The NHL’s Olympic break serves different purposes, depending on who you ask.

For most, it’s a chance to rest, especially with a schedule that’s been as condensed as this year’s, thanks to NHL players participating in the Winter Olympics. Obviously, that list of players doesn’t include those who travelled to Italy to compete in the Games.

For players on teams near or in a playoff spot – which a quick glance at the NHL standings tells you there are still a good number of – it’s a brief pause before the push toward the playoffs. A chance to rest the body and reset the mind in preparation for what can be a gruelling stretch run, which will then lead into the always physically taxing nature of NHL playoff hockey.

For players on teams who aren’t heading to the playoffs, it’s more like a chance to get away from the office. Playing on a losing team isn’t much fun, after all. Vancouver Canucks forward Jake DeBrusk falls into the latter category, but used the break for more than just rest. DeBrusk reflected on his season to this point, and spoke about his mindset as he and his team prepare for the final stretch of the 2025-26 season.

“I think individually, what a bye week usually does for you is it kind of gives you time to think about how your season’s going,” DeBrusk told a pool of reporters after the Canucks’ first post-break practice at UBC on Tuesday. “Sometimes you want to get away from that, but the more time you have, the more you realize what’s upcoming.”

What’s upcoming for DeBrusk and the Canucks is more of the same frustrations that have defined a season unlike any other in franchise history. The Canucks sit dead last in the NHL standings with a record of 18-33-6. Of course, that’s a staggering fall from a team that made the playoffs just two seasons ago. That team, that won the Pacific Division and took the Edmonton Oilers to Game 7 of the second round, is the one DeBrusk thought he was joining when he signed a seven-year deal in the summer of 2024.

A lot has happened since then, but most notably, Quinn Hughes and JT Miller have both been traded, and the Canucks have finally seemingly committed to the idea of a rebuild. But that’s not exactly what DeBrusk, who turns 30 in October, signed up for. So what exactly are DeBrusk and his teammates playing for now, in a season that’s seemed loss since November? 

“I mean, you obviously want to just put your strongest game forward. You just control what you can and bring the best effort you can. And, you know, obviously, playoffs aren’t necessarily going to be in our future… But you understand that there’s lots of things individually you play for. It’s the best league in the world, and it’s not like you’re going out there to not play for something. At the very least, play for your teammates. And that’s kind of how I’m looking at it.”

“It’s been the hardest year of my career, to be honest… I think when things happen, you look at yourself and you always feel like you’re going through it the worst, but everyone in the room is, and it’s sometimes you know, not necessarily easy to think about that when your world is kind of reeling, but that’s what the break’s for. It kind of makes you look at a bigger scope.”

After the break, DeBrusk, who served as a healthy scratch earlier this season, sounds focused on finishing the season strong, but more importantly, being a good teammate and leader amid all the losing.

“I think that that’s something that, you know, I’m an older player, you know, I do have a lot of experience, a lot of playoff experience. I’ve been on a lot of good teams, played a lot of great players, and I think, when things are going good, everyone’s going to be in a good mood and everyone’s going to be doing their best. But I think character really shows when things aren’t going well. And that’s something that I have had to learn a lot about myself this year through the good and the bad. So I think that that’s something that I can control and that’s something that I’m looking forward to… I think that we can be more together and build in the right direction. It’s easy to say, it’s hard to do. You got to do it every single day. But, you know, for me, I think that that’s something that I need to be better at, for sure.”

The Canucks won’t be making the playoffs this season, but they hope to start building in the right direction as they seek to assemble a young core that could become the next great Canucks team. But before that, they need to go through some growing pains, and hopefully leaders like DeBrusk will help keep the club’s work ethic and overall vibe high through what could be multiple lean years.

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