2023 Canucks Development Camp

[Ray_Cathode]

8 hours ago, Alflives said:

The thing is those two aren’t better than Willander. Habs and Coyotes both took big risks on their picks. Our guy is clearly the best. 

Gotta see a lot more before I conclude that, but I sure like the look of our guy.

[Ray_Cathode]

1 minute ago, Pure961089 said:

The Canucks have accumulated depth for the first-time in a long time.  Sasson might be more NHL ready but he doesn't have a lot of upside.  The Russian is a good prospect but he needs more time. 

We got to see Raty and Sasson in the AHL playoffs. Sasson was the more impressive - granted a limited set.

[Pure961089]

Love watching this guy skate.  He can generate some serious speed when he gets going.  

 

 

[250Integra]

2 hours ago, Pure961089 said:

Who are the Canucks top 10 prospects? Not including Hoglander and Podkolzin my 10

Willander

Silovs

Lekkerimaki

DPetey

Raty

Zlodeyev

Hunter B

Johansson

Klimovich

Jurmo

 

Honorable mentions

Neilson

Bains

Forsell

Bloom

Woo

McDonough 

 

 

Willander

Hirose

Lekkerimaki

Silovs

Rathbone

Raty

McDonough

Pettersson

Woo

Klimovich

 

 

 

 

[Pure961089]

The OEL buyout was a smart decision.  In years 3 and 4 the payments are pretty hefty but the Canucks are playing 4 D chess with the way they have it set up.  In 2 years from now all our slow cooking kids like Klimovich, Raty, Jurmo, Lekkerimaki, DPetey and Willander will be ready to step in on their elc. Not saying all of them will be Canucks regulars but I'll hedge my hunch that some of them become core pieces. 

[Odd.]

2 hours ago, Pure961089 said:

Who are the Canucks top 10 prospects? Not including Hoglander and Podkolzin my 10

Willander

Silovs

Lekkerimaki

DPetey

Raty

Zlodeyev

Hunter B

Johansson

Klimovich

Jurmo

 

Honorable mentions

Neilson

Bains

Forsell

Bloom

Woo

McDonough 

 

 

Tier 1:

Willander

Podkolzin

Hoglander

Silovs

D Petey

 

Tier 2:

Lekkerimaki

Hirose

Kudryavtsev

Brzustewicz

Forsell

 

Tier 3:

Johansson

Woo

Karlsson

Nielsen

Bains

Klimovich

McDonough

Jurmo

McWard

Bloom

Tolopilo

Tier 4:

Truscott

Mynio

Celebrini

Sasson

Gardner

Koskenvuo

Young

Gabrielsson

Plasek

Sawchenko

Zlodeyev

 

Unranked/No tier: Vitali Kravtsov, Ty Mueller, Jackson Kunz, Matthew Perkins, Jackson Dorrington, Jack Malone, Matthew Thiessen, Lukas Jasek, Dmitri Zhukenov, Artyum Manukyan, Victor Persson, Vilmer Alfriksson

 

Lots of hidden gems in every tier. Players in Tier 3 however may have the most. It would be cool to see some in that tier steal some roster spots and carve out an NHL career in the coming years.

[-DLC-]

17 hours ago, -Vintage Canuck- said:

 

I'm really happy he's working with our young guys. Was a big fan of his when he was here and it's great to still have him connected to the team. I like that he's working them hard and not letting them dog it. Get used to those habits...work ethic.

 

(Fun fact...my friend and I once were on the glass for a game and these two Swedish guys were beside us. Covered in hockey pins, it was obvious they were big fans of the game. One spoke English, the other...not a lick of it. Turned out they were fans/friends of Samuelsson's who were here from Sweden. We had a great time chatting with them/him....got our pics taken with them) 

[-Vintage Canuck-]

 

[-Vintage Canuck-]

 

[-Vintage Canuck-]

FYI: There will be no live stream, but highlights will be posted following the scrimmage.

[JamesB]

10 hours ago, Pure961089 said:

Who are the Canucks top 10 prospects? .......

I'll take a shot at this. One key point is age. D-Petey, for example, turned 19 in February and has a lot of run-way left. Hirose is 24 and does not have much runway. One more year for him to adjust to the pro game (probably in Abby) and what you see is what you get. Anyway, here goes.

 

TIER I (A)

 

1. Willander. Great prospect. Absolute blue-chipper. Probably the best player at Dev Camp (certainly the best skater) despite being almost the youngest (turned 18 in Feb.)

 

TIER II (A-)

 

2. Silovs. Very impressive progress over the past two years, capped off with great performance at the IIHF world championships

3. D-Petey. Played very well in the SHL for a teenager. Good size, good skater, good physical game, strong defensively, excellent progress in the last year.

4. Lekkerimaki Disappointing start to last season with strong finish. Still needs to make up ground to justify his draft position.

 

TIER III (B+)

 

5. Raty High potential, Still young (age 20), Needs significant progress this season and could still be a good NHL 2C down the road.  .

6. Podkolzin. Looking like he might now project as a good two-way 3rd line winger That is ok, but we hoped for more. And he is not quite there yet.

7. Hoglander. Talented but needs to show more maturity in his defensive game and take fewer penalties. Good run in Abby last year. Needs a good camp..

8. Brzustewicz Great pickup in the 3rd round

9. Forsell Excellent performance for a 19-year old in the SHL last year. Steal for a 7th rounder.

10.Klimovich Excellent progress last year, impressive for a teenager in the AHL, still some rough edges but lots of potential

 

That is my top 10. Here are some honorable mentions. They would be in TIER IV as B prospects:

 

TIER IV (B)

 

Honorable Mentions: Tolopilo, Bloom, McWard, Hirose, Sasson, Bains, Kudryavsev,, McDonough,

 

Remember when McDonough and Rathbone were top 5 prospects for the Canucks. JR and PA have quietly done a great job of rebuilding the prospect pipeline despite missing draft picks. Nice to have a competent president and GM after the Benning fiasco.

