Hamilton, Jagr help Flames beat Canucks

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Dougie Hamilton had two goals and an assist, and Jaromir Jagr got his first point for Calgary as the Flames defeated the Vancouver Canucks 5-2 on Saturday night.

Mark Giordano, Johnny Gaudreau and Travis Hamonic also scored for Calgary (4-2-0), which got 27 saves from Mike Smith.

Derek Dorsett and Brock Boeser had the goals for Vancouver (1-2-1), and Jacob Markstrom stopped 22 shots.

The Canucks finished an ugly 0 for 7 on the power play with just three shots on goal in dropping their third straight home game, second in regulation, after opening the season with a victory at Rogers Arena.

Acquired from the New York Islanders in a trade at the NHL draft in June, Hamonic pinched down from the point and fired a quick shot through Markstrom to snap a 1-all tie at 10:57 of the second period after all five Canucks skaters collapsed below the hash marks on a scrum at the side of the net.

Smith, who made his sixth straight start to open the season despite allowing five goals on 22 shots in Friday’s embarrassing 6-0 home loss to Ottawa, robbed Boeser on a great glove save with just more than two minutes to go.

That stop proved to be crucial as Hamilton’s drive from the blue line past Markstrom moments later at 17:59 stretched Calgary’s advantage to 3-1 through 40 minutes.

Playing their third game in four nights in three different cities, the Flames made it 4-1 at 10:14 of the third when Gaudreau scored a power-play goal on a pass that went in off Vancouver defenseman Michael Del Zotto after taking a feed from the 45-year-old Jagr, who signed with Calgary earlier this month.

Boeser responded nine seconds later with a quick shot that beat Smith past his glove, but Hamilton put any thoughts of a comeback to rest when his shot beat Markstrom just 48 seconds after that.

The Flames opened the scoring at 11:37 of the first on a short-handed 3-on-1 rush moments after the Canucks failed to register a shot on a 5-on-3 power play that lasted 1:11. With his team still down a man, Giordano took a pass from Freddie Hamilton and ripped a shot to the short side past Markstrom.

Calgary took five minor penalties in the opening period, but a feeble Vancouver attack that registered one shot in a combined 8:49 of power-play time allowed the Flames to escape unharmed. Calgary, meanwhile, had two shots while short-handed, including Giordano’s goal.

Dorsett got the Canucks on the board with 2:15 left in the period on a shot that ricocheted off Smith, off Dougie Hamilton and in to tie the score after 20 minutes.

With defenseman Alexander Edler out four to six weeks due to a sprained knee sustained in Thursday’s 4-2 loss to Winnipeg, Derek Pouliot played his first game for Vancouver following a trade with Pittsburgh on Oct. 3.

The Canucks played most of the game with 11 forwards after Loui Eriksson left in the first period with a knee injury. Eriksson took a nudge from Tanner Glass and crashed awkwardly into the Calgary net, and after briefly testing out his right leg on the ice during a stoppage in play, headed to the locker room.

NOTES: Canucks forward Jake Virtanen was a healthy scratch, with Alexander Burmistrov taking his place in the lineup. … After playing four home games in a row to open the season, Vancouver now hits the road for five straight.

UP NEXT

Flames: Off until Thursday, when Calgary hosts Carolina.

Canucks: At the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday.