The Vancouver Canucks finally snapped their 11-game losing streak Wednesday night, and it didn’t happen by accident. This one came on the heels of a blunt, no-nonsense challenge from head coach Adam Foote-directed squarely at his veteran core.
Two days before the win, Foote didn’t mince words. He publicly questioned the energy and body language of his experienced players, calling out the negativity that had crept onto the bench during the team’s extended skid. And it looks like that message landed exactly where it needed to.
Following the Canucks’ 4-3 comeback win over the Washington Capitals, forward Brock Boeser didn’t shy away from the criticism-in fact, he embraced it. “It’s the truth,” Boeser said.
“We can’t have that bad body language, and the negative attitude on the bench. You can’t show that to the young guys.
We’ve got to be good leaders and good role models and be positive. I thought we were tonight, and I felt that that helped us play a better hockey game.”
Boeser didn’t just talk the talk-he helped lead the charge on the ice. With Vancouver trailing 2-0 early, Boeser got the Canucks on the board with a slick redirect off a David Kampf feed that bounced off the end boards. It was his 11th goal of the season, and it flipped the momentum just when the team needed it most.
From there, the Canucks started to find their rhythm. Filip Hronek, Evander Kane, and Drew O’Connor each chipped in with goals, and Vancouver notched just its fifth home win of the season. That may not sound like much, but for a team that’s been searching for any kind of spark, it was a much-needed shot of confidence.
After the game, Foote gave credit where it was due-back to the same veterans he had challenged earlier in the week. “They were just calm,” he said.
“They hung in there. It seemed like when we dumped the puck and got our forecheck going properly and worked as a unit of five, we really had a lot going on for us.”
That last point is key. When Vancouver played connected, with all five skaters pulling in the same direction, they looked like a team capable of digging themselves out of a tough spot. It wasn’t perfect, but it was progress-and that’s something this group hasn’t been able to say for a while.
Even with the win, the Canucks are still buried at the bottom of the NHL standings. But Wednesday night showed what can happen when leadership steps up, both vocally and on the ice. They’ll look to carry that same energy into Friday’s matchup with the New Jersey Devils, hoping this wasn’t just a blip-but the first step toward turning the tide.