Foligno's work at the top of the crease in recent games has helped the B's top unit find its footing after a sluggish start to the season, while impressing coach Bruce Cassidy in the process.
"Nick is a true net presence," said Cassidy, whose club has jumped to fifth in the league with a 25.5% success rate on the power play. "He likes to live at the top of the blue paint whereas Taylor [Hall] was moving around a little more. And that's fine, each has different attributes.
"With Nick being at the top there [Sunday] night and how we saw [Vancouver] killing, we thought it was good for him to plant himself there and we can make some plays around that. He did a real good job in there occupying space."
Foligno, meanwhile, also appears to be finding his all-around game after missing eight games earlier this season due to an upper-body injury. The 34-year-old has picked up three assists in his last three games and developed some quick chemistry with new linemates Trent Frederic and Karson Kuhlman against the Canucks.
"I actually liked it a lot," Foligno said of the trio. "Especially for those guys stepping back into the lineup…Freddy, coming off a head injury, sometimes you can be a little hesitant, but I thought he just dove right in. They're fun because they're straight-line guys, hard workers and they talk a lot, too, which is nice.
"There's a lot of communication on the ice which I think just helps when you're trying to figure somebody out. I think we can be a real good line for our team, especially the energy aspect. The whole night, we pretty played in their end. It was fun. It was a great start."