The Vancouver Canucks celebrated two NHL game milestones tonight in their 7–4 loss to the Utah Mammoth. Prior to puck-drop, they honoured Evander Kane for his 1000th NHL game played on March 30 against the Vegas Golden Knights. On the ice, Linus Karlsson scored twice in his 100th NHL game, while Jake DeBrusk and Marco Rossi also found the back of the net. Nikita Tolopilo started in net, stopping 17 of 23 shots faced.

The biggest piece of news occurred prior to puck drop. While Tolopilo was named the starting goaltender ahead of tonight’s game and ultimately ended up playing, Jiří Patera was called up only a few minutes prior to Vancouver’s warm-up. When both teams took to the ice for warm-ups, only Tolopilo came out. Canucks Head Coach Adam Foote later clarified why Kevin Lankinen was absent so close to puck-drop.

“He woke up and didn’t feel right, didn’t feel good. So we had to make that call this morning,” he said post-game, also clarifying that there is no current timeline on Lankinen’s absence.

The 100-game man made the biggest impression of his teammates in tonight’s matchup. Karlsson found the back of the net early in the first, collecting the puck along the boards and bringing it into the slot to score his 14th of the season. In the second period, it was Karlsson again who scored to even the score up at two, deflecting a shot from Victor Mancini past Mammoth goaltender Karel Vejmelka.

“It’s something you dream of, to play in the NHL, and hopefully I have a couple more in me,” Karlsson said of his 100th game tonight. “You want to be a full-time NHLer and a hundred is a good start.”

Vancouver’s power play has been hot as of late, continuing their streak of success by scoring twice tonight in what is now their fifth consecutive game. With the two tallies tonight, the Canucks are now up to 11 goals in their past 10 games. Adding to that is the fact that DeBrusk currently has five of these goals down this particular stretch.

“I think the main thing is Hronek getting more comfortable up there. Two is where Boeser and DeBrusk are playing off each other in the right spot, whether one’s low, depending where the puck is, they’re a good tandem. They’re working well together with tips and rebounds. And I think Marco is pretty patient on that half wall. He doesn’t just throw pucks away, usually. He’s pretty consistent at making the right play,” Foote said about the power play’s recent string of success.

Having said that, their first opportunity lacked the same inspiration that it has shown recently. The Canucks gave up more high-end chances than produced their own during this man-advantage, allowing two breakaway sequences and ultimately giving Utah the space to score their fourth goal of the game.

“We were struggling early in this game. They were pressuring us up high. We weren’t getting down low quick enough. Then I thought our breakouts gave them a little bit of momentum. In the second period, we had two bad breakouts and gave them momentum. And then they got one right after that, 5-on-5. But then we got a couple quick ones.”

While tonight’s score ultimately didn’t paint the best picture, Vancouver still managed to get some goals on a night that celebrated two players’ career milestones.

Apr 4, 2026; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks center Linus Karlsson (94) skates with puck against Utah Mammoth center Nick Schmaltz (8) during the second period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Simon Fearn-Imagn Images

Stats and Facts:

Brock Boeser tallies his 477th point, tying Pavel Bure for eighth all-time in Canucks history
Canucks extend their current power play goal streak to five consecutive games
Vancouver remains winless against the Mammoth

Scoring Summary:

1st Period:

2:28 - VAN: Linus Karlsson (14) from Pierre-Olivier Joseph and Liam Öhgren

13:34 - UTA: Kailer Yamamoto (11) from Logan Cooley

18:30 - UTA: Clayton Keller (23) from Lawson Crouse and Nick DeSimone

2nd Period:

2:05 - VAN: Linus Karlsson (15) from Victor Mancini and Teddy Blueger

7:04 - UTA: Clayton Keller (24) from Dylan Guenther and Mikhail Sergachev (PPG)

11:55 - UTA: Dylan Guenther (38) from John Marino and Logan Cooley

3rd Period:

0:20 - VAN: Jake DeBrusk (19) from Filip Hronek (PPG)

1:32 - UTA: Lawson Crouse (21) from Clayton Keller

4:40 - VAN: Marco Rossi (10) from Filip Hronek and Brock Boeser (PPG)

11:45 - UTA: Liam O’Brien (3) from Brandon Tanev and Nate Schmidt

19:07 - UTA: Clayton Keller (25) from Nick Schmaltz and Ian Cole (ENG)

Up Next:

The Canucks will play in their second-last game at home when they take on the Golden Knights on Tuesday. Vancouver has dropped both of their first two games against Vegas this season, losing 5–2 on February 4 and 4–2 on March 30. Tuesday will be the first and only time Vegas comes to Vancouver, with puck drop slated for 7:00 pm PT.

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