After 17 years, Canucks return to Finals with 2OT win

Kevin Bieksa scored 10:18 into the second overtime as the Vancouver Canucks advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in 17 years with a 3-2 victory over the San Jose Sharks.

The Canucks ended the Western Conference Finals in five games after getting even 2-2 with 13.2 seconds left in regulation when Ryan Kesler scored with goalie Roberto Luongo on the Vancouver bench for an extra skater.

It will be Vancouver’s first trip to the Cup finals since 1994, when the Canucks lost in seven games to the New York Rangers. The last NHL team from Canada to win the title was the Montreal Canadiens in 1993.

Exactly 17 years to the day after they earned their previous trip to play for the Cup, the Canucks rode 54 saves from Luongo and a lucky bounce to Bieksa to advance to the finals for the third time in the team’s 40-year history.

After claiming the franchise’s first Presidents’ Trophy as the NHL’s top regular-season team, the Canucks are only four wins away from their first ever Stanley Cup title.

The Canucks will have home ice advantage in the Stanley Cup Finals and will face the winner of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Boston Bruins and the Tampa Bay Lightning. Currently, the Bruins lead the East Finals 3-2 and can advance with a Game 6 win at Tampa Bay this Wednesday night.