‘We need B pluses’: Vancouver Canucks seek consistency to snap slump

VANCOUVER — Jake DeBrusk has been through slumps before.

The Vancouver Canucks winger has weathered patches where the puck simply won’t go into the back of the net off his stick and skids where his team just can’t find a win.

He’s mired in both at the moment.

Vancouver lingers at the very bottom of the NHL standings with an 11-16-3 record after going 2-7-1 over the last 10 games.

“I think as a team collectively, you’re not gonna have your A game every single night. But right now, we need B pluses,” DeBrusk said after practice Wednesday.

“We just need to bring a little bit more and, at the same point, have a little bit of swagger when it starts going our way. I think that the best goals are the ones that you get when you earn them, when it’s just an absolute grind to find one, those ones feel the best.”

Goals have been tough for the 29-year-old forward to come by in recent outings. After putting up six goals and two assists over 10 games in November, his scoring touch has gone cold recently, with one helper over his last seven appearances.

“It’s just a game of inches, honestly. And sometimes the hockey gods like you, and sometimes they don’t — at least for me, anyways,” he said.

Breaking out of a slump is about consistency and details for a player and team alike, DeBrusk added.

“When things are going against you, you have to go back to things that you’ve leaned on your whole career,” he said.

There are no silver linings during a difficult stretch like the one the Canucks are going through, said defenceman Marcus Pettersson.

“The league moves on without you if you don’t win games,” he said. “And so it’s frustrating that way. But at the same time, I think you can’t fault our effort. I think we’re battling hard. We’re deflated, but we’re battling. We’re together out there, and if we keep playing an honest game, I think the results are going to come.”

The Canucks have struggled to stay healthy all season and had five players on the injured list for Monday’s 4-0 loss to the Detroit Red Wings. Star centre Elias Pettersson also missed the game with an upper-body ailment, but has not been added to the IR.

Head coach Adam Foote said Pettersson skated before practice on Wednesday but likely won’t be in the lineup when Vancouver hosts the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday.

The Canucks are expected to get a key player back for the outing, though, with all-star netminder Thatcher Demko slated to start in goal.

The 30-year-old from San Diego, Calif., has played just 10 games this season due to injuries.

“He’s such a good goalie,” said Marcus Pettersson. “He was off to a great start this year, and it’s unfortunate that he was out. But we’re so happy to have him back and in our lineup. … It’s huge for us.”

The rash of injuries saw several young players injected into the lineup and they’ve all been learning on the fly, Foote said.

Now that they’ve had some experience, he added, it’s time for those athletes to showcase those lessons in games.

“We were in a phase of giving the comments to the young guys, keeping the morale up of the older guys,” the coach said. “And now, we’re getting into ‘OK, guys don’t get comfortable here. Let’s get some more grit. Let’s focus on what you’ve been taught.’”

There have been times where staff have sensed the frustration and brought players in to have a talk. Staying positive during a difficult stretch requires a lot of patience, Foote added.

“Everyone wants to win. Everyone can be frustrated or get frustrated,” he said. “We’re all towing together, and we’re in a situation where these are the cards we’re dealt, and we have to deal with it. And now, if we keep going and believing and keep working on it, they’re going to start going in.”

Despite Vancouver’s recent run of form, the team sits just six points out of a playoff position.

A schedule condensed by February’s Olympic break has made for tight standings that can change quickly, DeBrusk said.

“You look and you go, ‘OK, well, we can only go up.’ And at the same point, it’s not up by much. Because there’s gonna be different things with different teams that go up and down, right?” he said.

“But we’ve gotta worry about what’s in here for us. We’ve gotta be able to keep doing what we’ve been doing in terms of some of some the good things and clean up the bad things and just win.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 10, 2025.