NHL: Wild top Canucks

VANCOUVER, B.C. - The Minnesota Wild scored goals two minutes apart in the second period, then held off a late Vancouver Canuck rally for a 4-2 win Sunday.
The Wild looked to have the game in hand when left winger Thomas Vanek made the score 3-0 at 7:08 of the third period.
The Canucks battled back with goals 1:01 apart from left winger Ronalds Kenins and left winger Daniel Sedin.
Left winger Zach Parise and defenseman Jared Spurgeon, on the power play, put Minnesota up 2-0 in the second period. Left winger Jason Zucker scored into an empty net in the third period for Minnesota.
Center Mikael Granlund added two assists for the Wild, who have won five of their last seven games.
The Canucks found life at 12:20 of the third when Kenins, playing in just his second game with the Canucks, beat Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk with a shot to his glove side. Just over a minute later right winger Radim Vrbata circled behind the Wild net and dropped back a pass for Sedin. He beat Dubnyk on the short side.
The Canucks, who have lost three of their last four games, are 27-18-3 for 57 points.
The Wild improved their record to 23-20-6 for 52 points.
Vanek looked to have iced the game when he took a pass from Granlund and one-timed a shot past the stick side of Canuck goaltender Ryan Miller to give Minnesota a 3-0 lead.
The Canucks thought they had scored early in the third period off defenseman Alex Edler’s shot from just inside the blueline. The goal was disallowed when the referee ruled Dubnyk was interfered with on the play.
Parise opened the scoring at 7:26 of the second period on a strange play. After cruising deep into the Canucks’ zone he threw the puck at the net from a sharp angle. Somehow the shot got between Miller’s legs. Parise now has eight points (seven goals, one assist) in his last seven games.
It was also the fourth consecutive game the Canucks gave up the first goal.
The Wild were able to capitalize just a few moments later after Vancouver defenseman Alex Edler was called for highsticking.
Playing with the man-advantage, right winger Nino Niederreiter fed Spurgeon a pass. He stepped into a shot from just above the faceoff circle, and it beat Miller.
The first period was scoreless. Vancouver right winger Derek Dorsett and Minnesota’s Ryan Carter were involved in a spirited fight.
NOTES: D Adam Clendening, obtained in a trade from Chicago last week, dressed for his first game as a Canuck. ... Both D Yannick Weber and RW Zack Kassian were healthy scratches for Vancouver. ... RW Derek Dorsett returned to the Canucks’ lineup after missing one game following a hit from Anaheim’s Ryan Kessler Tuesday. ... Vancouver’s homestand continues against the Winnipeg Jets Tuesday. ... The Canucks and Wild play twice more in the next 16 days. ... Wild D Ryan Suter played despite concerns over a lower-body injury. ... Wild RW Justin Fontaine didn’t dress due to a lower-body injury. ... C Erik Haula returned to the Wild lineup after being a healthy scratch the last two games. ...Minnesota has used 38 different lineups in 49 games this year. ... The Wild was 2-0-1 in the previous three games of their four-game road trip.