pick it up, and he fed it to Dakota Joshua for the winner — giving the Canucks two goals in 12 seconds.
Lindholm had just six goals and six assists in 26 games with the Canucks after the trade, with his role changing as Vancouver tried to find the most effective way to use him.
The Canucks professed their confidence in Lindholm, 29, as the season came to an end, and he delivered in a big way while leading the third line with Joshua and Conor Garland.
“He’s a great player so none of us really doubted the offence would come from him,” said Joshua, who finished with two goals and an assist.
“It was a great goal to get us going. And then he showed some of his hockey IQ getting in on the forecheck and creating that goal. He just makes you feel a lot more confident in your own game knowing that if you make a mistake, he’s right there to back you up.”
