Pacific-leading Canucks clinch 1st Stanley Cup playoff berth since 2020


Hockey

The Vancouver Canucks were off Saturday but clinched an NHL playoff spot after the Vegas Golden Knights edged the Minnesota Wild 2-1 in overtime and the slumping San Jose Sharks posted an improbable 4-0 win over the St. Louis Blues.

NHL club last hosted post-season game in 2015 in opening round vs. Flames

Two Canucks players look at each other on the ice, reacting to their team scoring goal during a March 23, 2024 NHL game against the Calgary Flames in Vancouver.
Nils Hoglander, left, Elias Pettersson, right, and their Canucks teammates secured a spot in the 16-team Stanley Cup playoffs on Saturday night when the Wild and Blues lost their games. Vancouver leads the Pacific Division by four points over the Oilers. (Derek Cain/Getty Images)

The Vancouver Canucks have officially secured a spot in the NHL playoffs, thanks to some help from their Western Conference opponents.

The Canucks (45-20-8) were off Saturday but clinched their berth after the Vegas Golden Knights edged the Minnesota Wild 2-1 in overtime and the slumping San Jose Sharks posted an improbable 4-0 win over the St. Louis Blues.

Vancouver has not played a post-season game since the COVID-shortened 2019-20 season when they made it through qualification in the Edmonton bubble, dispatched the Blues in first-round action before being ousted by the Golden Knights in a seven-game second-round series.

The Canucks have not hosted a playoff game since 2015 when they faced the Calgary Flames in a first-round matchup.

Vancouver currently sits atop the Pacific Division, four points up on the surging Edmonton Oilers.

The Canucks will be back in action Sunday when they host the Anaheim Ducks at 3:30 p.m. ET.



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