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Scenes from practice: Maintenance days once again for Canucks veterans Hronek, Boeser & Kane; all expected to play vs. LA
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Photo credit: © Bob Frid-USA TODAY Sports
Jeff Paterson
Mar 25, 2026, 17:47 EDTUpdated: Mar 25, 2026, 18:38 EDT
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There are only a dozen games remaining on the Vancouver Canucks schedule. With travel and team days off, there may not be more than five practices left for the hockey club this season. One of the remaining workouts occurred on Wednesday morning at Rogers Arena.

What we saw

As has been the case in recent weeks, veterans Filip Hronek, Brock Boeser and Evander Kane were once again granted maintenance days and excused from practice. All three were in uniform and played regular shifts in Tuesday’s 5-3 loss to Anaheim. All are expected to be ready to suit up on Thursday when the Canucks close out their eight-game homestand against Los Angeles. Adam Foote did not want to discuss the specific nature of the absences for his three players today. Given how often Hronek and Boeser have missed practices of late, it’s clear those two are playing through some sort of injury. However, Foote said at this point, it is unlikely that a workhorse like Hronek will be held out of the lineup. 
Minus three regulars, the Canucks didn’t conduct line rushes at practice. Instead, the team did a number of pace and battle drills. At one point, Zeev Buium and Liam Öhgren got into a spirited tussle that looked like it had the potential to boil over before cooler heads prevailed.
Following practice, Foote told the media that his plan for the moment is to play Evander Kane in each of the next three games to get the winger to the 1,000-game mark without delay. If that plan holds true, Kane would reach the milestone at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas next Monday night. Foote conceded that he had considered sitting Kane out for a couple of games on next week’s road trip to enable the Vancouver native to play his 1,000th game at Rogers Arena.
Foote did not name a starting goalie for Thursday’s contest with the Kings. After four straight starts for Kevin Lankinen, it feels like it’s time for Nikita Tolopilo to return to the net for the first time since a 5-2 loss to Seattle on March 14th. Three of the Canucks’ final 12 games are against Los Angeles. It’s actually three of the final 11 for the Kings against the Canucks. So Vancouver will definitely have a role in the Kings’ push for a playoff spot. LA is currently three points back of Nashville in the race for the final wild card spot in the Western Conference. The Kings are four back of Vegas for third spot in the Pacific Division, and they hold a game in hand on the Golden Knights.
Injured forward Filip Chytil still has a locker stall with full equipment in the Canucks locker room. The Canucks confirm that Chytil has skated on his own since suffering fractured facial bones in a freak practice accident in late February. However, there is no chance that Chytil will suit up again this season. He has one year remaining on his contract, and it is unclear at this point if he’ll be fully healthy and whether he intends to attempt another return to action at training camp.

What we heard

Adam Foote on plan for Evander Kane’s 1000th game: “It’s funny you ask, because I actually thought last night about asking him. Part of me wants to ask him and part of me doesn’t want to kabuki with an injury or something. Maybe I’ll ask him. When you start getting into stuff like that, you kind of mess up rhythm of players and or your team and you put that ahead of the team even though it’s such a great milestone. Right now I’m leaning not and just leaving it alone and it falls where it falls.”
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