Boeser back in lineup sooner than expected
Canucks winger cuts injury time in half, returning to help boost playoff drive
In a perfect world Brock Boeser would have multiple practices to ensure his stride, shot and fitness are intact to make the right impact after missing a dozen games with fractured rib cartilage.
However, the playoff position pursuit has been far from perfect for the Vancouver Canucks. They had lost five of their previous six games and were below the post-season bar entering Tuesday’s tussle with the struggling New York Islanders, who had lost six straight games.
The urgency to align Boeser with Bo Horvat and Tanner Pearson — coupled with a schedule that has the Canucks travelling Wednesday, playing Thursday and Friday, off Saturday and hosting the Winnipeg Jets on Sunday — turned a projected eight-week recovery window from the Feb. 8 injury into a four-week, quick healing absence.
“I want to see where he’s at,” cautioned Canucks head coach Travis Green, who now has more viable options with his top-six mix. “He hasn’t had a lot of time and hasn’t practised, but it’s that time of year again where there’s not a lot of practice time.
“We don’t have the luxury to sit and wait four or five games and try to massage a practice in for him. We pushed him in the morning skate and he had a good one the other day (Sunday) with a lot of battle drills. The thing about Brock, he’s a bit of a natural. One of the things we’ve learned about him is he doesn’t have to skate for two weeks — he’s a natural athlete that way and it matters.”
It also matters that improving on 45 points (16-29) in 56 games is dependent on consistency of stride, and shot accuracy and velocity. Boeser was still fifth in team shots heading into the Islanders test, had five power-play goals and lots of room to improve on a paltry 9.6 shooting percentage.
“It hasn’t been my best year,” said Boeser. “Those last chunk of games before I got hurt, I wasn’t playing my best, but felt I was just getting back to my game. I just have to play that same way. I have to bring the effort and keep the shifts short because I’m probably going to be sucking wind a bit.”
Those details include being good without the puck.
Horvat draws the tough shutdown matchups and was expected to see a lot of speedy playmaker Mathew Barzal on Tuesday. The Coquitlam native had just one goal in his previous 16 games, but had a dozen assists.
“I’ve taken some strides defensively and if I’m with them, I’ve got to be prepared in that aspect,” said Boeser. “But then again, if we play our game, we can get a lot of offensive zone time and produce. They (Horvat and Pearson) really take pride in playing against top lines and that kind of gives you an edge sometimes. It’s exciting to shut top guys down.”
And that can be the difference from making or missing the playoffs. The Canucks know they have to defend better.
“It’s that time of year,” stressed Green. “If you’re not playing two-way hockey, you’re probably not winning many games. Guys understand the importance of certain parts of the rinks and we’ll see where it goes and where Brock plays.”
As for his latest injury, Boeser wasn’t sure what actually occurred.
“I heard the guys screaming because he kind of came from my blind side and I just tried to protect it and felt a pop right away,” recalled Boeser. “I didn’t know if it was my collarbone or my rib at first. It was hard to say when I was going to be ready. I just tried to get back as quick as I could.”
Boeser has been plagued by several injuries over his NHL career — wrist, back, groin and rib — and tried to put it all in perspective. His demeanour helps because of a positive outlook on life in general.
“It’s part of the game,” he reasoned. “You can say it’s unlucky or whatever. It’s kind of frustrating and it’s kind of rare breaking your back and compensating from that and then having a different injury (groin) and then taking a small bump and something pops (rib).
“And not being out there in crunch time and playing every game like it’s do-or-die was tough to watch.”