The Vancouver Canucks disrespected Brock Boeser. Did they poison their dressing room, too?

Mike McKenna
Mike McKenna(MikeMcKenna56)
The Vancouver Canucks disrespected Brock Boeser. Did they poison their dressing room, too?

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Do the Vancouver Canucks have any more bright ideas?

There’s still plenty of time left in the 2022-23 NHL season for additional PR nightmares. But trying to healthy scratch forward Brock Boeser on Hockey Fights Cancer night might take the cake.

In May of 2022, Duke Boeser, Brock’s father, passed away from cancer at the age of 61. Six months later and the Canucks decided it was time to give Boeser some tough love by sitting him out of a game – on a night that was bound to be extremely emotional for the star forward.

But in a twist of events, Vancouver forward Dakota Joshua was deemed unfit to play during the afternoon. So Boeser drew back into the lineup. And fittingly, he scored the game-tying goal midway through the third period. The Canucks won in overtime courtesy of Bo Horvat’s 19th goal of the season.

Head coach Bruce Boudreau said afterwards that he’d already chosen to scratch Boeser on Friday, a day in advance of the Canucks matchup Saturday against the Arizona Coyotes. Boudreau also said that he wasn’t aware that it was Hockey Fights Cancer night in Vancouver when he made the decision.

I don’t have any reason to doubt Boudreau. He’s never come across as anything other than genuine. I know he likes ice cream and professional wrestling. I like ice cream and professional wrestling. I think Bruce and I would get along just dandy.

But this was a bad mistake. A really, really bad mistake. Because typically when a high-profile player like Boeser gets healthy scratched, approval needs to come from management.

I spoke with several current and former NHL coaches about this very topic. And all of them agreed: the decision to healthy scratch Boeser would almost certainly not have been Boudreau going it alone. Management had to be in on it. And some even believe there’s a chance management may have called for it.

Given how fraught relations have been publicly between Canucks president Jim Rutherford and Boudreau, I guess this whole situation shouldn’t be surprising. Rutherford has lobbed bombs toward Boudreau through the media on several occasions this year.

So how on earth could the entire Canucks front office be so tone deaf to Boeser? How could every coach and member of management whiff on this? I find it hard to believe.

I’ve been a part of NHL Hockey Fights Cancer nights. Players use special warmup jerseys. They tape their sticks purple and do pictures after the game holding placards of who they’re fighting for. Coaches wear special ties and are often given lapel pins for the evening.

Planning takes place in the morning. Hockey Fights Cancer night is no secret. Someone important in the Canucks organization had to be aware that it was happening. Yet somehow the memo wasn’t passed along to Boudreau.

Honestly I don’t care if Boeser deserved to sit or not. Not too long ago he was riding a nine-game point streak. But a coach always has the right to not dress a player. If Boeser’s defensive play wasn’t good enough for Boudreau, I understand why the Canucks bench boss would want to send a message.

But it was the wrong night. And Boeser’s situation is exactly how you blow up a locker room. Any goodwill towards the Vancouver organization from its own players just went out the window.

You see, players know when things are coming. And for Boeser, who’s had cancer at the forefront of his mind now for way longer than any human should have to endure, this was about as big as it gets.

Less than six months after the passing of Boeser’s father, the entire Vancouver organization was so dense that no one said ‘wait a minute’ on a night when he was bound to be the focal point. I’m sure it didn’t take long for Boeser’s teammates to realize what happened. And I can guarantee you they were angry. For their friend. And especially for his family. I bet Boudreau was quick to apologize, as he should have. But what about the rest of management?

I haven’t heard or seen anything from Rutherford. Or Canucks GM Patrik Allvin. And I can’t say that I’m surprised. Because if Boudreau had gone rogue and caused this entire mess, wouldn’t it be a good excuse for Rutherford to sack him?

Now the Canucks have an even bigger problem. According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Freidman, Boeser and his agent, Ben Hankinson, have been given permission to speak directly to other NHL teams.

That tells me one thing: Boeser has had enough of Vancouver. It’s time to move on. After Saturday’s circus, I’d be thinking the exact same thing.

What blows me away is how quickly things devolved. Boeser signed his current three-year pact on July 1, 2022. He’s making $6.65 million each year. Yet five months after the pen hit paper, he’s ready to leave.

That’s not good for the Canucks organization. Because any time there’s turmoil with a top player, there’s a ripple effect. Think pending UFA Horvat really wants to stick around through a non-rebuild rebuild? I’d be shocked. Especially after seeing what went down Saturday with Boeser.

Bottom line is that Vancouver just can’t seem to get it together. And it’s not surprising given the disconnect that seems to exist. Whether on the ice or off, the bad headlines keep coming. And I don’t see an end in sight.

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