[2019-2020] Canucks Prospects Stat Tracker

[Down by the River]

OP updated with stats through Nov. 2.

 

Tough back-to-back for Utica (outscored 0-9). 

 

Focht slowed down a little. Woo still hasn't picked up his offensive side of the game compared to last year.

 

Not much to say about Pod as he was called up to the KHL and only got one game in. No points.

 

I'd also say that the NCAA guys have been off to an underwhelming start considering their (especially Madden's) progress last year. However, Rathbone had a triumphant return to Harvard's lineup, picking up 2 goals in his first game back. 

 

Pettersson is the most valuable guy in the league in terms of points for dollars paid.

 

[wildcam]

On October 20, 2019 at 12:45 PM, Down by the River said:

OP updated with stats through last night's games. 

 

Tough week for the non-pro goalies. Great week for Demko and DiPietro. Focht remains hot while Woo hasn't found his offensive form from last year.

 

Teves is an insane +12 through 5 games.... yet somehow has only picked up one point. 

I said that several times last year about Woo and his point totals..Woo had 4 very very good players on his team last year and they put up big point totals.

Woo picked up lots of his points playing with them...I am not surprise to see his offence drop...

 

[Down by the River]

It hasn't been a great November for the Canucks... its been an even worse November for the Comets, who are 2-6. Part of it is likely due to so much roster turnover with injuries to Hughes, Sutter, Ferland, Tanev, etc. resulting in a lot of short-term call-ups. 

 

There is certainly more to defence than putting up points, but Chatfield has really struggled to find an offensive side to his game during the early stages of his professional career. Brogan Rafferty, on the other hand, is having a decent little run in Utica. OJ's injury is devastating.

 

Feel really bad for Matthew Thiessen. Hasn't been given an opportunity to play in about a month and sports a GAA of 25.59 (not a typo). Will be hard for him to not feel pressure for his next start. 

 

After a disappointing start to the season, Madden is now on fire. Could Rathbone have a shot at the WJHC? Not sure if the Canucks will sign Lockwood. 

[Alflives]

Just heard Craig Button on the radio suggest that OJ is very close to being a bustaroo.  He said he liked the pick, but (sometimes) circumstances just have it so the player busts.  It's really good that Rathbone looks like a homerun.  Win some and lose some, but having more than prospect in the same position covers the misses.  

[Boudrias]

22 hours ago, Alflives said:

Just heard Craig Button on the radio suggest that OJ is very close to being a bustaroo.  He said he liked the pick, but (sometimes) circumstances just have it so the player busts.  It's really good that Rathbone looks like a homerun.  Win some and lose some, but having more than prospect in the same position covers the misses.  

Very disappointing if the injury is long term. When you get reports that he was looking good to the point he left the ice the mystery deepens. Lots of players never make it because their bodies don't stand up. I met a truck driver back in the '80's who had been drafted by the Habs and attended 2 of their rookie camps. Forget the name although I have Brown floating thru what used to be grey matter. He took his knee out and could never get back.

 

Joined the Canadian Army. A side story. He was with Canadian Peace Keepers in the Gaza strip. Some crazy comes up over the bank, charging their jeep, with a sword yelling Allah Akbar. They shot the guy dead and rolled him back into the ditch. No report.      

[Down by the River]

OP updated with stats through Nov. 30.

 

Poor Matthew Thiessen hasn't been given a start since coming into a game in relief and leaving with a .500 SV% and a monstrous GAA.

 

On the plus side, Madden continues to be among the best college players in the game. Canucks seem to consistently have a Hobey Baker candidate going back to the Demko days (Demko, Gaudette, Hughes, and now Madden). I'm sure I'm missing one other guy in there as well. RJ Umberger? Probably not. Speaking off former Canucks property, here are some perhaps forgotten names:

 

RJ Umberger: After getting bought out by the Flyers, he went and coached a minor midget team in Columbus. This Fall he was inducted into the Ohio State Hall of Fame. Not bad considering how big their football program is. 

 

Gustav Forsling: After his WJHC performance, I really thought Benning erred when he acquired Adam Clendening. He still probably lost that trade, but it doesn't seem as big of an "L" anymore. Forsling is now in Carolina's AHL affiliate and has just 5 points in 20 games... not great for an offensive defenceman. 

 

Kristoffer Gunnarsson: The 2017 draft was arguably Benning's best (time will tell). Gunnarsson was a curious choice in the 5th round because of his lack of offensive upside. Benning didn't see it that way. Felt he was the type of modern-day stay-at-home defenceman the Canucks needed. Well, Benning was half right. Gunnarsson looks to be staying at home for good, as he was demoted to the Allsvenskan from the SHL. Their medicine ball budget probably is not as big. 

 

Rodrigo Abols: He's Latvian, but his first name doesn't end with an "S"... which is definitely the most unique thing about him. He has bounced between the Greenville Swamp Rabbits (ECHL, as if I needed to say that) and Springfield of the AHL.

 

Tate Olson: Last year he played for Acadia and three different ECHL teams. Appears to have been retired. 

 

Carl Neil: Like Olson, he started playing for a University team. Maybe a little smarter than Olson. Instead of lasting one year, he has played the last three years for Concordia and has been lighting it up. 

 

Cole Cassels: After leaving for Germany last year, Cassels is back in the AHL playing for the Belleville Senators. If Ottawa needs to shutdown McDavid, you know who they're calling up to the bigs. 

 

Joe Labate: Continues to carve out a decent career in professional hockey. Playing with Cassels in Belleville. In fact, Michael Carcone is also in Belleville. I guess the Senators are the new Panthers.

 

Frankie Corrado: From Robidas Island to Belleville... its a Canuck alumni reunion. 

 

Brendan Gaunce: After dealing with a awful injury/cheapshot early in the AHL season, Gaunce was called up by the Bruins last week and had an assist in his only game. He will be facing off against Montreal tonight. I believe it was their AHL affiliate that caused his injury, so maybe he'll be extra fired up. 

 

Jordan Schroeder: Actually having a pretty decent start to his inaugural KHL season. Eleven goals and 11 assists in 35 games with Nizhny Novgorod Torpedo. 

 

[JamesB]

2 hours ago, Down by the River said:

OP updated with stats through Nov. 30.

 

Poor Matthew Thiessen hasn't been given a start since coming into a game in relief and leaving with a .500 SV% and a monstrous GAA.

 

On the plus side, Madden continues to be among the best college players in the game. Canucks seem to consistently have a Hobey Baker candidate going back to the Demko days (Demko, Gaudette, Hughes, and now Madden). I'm sure I'm missing one other guy in there as well. RJ Umberger? Probably not. Speaking off former Canucks property, here are some perhaps forgotten names:

 

RJ Umberger: After getting bought out by the Flyers, he went and coached a minor midget team in Columbus. This Fall he was inducted into the Ohio State Hall of Fame. Not bad considering how big their football program is. 

 

Gustav Forsling: After his WJHC performance, I really thought Benning erred when he acquired Adam Clendening. He still probably lost that trade, but it doesn't seem as big of an "L" anymore. Forsling is now in Carolina's AHL affiliate and has just 5 points in 20 games... not great for an offensive defenceman. 

 

Kristoffer Gunnarsson: The 2017 draft was arguably Benning's best (time will tell). Gunnarsson was a curious choice in the 5th round because of his lack of offensive upside. Benning didn't see it that way. Felt he was the type of modern-day stay-at-home defenceman the Canucks needed. Well, Benning was half right. Gunnarsson looks to be staying at home for good, as he was demoted to the Allsvenskan from the SHL. Their medicine ball budget probably is not as big. 

 

Rodrigo Abols: He's Latvian, but his first name doesn't end with an "S"... which is definitely the most unique thing about him. He has bounced between the Greenville Swamp Rabbits (ECHL, as if I needed to say that) and Springfield of the AHL.

 

Tate Olson: Last year he played for Acadia and three different ECHL teams. Appears to have been retired. 

 

Carl Neil: Like Olson, he started playing for a University team. Maybe a little smarter than Olson. Instead of lasting one year, he has played the last three years for Concordia and has been lighting it up. 

 

Cole Cassels: After leaving for Germany last year, Cassels is back in the AHL playing for the Belleville Senators. If Ottawa needs to shutdown McDavid, you know who they're calling up to the bigs. 

 

Joe Labate: Continues to carve out a decent career in professional hockey. Playing with Cassels in Belleville. In fact, Michael Carcone is also in Belleville. I guess the Senators are the new Panthers.

 

Frankie Corrado: From Robidas Island to Belleville... its a Canuck alumni reunion. 

 

Brendan Gaunce: After dealing with a awful injury/cheapshot early in the AHL season, Gaunce was called up by the Bruins last week and had an assist in his only game. He will be facing off against Montreal tonight. I believe it was their AHL affiliate that caused his injury, so maybe he'll be extra fired up. 

