These are the wins a team needs to pull off if it’s going to qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs.



The Vancouver Canucks held a determined, Stanley Cup-champion-quality opponent at bay at Rogers Arena on Monday night, defeating the St. Louis Blues 3-1.



Perhaps it wasn’t the Canucks’ cleanest or most complete game of the season, but it was among their most complete efforts.



The Blues are deep, big-bodied and relentless. They’re an extraordinarily tough out.



And yet Vancouver played a cagey, talented opponent roughly even through 20 minutes, falling behind on an uncharacteristic giveaway from Quinn Hughes that Blues forward Zach Sanford converted. Then Vancouver’s top line took the initiative, building a second-period lead off a pair of J.T. Miller goals.



Perhaps most importantly though was the third period performance, in which the Canucks were genuinely effective limiting chances against. They held St. Louis to...