Waking up early for a matinee game in Boston Saturday nearly turned into a nightmare for the Canucks.
Already on a two-game skid, Vancouver found themselves down by two goals after one period against the struggling Bruins.
And with whistle-happy referees lulling the pace of the game, they were well on their way to an embarrassing defeat against a team who had lost nine straight heading in.
But as if simultaneously with the officials' decision to stop calling penalties, the Canucks finally laid off the snooze button, managing to snap out of their slumber state to kick start the comeback mid-way through the game.
The result: A 3-2 shootout win, their first victory in Boston since 2003, all thanks to Roberto Luongo.
While the rest of the team took most of the afternoon finding their legs, the Canucks captain was stellar in net, making 41 saves, including several big stops in the final two frames to keep the Canucks within reach.
He also rejected all three chances by the Bruins in the shootout to put the stamp on a statement game, one which came after having to sit in favour of Andrew Raycroft Thursday.
Canucks' Pavol Demitra scored the lone goal in the breakaway relay, making a perfect deke to go backhand on Boston's Tuukka Rask.
The Slovak also scored with 4:42 left in regulation, his first goal of the season, to send the game into overtime.
Although the Canucks managed to come back after trailing this time, it was their slow start again which put them in the disconcerting situation.
As not to sound like a broken record, the Canucks took an early penalty which resulted in yet another early goal.
With Tanner Glass sent to the penalty box for cross-checking, the reigning Norris trophy winner Zdeno Chara scored his fifth of the season on the man advantage to give Boston a 1-0 lead - a deficit the Canucks are becoming more familiar with lately.
It was the 10th time in the last 12 games, and sixth straight, that Vancouver has given up the first goal.
Over 12 minutes later, Boston doubled that lead with a Michael Ryder tally, his 13th of the season.
Mason Raymond made it 2-1 with his 21st of the year just nine minutes into the second period, after a hard-working shift by the Canucks second line.
Although Demitra's goal later tied it up, Vancouver had plenty of opportunity to add to the scoreboard with five powerplay chances. But they failed to convert on any, registering only four shots on the man advantage, while Boston went two-for-six on the night.
Bruins goaltender Rask was also solid, stopping 29 of 31 shots, in a losing cause as he is still looking for his first win since December 30.
The defeat also denies the Bruins' bid to win their first game at Boston Gardens in 2010, with their only home win coming at Fenway Park during the Winter Classic. It extends their losing slump to 10 games.
Meanwhile, Vancouver continues their monster road trip with a game in Tampa Bay Tuesday against the Lightning.