 

Jordan Schroeder: Actually having a pretty decent start to his inaugural KHL season. Eleven goals and 11 assists in 35 games with Nizhny Novgorod Torpedo. 

 

Great work digging up all the information on these former Canuck prospects. The information is very interesting and it is kind of poignant or at least weird to think about about "where they are now" compared with all the hype or angst they generated as Canuck prospects.

 

Here are some of the things I remember.

 

1. All the angst over losing Corrado on waivers. Toronto claimed him (maybe just to p*** off the Canucks) and then never played him so he just clogged up a spot on their 23-man roster. I was fairly critical of Benning in those days but I never understood all the angst over the Corrado situation. He was at best a marginal NHL prospect. 

 

2. Jordan Schroeder was a star at the world juniors and Gillis took him in the first round. He was one of the oldest guys in the draft as his birthday (Sept. 29) was just two weeks too late for him to be in the previous year. Gillis argued that it was good to get a guy further along the development curve, That made no sense. In fact, the opposite is true. You want guys who have accomplished a lot while relatively young. 

 

3. Gaunce was another Gillis first round pick who generated quite a lot of hype. But he wasn't quite good enough to make Canada's WJC team and he wasn't quite good enough to be an NHL regular. He was still one of the most "successful" Gillis picks as he at least got past the 100 NHL game hurdle. But with only 16 pts in his 118 NHL games, his NHL record is barely even marginal. I like him and hope he does well, however, 

 

4. Cassels led Oshawa to the Memorial Cup in 2015 where he famously went up against McDavid in the OHL finals, playing "shutdown" against him and scoring a lot of points himself. He had a fantastic post-season run with 31 pts in 21 games and winning the Memorial Cup.  He looked like a great pick as a third rounder chosen by Gillis. But, like most Gillis picks, he was disappointing as a pro and, during his three-year entry level contract was not even a solid AHL player. But credit to him for sticking with it and maybe he can make an appearance with Ottawa in the show. I hope he does. 

 

5. Olsen and Tate: Both late round draft pick D-men who generated a lot of points as 20-year-olds in junior and, in Olsen's case, as an over-ager. This is a good reminder that scoring a lot of points as a 20-year-old or overager in the CHL is far from being a sure ticket to success. (Remember Dane Fox.)

 

And all these names are a reminder of how tough it is to become an NHL regular, let alone a star. For every guy who makes it there are a lot of seemingly talented players who work hard and never get there or never get more than a cup of coffee in the NHL This makes me appreciate guys like EP and Hughes even more. And guys like Stecher and Tanev who come out of nowhere are also particularly impressive. And Alex Burrows is biggest example in Canuck history of a guy succeeding against all the odds.  

[Down by the River]

2 hours ago, JamesB said:

Great work digging up all the information on these former Canuck prospects. The information is very interesting and it is kind of poignant or at least weird to think about about "where they are now" compared with all the hype or angst they generated as Canuck prospects.

 

Here are some of the things I remember.

 

1. All the angst over losing Corrado on waivers. Toronto claimed him (maybe just to p*** off the Canucks) and then never played him so he just clogged up a spot on their 23-man roster. I was fairly critical of Benning in those days but I never understood all the angst over the Corrado situation. He was at best a marginal NHL prospect. 

 

2. Jordan Schroeder was a star at the world juniors and Gillis took him in the first round. He was one of the oldest guys in the draft as his birthday (Sept. 29) was just two weeks too late for him to be in the previous year. Gillis argued that it was good to get a guy further along the development curve, That made no sense. In fact, the opposite is true. You want guys who have accomplished a lot while relatively young. 

 

3. Gaunce was another Gillis first round pick who generated quite a lot of hype. But he wasn't quite good enough to make Canada's WJC team and he wasn't quite good enough to be an NHL regular. He was still one of the most "successful" Gillis picks as he at least got past the 100 NHL game hurdle. But with only 16 pts in his 118 NHL games, his NHL record is barely even marginal. I like him and hope he does well, however, 

 

4. Cassels led Oshawa to the Memorial Cup in 2015 where he famously went up against McDavid in the OHL finals, playing "shutdown" against him and scoring a lot of points himself. He had a fantastic post-season run with 31 pts in 21 games and winning the Memorial Cup.  He looked like a great pick as a third rounder chosen by Gillis. But, like most Gillis picks, he was disappointing as a pro and, during his three-year entry level contract was not even a solid AHL player. But credit to him for sticking with it and maybe he can make an appearance with Ottawa in the show. I hope he does. 

 

5. Olsen and Tate: Both late round draft pick D-men who generated a lot of points as 20-year-olds in junior and, in Olsen's case, as an over-ager. This is a good reminder that scoring a lot of points as a 20-year-old or overager in the CHL is far from being a sure ticket to success. (Remember Dane Fox.)

 

And all these names are a reminder of how tough it is to become an NHL regular, let alone a star. For every guy who makes it there are a lot of seemingly talented players who work hard and never get there or never get more than a cup of coffee in the NHL This makes me appreciate guys like EP and Hughes even more. And guys like Stecher and Tanev who come out of nowhere are also particularly impressive. And Alex Burrows is biggest example in Canuck history of a guy succeeding against all the odds.  

Gillis and to a lesser extent Benning are in love with the over-agers. I think they see them as late bloomers... I tend to just see them as guys that are excelling because there is a big difference in physical strength/understanding of systems between 17 year old kids and 19-20 year old 'men'. A lot of Canucks over-agers have looked really good. Valk, late-round dmen, Dane Fox... basically all over-age CHL kids have come with a lot of attention and very little to show for it. Not meant to be a slight against those guys, just an acknowledgement that the success of a guy like Focht really needs to be tempered. 

 

And yeah, Gillis' comment about Schroeder made no sense. 

[Down by the River]

OP updated with stats through December 10th. 

 

Definitely looking forward to the WJHC as it will give much more insight into how Podkolzin's game is coming along. 

[Down by the River]

I'm going to add prospects to track for the upcoming draft. Hate to rain on a parade, but I don't see the Canucks as a playoff team. I'm guessing they will pick between 8-15th. 

 

I'll track about 5 prospects. They should all be from the NCAA or CHL (the stats that I track are difficult, on their own, to allow for much to be said about players in the SHL, KHL, etc. and so I don't see much point in keeping tabs on those players). 

[HC20.0]

On 12/1/2019 at 12:53 PM, JamesB said:

Great work digging up all the information on these former Canuck prospects. The information is very interesting and it is kind of poignant or at least weird to think about about "where they are now" compared with all the hype or angst they generated as Canuck prospects.

 

Here are some of the things I remember.

 

1. All the angst over losing Corrado on waivers. Toronto claimed him (maybe just to p*** off the Canucks) and then never played him so he just clogged up a spot on their 23-man roster. I was fairly critical of Benning in those days but I never understood all the angst over the Corrado situation. He was at best a marginal NHL prospect. 

 

 

I think there was so much hype around Corrado because the Canucks post-lockout had terrible luck with defensive prospects. Edler, Bieksa, and unexpectedly Tanev were the only legitimate defensive NHLers we groomed between 2005-2015, and we didn't even draft Tanev. It really shows how far our prospect pool has come when players like Corrado used to excite us. If Corrado had been drafted by us in the 5th round today, I doubt there'd be much hype around him. That was just how bad our prospect pool was. 

[Down by the River]

OP updated with stats through December 22. 

 

I've added some details about 5 draft eligible players projected to be around the 10-15 pick (which is where I think the Canucks will end up; certainly up for debate). I focused only on CHL/NCAA picks, not because I think that's where Benning will select from, but because their counting stats are the easiest to interpret. 

 

Overall there wasn't much to update because most leagues are on holiday break/off for the WJHC/Euro tournaments. 

 

Note - Of the draft eligible players I selected, Dawson Mercer (Canada) is the only one in the upcoming WJHC. He will be Canada's 13th forward. 

Edited December 23, 2019 by Down by the River

[Stierlitz]

 

[VegasCanuck]

So, here's a question, assuming that we don't make any trades that shed some contracts, we are currently sitting at 47 active contracts going into the last half of the year.

 

Guys who are currently in our prospect pool, who we might look at signing include:

 

Hoglander

Tryamkin

Focht

Lockwood

Madden

Rathbone

 

I'm just looking at guys who might be signed at the end of their season and added to Utica.

 

Now, with Lockwood, Madden and Rathbone, they could easily be given Utica PTO's to allow them to play a few games down there before the end of the season and be available for the playoffs.

 

Normally, we are active in the College free agents and snagged a really good prospect in Rafferty last year.

 

Tryamkin of course, would only be signed to play in the NHL, but who would you prioritize for actual NHL contracts so that they could get a game or two with the Canucks, before the end of the season?

 

I also think that if Tryamkin is signed, unless we have a significant injury on defense, it will probably spell the end of Stecher in Vancouver, although Tryamkin's season doesn't end until after the NHL trade deadline, so the option to make that type of a move won't work until summer.

 

Thoughts?

 

 

[Down by the River]

OP updated. 

 

I'll do a mid-season review within the next week.

[warrchief]

On 12/30/2019 at 1:00 PM, VegasCanuck said:

So, here's a question, assuming that we don't make any trades that shed some contracts, we are currently sitting at 47 active contracts going into the last half of the year.

 

Guys who are currently in our prospect pool, who we might look at signing include:

 

Hoglander

Tryamkin

Focht

Lockwood

Madden

Rathbone

 

I'm just looking at guys who might be signed at the end of their season and added to Utica.

 

Now, with Lockwood, Madden and Rathbone, they could easily be given Utica PTO's to allow them to play a few games down there before the end of the season and be available for the playoffs.

 

Normally, we are active in the College free agents and snagged a really good prospect in Rafferty last year.

 

Tryamkin of course, would only be signed to play in the NHL, but who would you prioritize for actual NHL contracts so that they could get a game or two with the Canucks, before the end of the season?

 

I also think that if Tryamkin is signed, unless we have a significant injury on defense, it will probably spell the end of Stecher in Vancouver, although Tryamkin's season doesn't end until after the NHL trade deadline, so the option to make that type of a move won't work until summer.

 

Thoughts?

 

 

Don't quote me on it but I think Rathbone might stay at Harvard for his degree. I read somewhere that he takes his education seriously.

Lockwood and Madden are more than likely.

[PuckYa]

 

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/canucks-prospects-ranking-2020?auto=true

[Down by the River]

OP updated with stats through Jan. 11.

[Down by the River]

Mid-Season Awards:

 

MVP:

 

Elias Pettersson. Improved on a stellar rookie year. Voted to the all-star game. Among the top 15 in the league in scoring for about the last month or so. Consistently puts up points. Probably shouldn't even be in the "prospect" category, but I wanted to track his points. 

 

Biggest Impact:

 

Quinn Hughes. Likely to be the Canucks best defenceman in the last 20 years. Showing that he can play defence and be responsible with the puck. Shooting a lot more on the PP, which will either (a) see him put up more goals or (b) help free up Petey to shoot a bit more. 

 

Most Improved:

 

Kole Lind. Went from 0.29 p/pg in his first year of professional hockey to 0.84 p/pg so far with Utica

 

Biggest Surprise:

 

Brogan Rafferty. Voted to the AHL allstar game in this first pro season. Highest scoring dman in Utica by a whopping 17 points (Juolevi is second). Second highest scoring player on Utica, period. Oh, and by the way, he is legally blind in one eye...

 

Most Electrifying:

 

Tie: Nils Hoglander and Quinn Hughes. Petey hasn't been doing his dekes as much this year; seems to be trying to be a lot more responsible with the puck. Watching Quinn Hughes walk the line or spin away from forecheckers has been a ton of fun. I've been to about 7-8 games this year and Hughes has been the most fun to watch. I put him in a tie with Hoglander because I don't know if anyone has had more highlight-reel plays in the last month than him. Lacrosse goals, breaking ankles, throwing elbows... he's fun to watch.

 

Most Underrated:

 

Maybe because he wasn't part of the WJHC and isn't in Utica, but Tyler Madden is a bona-fide Hobey Baker candidate (it seems like the Canucks can't avoid not having such a candidate over the last 5 or so years). He is 3rd in the NCAA in scoring and six more points than the second highest scorer on his team. He can play in all situations and might be more talented than Gaudette. Canucks will have no problems down the middle for years to come. 

 

Cy Young Award (Best Goals-Assists Ratio):

 

Not many strong candidates for this award, but Jonah Gadjovich takes it with a "record" of 8-3.

 

The Opposite of the CY Young Award (Worst Goals-Assists Ratio):

 

Olli Juolevi. Sautner is 0-7, but 1-14 is mighty hard to do. Juolevi has done it. Congratulations to him. Quinn Hughes not far behind. 

[Down by the River]

OP updated with stats through Saturday. 

 

Rathbone back to a p/pg as a rookie dman. Lockwood picked it up a bit. Overall pretty mediocre numbers for all CHL prospects.

 

Brogan Rafferty continues to be the surprise of the year for me. Even though he didn't look out of place when he got a few games in last year, this year he has been putting up points in the AHL at what has to be pretty rare company for a rookie dman.