Da Beauty League
is an organized group of scrimmages that gives players an opportunity to play in a semi-competitive environment in the summer. Games were played on Wednesday nights throughout July and then on Monday and Wednesday nights during August.
It's about having fun and working off the rust but it is a step above your average off-season training for professionals, particularly because the stands were packed with fans every week. It creates an atmosphere that can't be replicated in your standard neighbourhood rink.
The rink is full of kids and families with signed merchandise given away every week.
It's such a family-oriented event that Brock's dad, Duke, was the head coach for Team BIC and was named the Coach of the Year for the league.
Taking place in Edina, Minnesota, there are quite a few players that spend their off-seasons in the area and this event was born as a chance to get out on the ice and have something on the line. Some of the other notable players this year included Dustin Byfuglien, Jake Guentzel, Anders Lee, Derek Stepan, and Sam Reinhart.
Given that it is just a glorified bunch of scrimmages that just happen to be streamed online with live commentary, it's important to not take too much away from the games. The aforementioned John Scott Cup is an actual keg, which is a pretty clear indicator of the level of seriousness in the league.
With that in mind, the players are not giving it 100% throughout the game and aren't looking to get in hard on the forecheck or finish their checks. They may ramp it up a bit when the clock is winding down and the score is close but it's never close to professional levels.
From a Canucks fan standpoint, there is something to take away from Boeser's performance over the last few weeks. Boeser had his season cut short last season due to a back injury that occurred on March 5th. He had also been battling some wrist ailment throughout the course of the year.
What jumped off the screen for Boeser was his shot and ability to get going with those first two strides. It was clear that he was a there was some rust to shake off to start the event in July, but after a few sessions, he was quicker in his accelerations and pivots. More confident with making plays, no matter how silly they appeared and his shot was back to it's usual hard and accurate self.
