GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) - Even when Jeff Cowan misses on a shot, he scores.

Cowan narrowly missed a check on Steven Reinprecht when the Phoenix Coyotes centre lifted his head at the last moment and veered.

But there still was enough contact for Cowan to jar the puck loose to start an offensive rush, which ended with Cowan getting the puck back from Brendan Morrison near the crease for a goal and a 1-0 lead early in the first period of the Canucks' 4-2 win over the Phoenix Coyotes on Thursday night.

"I tried to get the shot off but I whiffed on it," said Cowan, who scored his sixth goal in four games. "I tried to stay with it and it came right back to me.

Notes: Cowan had been goal-less on the season until starting his recent run. .. The Canucks were awarded a penalty shot midway through the first after a Coyotes player covered the puck with his glove in the crease, but Joseph stopped Henrik Sedin's attempt with a kick save. .. Following the Coyotes' flurry of moves at the trade deadline, Doan is one of only three remaining Coyotes players with double-digit goals. .. Sabourin was making his second start in 2007 and his first since February 20. .. The game was preceded by a real-estate seminar, "Foreclosures on Ice." All participants in the seminar received a ticket to the game.