Beat pressure with pressure. It’s the constant refrain of Vancouver Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet. He knows his club has to push the pace and get in the face of the opposition, especially if it expects to stay in the playoff race to claim the final NHL wild-card position.

Boeser has had the most success of his Canucks tenure when riding shotgun with Miller. Miller’s playmaking ability down low was an excellent fit with Boeser’s finishing ability from the inner slot. With Miller gone, the risk and uncertainty around committing a six- or seven-year contract to Boeser increases.

Nine months ago, J.T. Miller became the seventh player in Vancouver Canucks history to register a 100-point season. “Right now, it doesn’t really even seem real,” a dejected Quinn Hughes told Sportsnet’s Dan Murphy after a 5-3 Canucks loss to the Dallas Stars on Friday.