Canucks’ Boeser out indefinitely after illegal hit

Vancouver Canucks forward Brock Boeser is out indefinitely after he absorbed a hit to the head from Tanner Jeannot of the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday night.

Coach Rick Tocchet said he wasn’t sure how long Boeser, Vancouver’s leading scorer, would be out.

“I talked to him briefly,” Tocchet said. “Doesn’t feel great, but I wouldn’t say it’s horrible, so I think he’s indefinite right now. These things can change [in] a week or 24 hours. I don’t know.”

Midway through the first period of the Canucks’ 4-2 win over the Kings, Jeannot was assessed a match penalty for an illegal check to Boeser’s head. The NHL Department of Player Safety suspended Jeannot for three games Friday.

Boeser left the game in Los Angeles and missed the Canucks’ game Saturday night, a 7-3 loss to the Edmonton Oilers.

“It’s a dangerous play, and hopefully Brock is going to be OK,” Tocchet said.

Boeser leads the Canucks with six goals in 12 games, and he has 11 total points.

The Canucks called up 20-year-old forward Jonathan Lekkerimaki from Abbotsford of the American Hockey League on Sunday in Boeser’s absence. The No. 15 selection of the 2022 NHL draft, Lekkerimaki could make his NHL debut when the Calgary Flames visit Vancouver on Tuesday.

At Abbotsford, he had seven points (five goals, two assists) in seven games.