VANCOUVER — With dozens of family and friends in the stands on Saturday night, Fraser Minten played hero against his hometown team.
The 21-year-old center hit a powerful shot from the top with 19 seconds left in overtime to lift the Boston Bruins to a 3-2 victory over the Vancouver Canucks.
It was Minten's second goal of the night, marking his first NHL game at Rogers Arena.
“You can’t describe a better scenario,” Bruins head coach Marco Sturm said.
“He's a young guy who grew up here, right around the corner, begging for tickets to watch the Canucks game, and what a game he had today. Not just the two goals, but overall, he's just really happy for him and his family. I think he had about 100 people tonight, so the guy couldn't have had a better night.”
Selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the second round of the 2022 draft, Minten had already played 65 regular-season NHL games before Saturday's contest.
But none of them took place in Vancouver.
The young Bruin brought up much of the lower bowl late in the first period when, from the middle slot, he blasted a one-touch goal past Canucks goaltender Kevin Lankinen on a power play late in the first period.
Minten celebrated by getting down on one knee and pumping her fist enthusiastically.
When asked what his nine-year-old self might have thought about that moment, Minten was at a loss for words.
“I probably won’t believe it,” he said.
“It's really cool for me and all my friends too. They all grew up with me dreaming the same thing. So to do it here, I hope they're all watching.”
Boston (22-18-2) acquired Minten — a 2025 fourth-round draft pick and a conditional 2026 first-round draft pick — from Toronto in exchange for defenseman Brandon Carlo at the March trade deadline.
Part of Minten's deal paid off this season.
The six-foot-two, 204-pound forward now has eight goals and nine assists for the Bruins and is averaging 14:44 playing time through his first 42 games.
“He's a kid who brought it. He hasn't had to learn much. He's in this league for a reason, and he carries himself like a pro,” Boston goaltender Jeremy Swayman said.
“He puts himself in a great position because number one, he's an elite player. Number two, he's a great teammate. And number three, he works everything out. He's a Bruin in every way, and he's the guy we want in our locker room, and he's going to carry that culture for a long time.”
According to Sturm, Minten also earned the trust of the coaching staff, which is why he took the ice in overtime on Saturday.
“Trust usually comes with time, and he gave me that,” the coach said. “So it's more him than me. I'm just an idiot who's going to put him on the ice, so he deserves everything.”
“(I) give him a lot of credit… There are nights when it doesn't work out, but I'm glad he had the opportunity and he'll remember it for a long, long time.”
BACK TO BACK
The Canucks (16-20-5) lost 4-3 to the Seattle Kraken in a shootout on Friday but outshot the Bruins 33-21 and outshot them 35-18.
“Obviously you get more tired of back-to-back games, but I think our approach has to be the same every game,” said defenseman Filip Hronek, who had a goal and an assist on Saturday.
“We just need to continue to build on that and take the positives out of this game.”
DISADVANTAGES OF HOMEMADE ICE
Vancouver's struggles at Rogers Arena continue as the team's home record drops to 4-12-3.
The Canucks haven't won at home since Dec. 6, when they beat the Minnesota Wild 4-2.
They also won't have the opportunity to change the narrative anytime soon, as the team won't play another home game until Jan. 17 when they host the Edmonton Oilers.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 4, 2026.
