THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Andrew Ebbett has been very busy since he got back on the ice after missing 17 games because of a broken foot.
And he has been productive, too.
Ebbett redirected Kevin Bieksa’s shot into the net at 3:23 of overtime to give the Vancouver Canucks a 3-2 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday night.
One game after recording his first NHL multi-goal effort, Ebbett scored his first game-winner.
"I wasn’t sure I would get a shift in overtime, but I did and I wanted to make it count," Ebbett said. "I knew I was one-on-one so I tried to get my body positioned, and showed Kevin my stick. He shot it right off my stick."
Daniel Sedin and Ryan Kesler also scored for the Canucks, who won their second straight and for the fifth time in six games. Roberto Luongo made 33 saves and improved to 9-1-1 in his last 11 games.
"It’s always a great game against these guys," Luongo said. "For whatever reason we seem to always have a crazy ending."
Logan Couture and Joe Thornton scored for the Sharks, who lost their second straight after a four-game winning streak. Antti Niemi stopped 28 shots.
"We killed some big penalties and got some momentum off that," Thornton said. "We had some good chances, but for whatever reason it’s falling on their side. We played a game where it could have gone both ways."
The Sharks were unable to take advantage of two power plays in the final five minutes of regulation.
"We had two power plays in the third period of a tie game," Couture said. "We needed to win."
The Canucks killed off three penalties in the third period overall.
"In this rink, the momentum can change quickly," Ebbett said. "The last 10 minutes all the credit goes to Luongo and the penalty kill."
Daniel Sedin gave the Canucks a 1-0 lead midway through the first period, picking up a pass from twin brother Henrik behind the net and forcing a wraparound into the net.
Kesler made it 2-0 early in the second with a power-play goal, scoring off a rebound of Alexander Edler’s shot. Kesler has scored in consecutive games twice this season.
Couture brought the Sharks within 2-1 midway through the second off an odd-man rush he created with an intercepted pass. He played give-and-go with Patrick Marleau for the score.
Thornton scored a power-play goal five minutes later to tie it. Marleau blocked Edler from getting to the puck behind the net following a faceoff, allowing Thornton a clear path.
.NOTES: Daniel Sedin has three goals and four assists in his last six games. Henrik Sedin has points in 11 of 13 games. … Sharks D Douglas Murray returned after missing 10 games with a wrist injury. … Canucks F Chris Higgins didn’t make the trip because of a swollen hand. … Sharks D Colin White was out because of an undisclosed lower body injury. … San Jose will play at Vancouver on Monday. … The Sharks outshot Vancouver 16-4 in the third period. … The Canucks are 9-2-1 in their last 12 road games.
