The Vancouver Canucks announced that forward Brock Boeser is sidelined at least for the next two games with an upper-body injury and will then be reassessed.
Coach Green says Brock Boeser will be out the next two games and then the team will reassess.
— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) February 9, 2020
Brock Boeser Injured
Canucks forward Brock Boeser left Saturday’s game in the third period after getting tangled up with the Calgary Flames‘ Andrew Mangiapane. Head coach Travis Green told the media after the game that Boeser will be out of the lineup for a little bit. For the time being it is at least two games. it could be much longer once he is reevaluated.
Boeser is Vancouver’s third-highest scorer this year with 16 goals and 45 points, tying him with Captain Bo Horvat. He was also third in overall scoring last season and led the team in his rookie year.
Injuries have kept him from reaching 30 goals in any season, however. He missed 16 games to a back injury late in 2017-18, and eleven with a groin injury last year. Fans have to hope this isn’t going to be a recurring theme for his career.
What This Means for the Future
The normally reliable Boeser has been having a difficult time scoring lately. He is currently on an eleven-game goal drought, registering just two assists in that time. For several games, he had switched lines with Jake Virtanen, but that experiment came to an end with little to show on Boeser’s part.
Ideally, the injury is a mild one, keeping him out for only a couple of games. But even if it keeps him from playing for an extended period, maybe it will provide a reset of sorts. Boeser is shooting a career-low 9.6% so far, contributing to a power-play that seems to have run aground lately.
Even with that, the Canucks can’t spare one of their top threats in a tight playoff race. The Canucks already have Justin Bailey called up from Utica, but there’s no chance the AHL player will be starting on their top line. Most likely Virtanen will return to the top line, rejoining Elias Pettersson and J.T. Miller while Bailey skates in the bottom-six.
Main Photo:
