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Most Intriguing Names to Watch on Canucks Young Stars Roster


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Guillaume Brisebois: (D)

When the Canucks sent Eddie Lack packing and fans in Vancouver were devastated by the loss of a favorite name, General Manager Jim Benning used his return a 2015 3rd round pick to pick up Guillaume Brisebois out the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. At 6-foot-2 and 179 lbs Brisebois is still a frame waiting to be filled out but according to Benning [the Canucks] got a player at top of the third round in Brisebois that we really liked. Benning went on to explain that Brisebois was gauged as having top-four potential.

Ashton Sautner: (D)

Remember a little guy named Chris Tanev, signed as an undrafted free agent defenseman out of Rochester Institute of Technology? Nobody knew who the kid was, in fact he was never supposed to play an NHL game. Well that Chris Tanev just signed a 5-year, $22.5 million dollar extension with the Vancouver Canucks. The undrafted Ashton Sautner, who is documented at 6-foot-1 and 193 lbs, possesses some of the same impressive yet subtle qualities that Tanev did as a youngster.

In Sautners 20-year old season in the Western Hockey League he recorded 51 points in 72 games from the blueline while wearing the C for the Edmonton Oil Kings. Sautner was never drafted to the NHL but did earn himself a three-year entry level deal with the Canucks in March of 2015 after a stellar over-age season.

Rodrigo Abols: ©

Anytime a team can grab a young Eastern European player that has had experience in the Kontinental Hockey League, there is a legitimate possibility that he holds NHL capabilities. In Rodrigo Abols the Canucks are seeking Latvian name, one similar to the undrafted energy forward Ronalds Kenins, who signed a one-year, one-way deal for the upcoming season.

Abols (6-foot-3, 179 lbs), who was undrafted before his invitation to the Canucks Young Stars tournament, only suited up for 14 games with Dinamo Riga (KHL) in 2015-16 but he found himself with 38 points in just 35 games playing for their farm team HK Riga. He signed a contract with the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League for the 2015-16 season as he is too young to play in the AHL or ECHL at 19 years old.

Hunter Shinkaruk: (LW)

Oh, the questions that surround the inevitable Hunter Shinkaruk. His speed, scoring and intensity are undeniably ready but Shinkaruk cant seem to, well, grow. He still stands at 6-foot-2???, and
Shinkaruk had a strong first season in the AHL, but inconsistencies have held him back from the NHL.

Shinkaruk had a strong first season in the AHL, but inconsistencies have held him back from the NHL. He still stands at 6-foot-2??? and 179 lbs. At that height he should be able to carry more muscle, but injuries and inconsistencies have hindered Shinkaruks progress as a professional.

He had a strong year in Utica netting 16 goals and 31 points in 74 games while helping his team to a Calder Cup Final appearance but Shinkaruk has been subtly unseated by Jake Virtanen and Cole Cassels as the next big thing for the Canucks.

Jackson Whistle: (G)

Kelowna Rockets Goaltender Jackson Whistle makes his second consecutive appearance at the Canucks Young Stars tournament, but this year he is coming off a 50 game, 34 win season where he carried his team to the Memorial Cup Final. After falling to fellow Canucks prospect, forward Cassels, Whistle will look to engrave his name in the Canucks goaltending hierarchy behind Jacob Markstrom, Thatcher Demko and Joe Cannata.

After three seasons as a Western League backup, Whistle proved that he has starting capabilities, and he did so in a winning fashion. In the 50 regular season games he played he recorded a 2.55 GAA and .909 SV%.
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Poor article with typical hockey writers errors. I am curious however if Abols is able to be signed. The rules on European players is confusing at best. My understanding of it after reading the CBA is that (i) If a player is drafted to the CHL before said player is drafted to the NHL said player shall not be permitted to play in any affiliated minor professional league (ii) If a player is drafted into the NHL prior to being drafted by the CHL said player shall be allowed to play in affiliated minor professional leagues or in the NHL provided said player agrees to terms of a conract with such NHL organization. However there doesn't seem to be much stipulation on signing said European players;furthermore there appears to be no rules on the age restriction of a player to be able to sign with a NHL club.

Also any player in any league may opt out of being draft eligible should the want to sign with any club they please.

There doesn't appear to be any rules on if said European player revokes there free agent eligibility or draft eligibility by either staying in europe or playing in the CHL. Aboles as an example is turning 20 on January 5 2016 the date cut off for draft eligibility for a player is they must be under the age of 20 before December 31st of the upcoming draft year; which in turn should mean that Aboles would be over the age of 20 by that date, meaning he should be eligible to be signed as a free agent right now. Am I correct? wrong? missing something?

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Uninformed article seemingly written by people who've never actually seen any of these players in person. There's not one piece of information in the piece that couldn't have been cut/pasted from some other Internet articles. Sadly this is becoming the norm in digital media these days.

At least guys like MacKenzie and Ferraro interact with the players and add additional insights.

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Lol garbage article. I like that they're giving some of these guys credit, but not one single write up really goes beyond size and stats, and simply saying that they want to make the NHL at some point.

Anyways, I'll try to hi-jack this thread and say the province has been writing up short bios of prospects heading into the tournie. Today it was Ben Hutton's turn, link here: http://blogs.theprovince.com/2015/09/04/canucks-young-stars-who-are-these-guys-ben-hutton/

Earlier this week, Gaunce was covered: http://blogs.theprovince.com/2015/09/01/canucks-young-stars-who-are-these-guys-brendan-gaunce/

A lot of focus will be around guys like McCann, Shinkaruk and Virtanen, but there is so much talent beyond just them. I'm looking forward to the tournament, and I hope Virtanen telling McDavid to keep his head up is more friendly competition than headhunting.

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Poor article with typical hockey writers errors. I am curious however if Abols is able to be signed. The rules on European players is confusing at best. My understanding of it after reading the CBA is that (i) If a player is drafted to the CHL before said player is drafted to the NHL said player shall not be permitted to play in any affiliated minor professional league (ii) If a player is drafted into the NHL prior to being drafted by the CHL said player shall be allowed to play in affiliated minor professional leagues or in the NHL provided said player agrees to terms of a conract with such NHL organization. However there doesn't seem to be much stipulation on signing said European players;furthermore there appears to be no rules on the age restriction of a player to be able to sign with a NHL club.

Also any player in any league may opt out of being draft eligible should the want to sign with any club they please.

There doesn't appear to be any rules on if said European player revokes there free agent eligibility or draft eligibility by either staying in europe or playing in the CHL. Aboles as an example is turning 20 on January 5 2016 the date cut off for draft eligibility for a player is they must be under the age of 20 before December 31st of the upcoming draft year; which in turn should mean that Aboles would be over the age of 20 by that date, meaning he should be eligible to be signed as a free agent right now. Am I correct? wrong? missing something?

Thanks for doing the digging, I too was curious what we do next if we want to move forward with him.
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