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The Stanchies: Hronek and the BRÖ Line lead Canucks to comeback win vs. Predators
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Photo credit: © Simon Fearn-Imagn Images
Lachlan Irvine
Mar 13, 2026, 12:00 EDTUpdated: Mar 13, 2026, 13:08 EDT
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Every tank deserves a day off.
The Canucks have done a phenomenal job steering the Titanic towards the iceburg since the calendar flipped to 2026. They’ve won so few games you could count them on one hand, and are slowly but surely solidifying their chances at the best draft lottery odds. So on a night where nearly every other bottom feeder won, why not seize that opportunity for one of their best games of the season?
The Nashville Predators are one point out from the final playoff spot in the Western Conference, but they sure didn’t look like one that belongs in that conversation. The Canucks seemed to outhustle them and win every key puck battle when it counted. If not for the play of Juuse Saros in net, this game might not have needed 65+ minutes to sort out.
But the Canucks’ bad luck (or bad ice) was nearly strong enough to overpower their own good efforts. The Preds took a 3-1 lead late into the third period thanks to some insane bounces that Nashville was able to jump on.
So the Canucks had to settle for an insane two-goal comeback in the final five minutes of the game, culminating in a shootout winner by Jake DeBrusk and a much, much happier crowd leaving Rogers Arena.  Unless you count that very Senators-heavy one from the last game. Fil Hronek had himself an incredibly strong game, including potting the tying goal. And the newfound chemistry of Brock Boeser, Marco Rossi and Liam Öhgren – the BRÖ Line, if you will – created all three of the team’s goals.
You’re allowed to steer around some of the smaller icebergs as long as you hit the big one at the end. Never let go, Jack.
Best Double Doink
The first goal of the night set the table for the kind of bounces that’d prevail in this game, but this goal took some coordination.
Fil Hronek’s low shot through the middle of the ice took a pair of deflections like a pinball machine. The first was off Marco Rossi’s stick in the high slot. The second was off Brock Boeser’s blade that slid past Saros’ unsuspecting left leg.
Sometimes you hit those paddles at the right time, but the pinball just lands in the wrong place.
Best How the Turn Tables
It’s weird whenever the Canucks actually dominate an opponent. Sure, these aren’t the Colorado Avalanche or anything, but they might as well be against the quality of this Canucks roster. Rossi nearly set up Brock again in the first period when he got a pass for him into the slot, but Saros read it in time.
Rossi is already having himself a night, I wonder if he’ll factor back in later.
And those weren’t the only grade A chances of the game. Drew O’Connor had a pair of them as well, including this breakaway opportunity earlier in the contest that Saros shut down.
Later he got a shot at an open net off an EP40 pass, but just couldn’t pick it up cleanly.
https://media.giphy.com/media/99ykOswkjveFdonozA/giphy.gif
Best Death, Taxes…
If you didn’t expect the Canucks to give up the tying goal in a period they dominated, this must be your first day on this beat. Lucky you!
The Preds only had two shots until the final minute and a half, and Justin Barron cutting towards the net was their third. Tyson Jost, parked in front of the net without any pressure, was able to get two clean whacks at the rebound on Tolopilo. The second cleared his outstretched pad.
This final stretch of the season is all about learning. And what Zeev Buium and Victor Mancini learned here was how not to let a guy stand in front of their goaltender.
Best Uno, Jost, Tres
The Predators’ fourth line victimized the Canucks again in the second period, and it once again was the result of some strange bounces.
After a clean offensive zone faceoff win, Roman Josi’s initial one-timer sailed into the glass behind the net. The puck bounced right through two Preds and two Canucks along the goal line chasing it, and landed right in Tyson Jost’s wheelhouse. Jost ripped it over Tolopilo’s shoulder for his second goal in seven minutes of play.
Seven is also the number of shots the Predators had as a group up to this point. And Jost was responsible for three of them. Sounds about right.
