Ask any Vancouver Canucks fan what has them most interested right now with their team, and the number one answer isn't even open to debate. Clear as day, how serious is Brock Boeser's injury?
This has been the case since Thursday night, when Boeser was the victim of a cheap hit from the Kings' Tanner Jeannot. And for anyone who wants to accuse us of bias, we'll just point towards the NHL subsequently suspending Jeannot for three games for an illegal check to the head.
Of course anytime a player gets hit in the head, it's almost going to make it even more concerning in a lot of ways. The questions is though, how long can the Canucks expect the two-time NHL All-Star to be out of action?
And the update is ... ?
We have no doubt that fans have been on social media these past two days, refreshing their feeds and eagerly waiting for the news on Boeser's health, and we're now happy to let you know there has indeed been an update. Well, sort of.
As per Scott Mitchell of Canucks Army, general manager Patrik Allvin met with the media on Saturday morning to discuss a number of things, including the status of Boeser. However, the answer was not exactly the one fans were hoping for, in any respect.
As noted by Mitchell, Allvin said the 2015 first round draft pick is still being evaluated for his head injury. (He actually said upper body injury, but that's just the frustrating norm in the NHL.) So in other words, we still don't know how serious the situation is.
Canucks playing it cautiously
Now of course, we're not criticising the Canucks, who are quite right in not rushing something as important as a head issue, and taking all necessary precautions. This is more to do with reflecting the anxiety felt within the fan base, wanting to know primarily if Boeser is okay, but secondly how long the Canucks can expect to be without him?
All we do know at this stage, is that the 27-year-old will not be playing on Saturday night against the Edmonton Oilers. Of course the irony in this is not lost, in that it was expected that the Oilers would be without Connor McDavid, but he's since made a quicker than anticipated recovery.
No doubt Canucks fans will be hoping for a similar scenario when it comes to Boeser. He was the team's top goal-scorer last season with 40, and so far leads them again in 2024-25, with six goals in 12 games.
Of note, Allvin did also provide a couple of other injury updates. He said he's hopeful that Dakota Joshua can play during this six-game homestand, while admitting there was no updated timeline for Thatcher Demko's return.