By CanucksBanter

October 10, 2025

Filip Chytil scored twice and the Vancouver Canucks opened their season with a 5-1 victory over the Calgary Flames on Thursday night.

The Czech center batted a puck into the net at 2:53 of the third period after it went off the back of Calgary defenseman Kevin Bahl’s head.

Chytil followed up just under six minutes later, collecting a puck from Arshdeep Bains and streaking up the ice, then firing a shot up and over Dustin Wolf.

Kiefer Sherwood put the Canucks ahead 1-0 at 14:53 of the first period with a wrist shot low past Wolf’s blocker from just inside the top of the right face-off circle. Flames defenseman MacKenzie Weegar missed the net on a good chance at the other end to create a rush chance going the other way.

Jonathan Lekkerimaki and Brock Boeser also scored in the four-goal third period to help Vancouver pull away. Thatcher Demko made 17 saves.

 Adam Foote won his NHL coaching debut for the Vancouver Canucks.

Demko, who missed the first two months of last season recovering from a knee injury and only played 23 games, kept it 1-0 by stopping Blake Coleman on a short-handed breakaway 52 seconds into the second period and Yegor Sharangovich on a power-play rebound with 29 seconds left in the period.

Morgan Frost scored for Calgary, beating Demko with 6:54 left.

Wolf made 21 saves for the Flames, who were coming off a 4-3 shootout win in Edmonton on Wednesday night.

“It was nice to see the different guys chip in at the end,” Sherwood said.

Frost spoiled Demko’s shutout at 13:06 with a low shot through traffic to make it 4-1 but Boeser restored the four-goal lead at 17:06 for the 5-1 final.

“I think the first game is huge,” Demko said. “Just keep the momentum building and especially the turnover we had from last year in our room and our coaching staff too. It’s a testament to the work everyone put in the summer and then through camp.”

NOTES:

It was the seventh career two-goal game for Chytil, who does not have a hat trick in the NHL. … Vancouver center Braeden Cootes, who was picked No. 15 in the 2025 NHL Draft, played 11:14 in his NHL debut and became the first 18-year-old since Petr Nedved in 1990 to open the season in the Canucks lineup.

Source: Associated Press and nhl.com