Best WrestleMania II
One game ago, Linus Karlsson hit Artem Zub with a stone cold stunner (at least I think that’s what it was, I’m not the wrestling guy who writes this column). Tonight, it was Marco Rossi’s turn to tag in after Jost hit him with a dirty hit from behind. Rossi went right back at him and brought him to the ground with a front facelock.
Even with the fight on the ground, I’d give Rossi the belt.
Best Nanaimo Bar
If the goals in this game couldn’t get any weirder, Nashville’s third was the oddest of the bunch. And it was thanks to the work of Nanaimo native Matthew Wood, who took advantage of a bounce off the skate blade of Liam Öhgren and bounced past Tolopilo for his 14th goal.
The 21-year-old Wood has been one of the brightest lights in a tough season for the Predators, and tonight he got to score in a game against his hometown team with a large contingency of his family and friends in the building. And he’s actively trying to help the Canucks improve for the long term by solidifying their status in last place. Once a Canucks fan, always a Canucks fan.
Best Microcosm
If there was a play that had illustrated the Canucks’ season/year/night up to that point, it was probably this shot attempt by Zeev Buium.
He lines up, picks his spot and… WEEEEEEEEEEEE!
Legend has it that half of his stick is still flying.
Best Rewarded
Marco Rossi’s fingerprints were all over this game. He’d had a huge hand in Boeser’s goal in the first period, so it was only fair that he got rewarded with a lucky break in the final five minutes.
Liam Öhgren’s shot took a sky-high bounce off of Nick Perbix (did the NHL game ops staff not turn on the freezer they keep the pucks in?) and rolled into the slot. Öhgren got another crack at the shot; this time Saros was able to get a piece, and it deflected right to Rossi waiting at the side of the net.
Rossi absolutely deserved that goal for his play tonight. Even if it’s inevitably going to be in another losing effort.
Best Right Place, Hron Time
The beauty of the Canucks is that once you completely stop believing in them, that’s the minute they show up in a big way.
With the goalie pulled and a minute to go, Hronek and Boeser linked up for a one-timer that went wide. Rossi corralled the rebound, found Boeser back at the blue line, and Brock slid it over Hronek near the top of the faceoff circle.
Hronek made no mistake through the layered screen in front of Saros. Tie game.
Look how happy those players are. This is the most genuine joy they’ve felt on the ice in a long, long time.
Off to extras!
Best Chance for a Hero
EP40 very nearly ended this game in overtime. His linemate Jake DeBrusk sure thought he could, as evidenced by his ‘you got the lane!’ hand gesture on the ensuing 2-on-1. Petey got in as close as he could and tried to deke Saros out, but ran out of space.
A different EP40 probably takes the shot a lot sooner. But not this one. Where did that Petey go? We’re all worried and looking for him.
Best Turn of Events
The Canucks only needed one goal in the shootout. Jake DeBrusk hooked in from the left, cut to the middle and slyly lifted the puck over Saros’ blocker with the kind of trickery that infuriates goalies. A saveable shot that’s so smart it can’t be tracked properly. Perfect.
For the Predators, they had the misfortune of trying to beat Nikita Tolopilo in a shootout. A goalie that covers so much net in his set position, it’s like trying to wrap a puck around a mountain. Steven Stamkos tried to go against the grain to keep the game going, and it was nowhere close. Ball game.
A game where a team that needs two points got one and a team that needs none got two. How can you not be romantic about hockey?
Best Progress
The Canucks might finally have a practice facility coming up. And that’s the best news the team has had in a very long time.
I went to check out Britannia yesterday morning, and it’s got a gorgeous brand new sheet of ice, boards and glass. But the entire arena around it really could use some upgrades, and hopefully, an agreement between the city and the Canucks will provide that. Its location is ideal, its connection to the community and its history are important, and how building a true NHL standard practice facility could revitalize the area is obvious.
There’s still a lot of work to get any such deal across the finish line, including how the team will make sure the rink still lives up to its community responsibilities and who’s expected to foot the majority of the bill. It’s hard to celebrate this news without thinking about the times we’ve all been burned before. But hopefully shovels will make it into the ground, and we’ll all be sitting watching practice at a new facility along Commercial Drive some time in the near future.

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