On January 25, Vancouver Canucks forward Brock Boeser received an elbow to the head that would ultimately keep him out until after the 2026 Winter Olympic Games concluded. While he’d previously returned to Vancouver’s practices in a regular jersey, at today’s practice, the forward wore a red non-contact jersey.
Why was this the case?
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Throughout the past little while, the Canucks have had some sort of bug making its way through the dressing room. When Vancouver first returned to practice on February 17, Conor Garland was the lone player to not return to the ice. Canucks Head Coach Adam Foote later revealed this was due to illness.
That same day, Boeser had been requested for media availability but was unable to speak as he wasn’t feeling well. It was these illness symptoms that led to the Canucks putting Boeser in a non-contact jersey today. The main concern from the organization was that the symptoms had to do with the concussion he’d sustained back on January 25, though it was more done out of an abundance of caution rather than suspicion.
“He didn’t feel good a couple days ago, and they had to make sure […] that it was actually viral and not his concussion, right? So they’re just doing the right thing with the protocol.”
From Foote’s perspective, things are trending positively in the direction of Boeser being A-Ok to get back in a regular jersey for tomorrow’s practice.
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“[He had] a couple things going on, not being on the ice as much with the injury, and having the break, and then getting through the concussion, and then you have a viral on top of it, and tried to condition. And he went out there. He didn’t want to leave, but I think the therapists wanted to do the right thing, just because the concussion was in play. And then once you get caught up in that you’ve got to make sure it is the viral, and you still have to go through the protocol of the NHL coming back your first skate in a red jersey.”
Time will tell whether Boeser’s symptoms of sickness have to do with his concussion or the locker room’s illness, but for now, it appears to be trending in the direction of the latter.
Jan 25, 2026; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks forward Brock Boeser (6) skates against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images
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