Boedker scores twice, Avalanche beat Canucks 3 -1

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) Mikkel Boedker picked a good time to show his new team what he can do offensively.

The Colorado forward scored twice and the Avalanche moved back into playoff position with a 3-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday night.

Boedker, who came to the Avalanche at the trade deadline from Arizona, scored the go-ahead goal 37 seconds into the third period with an impressive move around the Vancouver defense.

''It's huge,'' Boedker said. ''That's what we all want. We all want to be a difference maker and make good plays and make things happen and I think it's huge for your confidence.

''It definitely feels good when you can come in and produce and help your team.''

Andreas Martinsen also scored for the Avalanche, who have 76 points - one ahead of idle Minnesota for the last wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

Avalanche coach Patrick Roy has been trying to make Boedker feel more comfortable and confident with his new team. He even went over game video during the morning skate Wednesday.

It appears to have paid off.

''My thoughts were, he was playing really well and he just needed to play with more confidence and things will turn around for him,'' Roy said. ''I really feel his game is right there and sometimes if you are just more confident around the net, things will go your way and I thought that's what he did tonight.''

Henrik Sedin scored for Vancouver, which completed a four-game homestand at 2-2. The Canucks are 10 points back of the Avs in the wild-card race.

Ryan Miller made 31 saves for Vancouver, while Semyon Varlamov stopped 28 shots for Colorado.

''It's up to us now,'' Varlamov said of the Avalanche's playoff prospects. ''We are in a good position. We just need to win our games.''

Boedker, who came to the Avalanche at the trade deadline from Arizona, scored the go-ahead goal and his second of the night 37 seconds into the third when he swooped around defenseman Ben Hutton and lifted the puck past Miller on the glove side to make it 2-1.

Vancouver scored first at the 12-minute mark when Daniel Sedin's shot rebounded right to Henrik Sedin at the face-off circle and he put the puck in the net for his 11th of the season. The second assist on the goal went to Russian rookie Nikita Trymakin in his NHL debut. The 6-foot-7, 228-pound defenseman signed with Vancouver last week after finishing his KHL season.

''I thought he was good for his first game,'' Canucks coach Willie Desjardins said. ''I think that's a real challenge to come over. This is a fast team for him. I think he had adjustments to make, but if you look at everything he had a pretty good first game.''

The Avalanche tied it just 66 seconds later as Matt Duchene passed to Jarome Iginla, who then found Boedker at the side of the net for the one-timer. That extended Duchene's point streak to four games.

With defenseman Francois Beauchemin off for hooking, the Canucks peppered Varlamov with shots but couldn't solve the Russian netminder, extending their power-play slump to 0-for-17. Despite the second-period pressure, Vancouver trailed in shots 27-19 through two periods.

After Boedker's second goal, Colorado increased its lead to 3-1 at 5:31 of the third when Martinsen came around the boards, skated through the Vancouver defense, and banked it in off Miller.

NOTES: Colorado avoided being swept by the Canucks in the three-game season series. ... The Avalanche were without forward Gabriel Landeskog, who is serving a three-game suspension for his hit on Anaheim's Simon Despres. ... Tryamkin is the ninth player to make his NHL debut with Vancouver this season.