VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Kiefer Sherwood had his first NHL hat trick and the Vancouver Canucks defeated the Colorado Avalanche 3-1 on Monday night.

Thatcher Demko stopped 30 shots as Vancouver won for the second time in five games (2-2-1).

Valeri Nichushkin scored for Colorado with 46 seconds left, and Mackenzie Blackwood finished with 22 saves.

Sherwood had an even goal, a shorthanded goal and an empty-netter. He has now scored a record 11 goals this season, surpassing his record of 10 he scored for Nashville last season.

Mikko Rantanen had an assist for the Avalanche and extended his point streak to six games (three goals, nine assists).

Takeaways

Canucks: Coach Rick Tocchet criticized his team after an ugly 5-1 loss to Boston on Saturday, saying there were four or five players who were “having difficulty emotionally engaging.” His team responded with a physical game against the Avalanche, stopping four penalties, blocking 18 shots and recording 30 goals.

Avalanche: Scoring just one goal was a rare blip for a Colorado team that has won four of its last five games. The Avalanche had outscored their opponents 18-9 during that stretch.

Key moment

Sherwood extended Vancouver’s lead with a shorthanded goal with 3:56 left in the second period. He took a puck from Nathan MacKinnon near the benches and sprinted up the ice, then fired a shot up and over Blackwood’s outstretched glove to make it 2-0. Chants of “Kie-fer Sher-wood!” resounded throughout the arena in response.

Key statistics

Colorado went scoreless on four power play opportunities and fell to 1 for 19 in its last seven games.

Next

Avalanche visits San Jose on Thursday and the Canucks visit Utah on Wednesday to open a two-game trip.

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AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL