Key Takeaways
- Rangers 5, Canucks 1 at Rogers Arena.
- Gawdin scores his first two NHL goals.
- Boeser reaches 500 career points in the loss.
Two Goals. Three Minutes. One Hometown Night to Remember.
Imagine waiting most of a decade for your first NHL goal — then scoring twice in three minutes, in your hometown, against the team you grew up watching.
That was the night Glenn Gawdin had in Vancouver.
The 29-year-old from Richmond, B.C. — playing just his 15th career NHL game and his second for the New York Rangers after a Wednesday call-up from Hartford — scored twice in the second period of a 5–1 Rangers win over the Vancouver Canucks on Friday night.
His first NHL goal came at 13:00, when a clearing attempt bounced to him. The unassisted goal was special enough on its own — but three minutes later, at 16:10, Gawdin scored again. This time, a Vladislav Gavrikov point shot deflected in off his skate.
Two goals. Just over three minutes apart. And both in front of a hometown crowd.
He is now the third-oldest Ranger ever to score his first NHL goal.
"There's a lot that goes through your mind over the years and credit to the circle around me, credit to my wife, they push me when I need it," Gawdin said. "It was a special night." On his second goal, he added: "You just got to get lucky sometimes."
Another B.C. Hometown Story — This Time in Goal
Victoria's Dylan Garand made 27 saves for the win in front of an estimated 50 family members and friends. Vancouver's Leevi Meriläinen stopped 26 of 31.
The Rangers' second-period explosion did most of the damage. Elias Pettersson had opened the scoring for Vancouver in the first period — Gabe Perreault, Oliver Bjorkstrand (power play) and Alexis Lafrenière also scored for New York, which got four of its five goals in the second.
For the Canucks, the lone bright spot was a milestone: Brock Boeser's assist on the Pettersson goal was his 500th career NHL point, making him the eighth player in franchise history to reach it, in his 650th game. Vancouver (3–17–1) has now lost seven straight.
"We keep talking about the same things, that we've got to do for 60 minutes," Pettersson said.
The Twikup Take
Two B.C. kids. Two hometown connections. One unforgettable night in Vancouver — but in completely different colours.
For Gawdin, a decade of waiting turned into two NHL goals in one period. For the Canucks, another night of disappointment — and a season that keeps slipping further away.
Sometimes the biggest career moment happens in someone else's building.
Image: Dylan Garand of the Hartford Wolf Pack, by TheAHL, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.