VANCOUVER – When he was general manager of the Vancouver Canucks, Brian Burke once said that the only way Brad May could help the team offensively near the end of his career was if he spent the off-season at the holy waters of Lourdes.
Brock Boeser must have made a day trip there on Monday.
The Canucks’ leading scorer and Calder Trophy candidate skated with teammates Tuesday morning and could play against the Montreal Canadiens just two nights after crawling off the ice with what appeared to be a serious injury.
With six Canucks already on the injured list, Boeser was expected to follow first-line mates Bo Horvat (fractured foot) and Sven Baertschi (broken jaw) out of the lineup after blocking Mark Giordano’s shot during Vancouver’s 6-1 loss to the Calgary Flames on Sunday.
But X-rays and a CT scan on Monday confirmed Boeser had escaped a fracture. Still, his appearance at the morning skate seemed almost miraculous.
Canucks coach Travis Green said Boeser’s status Tuesday night will be a game-time decision.
“It wasn’t like I was at church praying or anything,” Green said. “But I was happy it wasn’t a break. With the injuries we’ve been going through, we didn’t need to have Brock out.”
Not only would the Canucks find it difficult to win with Boeser joining the injured list, they might have a hard time selling a ticket without the most talented Vancouver rookie since Pavel Bure. The Canucks are 1-5 since Horvat was hurt and have been outscored 26-6 in the losses.
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“Pretty concerned when it hurts that bad and you can’t put any pressure on it for a good amount of time after the game,” Boeser, 20, said. “I didn’t want it to be broken. I was hoping for the best and that’s what happened.
“It could be a lot worse and I could be missing a lot of time, so I am really fortunate and hope it continues to get better and I can play tonight and play well.”
Boeser leads all National Hockey League rookies with 17 goals and 30 points in 31 games.
Defenceman Erik Gudbranson, who last played Nov. 22, returns to the Canucks lineup after missing 12 games. Third-year defenceman Ben Hutton is expected to be a healthy scratch for the first time in his career.
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