Three goals in three minutes in the third period earned the San Jose Sharks two points on Monday night.

Joe Pavelski, Joe Thornton and Jonathan Cheechoo scored in a span of 3:20 as the visiting Sharks skated to a 4-2 victory over the Vancouver Canucks before a capacity crowd of 18,630 at General Motors Place.

Ryane Clowe tries to tip the puck past Roberto Luongo in a 4-2 Sharks win.
(Richard Lam/Canadian Press)

"In the third period, Joe Thornton was a force," Sharks head coach Ron Wilson said. "And when he starts playing like that, it is easy to be on a line with him and it is hard to play against him.

"I think I got his attention when I put Pavelski out on that power play early in the third period, and Pav scored, and Cheech responded. Hopefully, that will get them going.

Thornton and Cheechoo, who was held pointless in San Jose's first five games, had a goal and an assist apiece.

"We scored in a bunch," Cheechoo said. "And that is something we have not done all season."

Steve Bernier tallied the other goal in support of Evgeni Nabokov, who finished with 24 saves for the Sharks (3-2-1).

Ryane Clowe contributed two assists. 

San Jose has emerged victorious in six of its last nine visits to Vancouver.

"We saw an elite player [Thornton], one of the three top players in the NHL, bring his game to another level," Canucks head coach Alain Vigneault said. "Thornton made some great plays.

"That's why he is an elite player, that's why he is an all-star in our league. And we didn't have anything to respond with."
 
Taylor Pyatt and Henrik Sedin scored power-play goals for the Canucks (3-3-0), coming off an impressive two-game sweep of the Edmonton Oilers.

Roberto Luongo turned aside 30 of 36 shots in the loss.

Pyatt opens scoring

Vancouver opened the scoring 3:04 into the second period when Brad Isbister's shot struck the goalpost and Pyatt's leg before entering the net.

Pyatt was credited with the goal, his second of the season, but San Jose tied it 1-1 on Bernier's breakaway goal at the 14:52 mark.

Bernier scored as both Mattias Ohlund and Willie Mitchell watched from the penalty box.

It remained deadlocked until Pavelski capitalized on a roughing penalty to Matt Cooke, collecting a rebound and tucking it by a prone Luongo for his first at 2:33 of the third period.

Thornton scored his third on a similar play 72 seconds later, and Cheechoo netted his first at 5:53 to make it three goals in 3:20.

"We thought we were close to breaking through," Thornton said. "We were just throwing pucks at the net and working hard."

"You have got to get the first one to get two," Pavelski noted. "It took a little longer than we would've liked, but we stuck in there."

Sedin replied with his second for the Canucks, a power-play goal with 6:43 remaining.

With files from the Canadian Press