Canucks Live: Beating the best, now bring on Quinn Hughes

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Canucks prospects Zeev Buium, Marco Rossi and Liam Ohgren make their Minnesota return following wild game in Colorado

Published Apr 02, 2026 • Last updated 1 hour ago • 7 minute read

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Pettersson #40 of the Vancouver Canucks gets set to block a puck against the Toronto Maple Leafs during the third period in an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena in 2025. Photo by Claus Andersen /Getty ImagesArticle content

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This is how you want the season to play out. The Canucks are assured of rock bottom in the NHL so winning doesn’t jeopardize that. But on Wednesday they played a rollicking, fun game beating the NHL’s best team in a wild 8-6 tilt that saw Brock Boeser get a hat trick and make Canucks fans feel some hope.

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The Canucks beat the best team in the NHL, that mean’s they’re the best now, right? They get a banner for that? And can plan a parade?

It was nice to see the Canucks show they do have the talent to be competitive. The way other bottom feeders like Calgary have swatted Vancouver aside with ease as they did last weekend is troubling. But showing up against the best teams is a good sign. Ben Kuzma gave out his marks on what was probably the best game of the season, even with the caveat they were probably overlooked by the Avalanche.

Liam Ohgren (C)

Speed turned PK shift in and odd-man rush and Blueger’s first goal.

Elias Pettersson (C+)

Assisted DeBrusk goal and won 11 of 16 draws, but had just one shot.

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Marco Rossi (C+)

Must get greedy. Passed on Grade A PP shot. Two assists. No shots.

Brock Boeser (A)

Four points. No hesitation goal, wrister, empty-netter. Four shots.

Zeev Buium (C)

Head on swivel against speedy Avs. Screened Lankinen on fifth goal.

Tom Willander (C+)

Smart play in offensive zone to buy time, spot Pettersson at back door.

Sometimes David beats Goliath – Farhan Lalji on Canucks win

Farhan Lalji was on Donnie and Dhali this morning to sum up the most improbable win of the season.

I think it came from the Avs taking their foot off the gas. And also not having Cale Makar. Makar is a small piece of it. I think foot off the gas is is a big piece of it because this is a team that just pounded Calgary in the last game and they probably figured the Canucks will go meekly into the night.

And it happens every once in a while, right? Where David beats Goliath. It was a fun game. And Mackenzie Blackwood was all shades of awful.
… and look, you got to give the Canucks credit. They played well. They outshot them. They out chanced them in the first period. Second period, they didn’t go away to hide. That kind of happened in the third period. Um, you know, Lankinen wasn’t great either. But 8-6. Wow.

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We haven’t had a lot of those. That would have been a fun game at Rogers Arena for the home folk. The home fans would have deserved that.

Hey coach its been more than a blip!

Iain MacIntyre wrote about the win on Sportsnet and noted the Canucks were pleased with their compete level. Including the thoughts of coach Adam Foote who could probably brush up on his understanding of what a ‘blip’ is.

“From the beginning of the year to injuries, to going young and the rebuild, it’s been wild,” Canucks coach Adam Foote told reporters in Denver. “But to play as hard as we do still, with the resiliency and leadership from (Filip) Hronek and guys like Boeser, Marcus, it’s good to see. And the young guys are coming. They’re coming, they’re believing it, they’re staying connected. You know, we’re going to have our blips. We’re just learning the hard way right now. But the resiliency, like you said, is what I’m proud of. The guys kept fighting.”

Next up for Vancouver is Minnesota. OK, it’s probably going to be a big event for Boeser and Elias Pettersson who were close to Hughes before he deserted Vancouver and made it clear he wanted out. The big reunion for fans will be next season when the Wild come to Rogers Arena. Tonight the story is probably more about the Wild Boys, Zeev Buium, Liam Ohgren and Marco Rossi, three top prospects who came to the Canucks and now go back to Minnesota. The Athletic took a look at their perspective since the trade. What’s encouraging, especially as the points have been coming along lately, is that Rossi seems to have the right mindset.

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“We’re all competitors, right?” said Rossi, 24. “But we all know the situation we’re in right now. We know we have to get better and we have to learn, especially with so many young players. It’s important to stay together and just learn as much as we can and know the future is going to be better if we do that. We have a lot of good young players and prospects.”

Buium said being so young, “you’re so delusional a little bit, and you just believe you’re going to be in that place forever. I wanted to, for sure, and I think everybody knew that I really embraced what it meant to be a Minnesota Wild player. I think they have such a great thing going there, a great culture. … But when a page closes, the next one opens.”

Rossi and Öhgren feel the same.

This is a new opportunity with an organization that believes wholeheartedly in them.

Rossi, to be blunt, didn’t feel that the last year in Minnesota. There were trade rumours for two consecutive years, and he was well aware they weren’t just rumours. His agents were honest with him that one reason it was so difficult to get a contract done with the Wild last summer was that he was likely being shopped.

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So even after Rossi agreed to a three-year, $15 million contract in August, he knew he was very easily tradeable.

“I didn’t feel that energy (by them) when my contract was coming up, so even though I was pumped to re-sign, you don’t really know if they love you,” Rossi said. “So it was really hard to know what to believe and what not to, so when I got traded, you were sad, but on the other side, you were really happy knowing Vancouver really wanted you.”

Rossi was traded to the Canucks at the tail end of a foot injury after playing 82 games in each of the prior two seasons. He admits that he probably came back too early because he wanted to debut. He played eight games, scoring only a goal and two points. He never felt 100 per cent, then took a shot in the same spot and aggravated the injury. He didn’t play from Jan. 2 until after the Olympic break began on Feb. 25.

“It never healed,” Rossi said. “I mean, it’s very frustrating. Especially when I got traded, you want to play so bad, and you want to show the fans what they’ve got, and you just don’t want to miss a game. And maybe it was a little bit too soon.”

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He has 15 points in the past 14 games and is starting to feel more like himself playing on a line with Brock Boeser and Drew O’Connor.

There’s an old tradition in the NHL where players put a dollar figure on the locker-room whiteboard when they play an old team. That amount goes into the kitty for a team party at the end of the year or even into the wallet of the teammate who scores the winning goal that night.

Asked how much he’ll put on the board, Rossi joked, “Depends how much (Öhgren and Buium) put up.”

All three players, as tough as the losing has been, are excited about their futures in Vancouver.

Rossi said it’s none of his business that the Wild still don’t have a prototypical No. 1 centre after trading him, but that he hopes to be that in Vancouver. Öhgren hopes to develop into a middle-six winger.

For what it’s worth, the Wild have lost six of their last nine so it’s not like the Canucks are running into a buzz saw.

Was curious yesterday on Canucks Live where we ran a poll of your thoughts on the best Canucks GM. Results had Brian Burke at 55 per cent, Mike Gills and Pat Quinn at 23 per cent.

I understand the Burke love, he pulled off the trade for the Sedins which was bold, complicated and set the table for the best Canucks era ever. But Gillis had a direct hand in that era. The whole ‘Burkie’ persona versus Gillis’ is something that still gets a reaction in Vancouver.

No Canucks Live tomorrow as it’s Good Friday so everyone enjoy your long weekend and go find some eggs.

Check back for more Canucks news throughout the day.

Canucks Coffee: What blossoming blueliner Zeev Buium can learn from Quinn Hughes

Canucks Player Grades: Brock Boeser bags hat trick in wild 8-6 win over Avalanche

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Canucks Live: Beating the best, now bring on Quinn Hughes

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