Canucks Summer Faceoff: Which is more likely – Boeser 35 goals or Garland 25 goals?

Less than a month away from training camp, it’s time to start thinking about the way the 2025-26 season may unfold for members of the Vancouver Canucks in JPat’s Canucks Summer Faceoff.

For the second straight year, CanucksArmy is conducting a late-summer thought exercise. All week, we will present a pair of options and ask you which is more likely to occur. Without the benefit of a crystal ball, of course, it’s impossible to know how things will go. So we will present cases for both scenarios, and we’re looking for your gut reaction to which one is more likely to happen by season’s end.

Brock Boeser scores 35 goals or Conor Garland scores 25?

Boeser

In the past three seasons, Brock Boeser has scored 18, 40 and 25 goals. So it’s anybody’s guess where he’ll land in the 2025-26 season. It seems logical to suggest Boeser will skate on a line with Elias Pettersson. Those two have flashed chemistry in the past and will need to find it again. But there are questions surrounding Pettersson’s game, and those could very well impact Boeser’s bottom line. But between top line minutes and first power play unit duties, Boeser should be in a position to push for the team lead in goals next season. And the club will need him to be among its best scorers.

The 40-goal season may very well stand as Boeser’s high-water mark for his career, but he certainly has the tools to be a 35-goal guy. Much would have to go Boeser’s way for him to get there, starting with him shooting the puck more than he did last year. In his 40-goal campaign, the Burnsville, MN native registered 204 shots on goal. Last season, that total dropped to just 145 – the second-lowest total of his time in the NHL.

Garland

Conor Garland has been remarkably consistent in his four seasons with the Canucks. He’s generally in the 20-goal and 50-point range. But only once in those four seasons has he reached the 20-goal mark. So asking him to score 25 may be a stretch.

The feisty winger scored a career-best 22 goals in 68 games in his first full NHL season in Arizona. That’s a 27-goal pace, so he has scored at a rate that would have made him a 25-goal guy over a full schedule. Garland had developed a strong rapport with Rick Tocchet, having played for him in both Arizona and Vancouver. It remains to be seen how he’ll be deployed under first-year head coach Adam Foote.

All of Garland’s success begins with an incomparable work ethic, but it is fair to wonder how much room for growth he has in his game at the age of 29. Then again, with a few bounces, it’s not inconceivable to think the Scituate, MA native could bump his goal total from 19 last season to 25 next season. Garland scored seven times on the power play last season and netted a pair of overtime winners, too. Those are both areas he should be able to contribute to again in 2025-26. Garland has established a fairly firm floor in terms of his expected production. We’ll have to see if there is room for him to push his ceiling a little higher.

Which is more likely to happen?

Brock Boeser has been a 35-goal scorer. He’s been there and done that. Conor Garland has never reached the 25-goal mark.

Boeser should find himself in the types of roles required to chase 35 goals next season. That doesn’t mean that he’ll get there, but between top-line minutes and prime power play opportunities, the Canucks will be looking for Boeser to show that he’s certainly a 30-goal guy for the second time in his career.

Garland brings energy and determination to every shift and has added penalty killing responsibilities to his game. He finds a variety of ways to contribute, and his value isn’t necessarily measured simply by goals. The Canucks would likely sign up for another 20-goal and 50-point season from Garland. 

Verdict

Brock Boeser is more likely to score 35 goals.

What do you think, Canucks fans? What’s your verdict: Will Brock Boeser score 35 goals, or will Conor Garland score 25?