Boeser aims to step up with captain out

“Attitude Is Everything.”

That slogan is often slapped on motivational material — a coffee mug or a sweatshirt — but you won't find one in Brock Boeser's locker-room stall.

He doesn't need it. Injuries and indifferent play have kept the Vancouver Canucks right-winger from reaching his true potential, but adversity has never affected his attitude.

An awkward sideboards collision with teammate Elias Pettersson and Vegas Golden Knight Ben Hutton on April 3 looked worse than a hyperextended right elbow and a five-game absence, but he didn't dwell on the setback Monday. He talked about the opportunity to be a difference-maker in a playoff pursuit on a line with Pettersson and Conor Garland as a replacement for the injured Bo Horvat.

And he even added some levity.

“It was unlucky there — a little play with Petey — and it obviously sucked with our team pushing hard right now,” Boeser said following the morning skate. “I think Petey was just a little jealous that me and Hutty were battling together and he came flying in there. I was just cross-checking him (Hutton) and then Petey came in to hit him, but hit me instead.

“It definitely hurt. I was a little worried and didn't think about it too much because I came back and battled it out in the third period. I'm just excited to get back. These are the games you play for all year and to be in this position says a lot about our group after the start we had. This is huge. I feel I haven't had a great year and I need to produce.”

Boeser entered Monday's meeting with the Dallas Stars without a goal in his previous five outings and two goals in his last 12 games. For a sniper noted for a hard and accurate release, there should be more than 38 points (19-19) through 64 games. Boeser's game without the puck is more responsible, but his bread is buttered by quick no-hesitation releases that find small openings. He has taken the fourth-most shots among top five club scoring forwards, but has the second-lowest shooting percentage at 10.7 per cent.

“We need him to get opportunities because when he gets them, he can put them in,” Canucks coach Bruce Boudreau said of Boeser's 14 shots in the five-game drought.

There's added incentive for a restricted free agent to prove his long-term worth, but it has gone to another level here with a new hockey operations department.