[BCNate]

21 minutes ago, JamesB said:

I'll take a shot at this. One key point is age. D-Petey, for example, turned 19 in February and has a lot of run-way left. Hirose is 24 and does not have much runway. One more year for him to adjust to the pro game (probably in Abby) and what you see is what you get. Anyway, here goes.

 

TIER I (A)

 

1. Willander. Great prospect. Absolute blue-chipper. Probably the best player at Dev Camp (certainly the best skater) despite being almost the youngest (turned 18 in Feb.)

 

TIER II (A-)

 

2. Silovs. Very impressive progress over the past two years, capped off with great performance at the IIHF world championships

3. D-Petey. Played very well in the SHL for a teenager. Good size, good skater, good physical game, strong defensively, excellent progress in the last year.

4. Lekkerimaki Disappointing start to last season with strong finish. Still needs to make up ground to justify his draft position.

 

TIER III (B+)

 

5. Raty High potential, Still young (age 20), Needs significant progress this season and could still be a good NHL 2C down the road.  .

6. Podkolzin. Looking like he might now project as a good two-way 3rd line winger That is ok, but we hoped for more. And he is not quite there yet.

7. Hoglander. Talented but needs to show more maturity in his defensive game and take fewer penalties. Good run in Abby last year. Needs a good camp..

8. Brzustewicz Great pickup in the 3rd round

9. Forsell Excellent performance for a 19-year old in the SHL last year. Steal for a 7th rounder.

10.Klimovich Excellent progress last year, impressive for a teenager in the AHL, still some rough edges but lots of potential

 

That is my top 10. Here are some honorable mentions. They would be in TIER IV as B prospects:

 

TIER IV (B)

 

Honorable Mentions: Tolopilo, Bloom, McWard, Hirose, Sasson, Bains, Kudryavsev,, McDonough,

 

Remember when McDonough and Rathbone were top 5 prospects for the Canucks. JR and PA have quietly done a great job of rebuilding the prospect pipeline despite missing draft picks. Nice to have a competent president and GM after the Benning fiasco.

Bains

Aman

Johansson

Sasson

McWard

Hirose

Tolopilo

 

That's 7 prospects that I would peg as mid round picks that we have added as College/Euro/Non Qualifiers in the past 2 years.  PA has been far more active in this area than most, which has gone a long way to supplement our depth in the prospect pool.  

 

Save for this years 2nd, and our 2026 7th, we have a full slate of draft picks for the next 3 years (also have the Devils 4th this year).  Hopefully we start acquiring some picks as opposed to sending them out.  This group seems keen on adding big mobile players, so the more the better.

 

I am a big fan of what Allvin is doing.

[Nucker 67]

Hughes - Hronek

Pettersson - Willander

Jurmo - Brzustewicz

Hirose - Woo

Kudryavtsev - Johansson

 

The D depth sure looks good (future)

[canucklehead44]

Two interesting invites are Lynden Breen and Christian Fitzgerald.  Breen espcially caught my eye:

Lynden Breen (5'9, 22 year old centre) scored 21 goals in 36 for the University of Maine last season. The second highest scoring player had just 9. He was ranked #183 in his 2019 draft year (37 points in 61 games USHL) and has progressed exceptionally well. He was in fact the highest scoring player in Hockey East last year - number 2 was Aiden McDonough. He also lead hockey east in short handed goals (4) and was 6th in faceoffs won with a 49.3% average. 

Here is a scouting report from his draft year:

Lynden the New Brunswick born forward can be spotted on the ice rather easily due to his very small frame. Don’t let it fool you though because he plays like he is six foot or taller and can be compared to a wrecking ball on the ice. He is extremely fast and after a few explosive and choppy steps the speedy forward is at top speed and leaving defenders behind. Lynden will be the first guy in corner to retrieve a puck and will gladly take a player into the boards despite being out matched in weight and size.

 

Strong on his skates and with his smaller frame and strong core he is usually the player to emerge with the puck and stay on his feet. Breen will beat you in a variety of ways, whether it is his blazing speed or his gifted stick handling skills, there are very few players who will stop him one on one. He can shoot the puck very well and knows where to be on the ice to give him the best opportunity to get a chance on net. The five foot nine forward can take face offs and can get under the majority of opponents thankfully in part to his low sense of gravity. Lynden Breen can move the puck with his head up and maneuver through congested ice with the puck under control, seemingly like it’s on a string.

 

Great vision and a strong hockey IQ make him a great play maker and an all-around offensive threat. A dynamic player that reads and reacts and will make up for any disadvantage it may seem he has, the University of Maine commit will be a welcomed addition to his NCAA team. I watch Lynden play and all I can think is NHL great Martin St. Louis who it would seem Breen emulates on a nightly basis. They’re small in stature but hard on their sticks, strong on their skates and smart enough to elude you. A gritty style game from both players however don’t sleep on their skill set as they will make you a member of the highlight reel, because they likely have just left you in their wake on route to making a spectacular play. I would say his only down side to his game is his height at this point, however I don’t see that being an issue as he has found ways to be successful and I am not a fan of a guy not being a higher pick due to his lack of height.

 

The future U of Maine Black Bears forward will excel wherever he lands and no matter what role he is placed in. He was exceptional on the Flying Aces power play and out worked every player for the duration of his shifts in the game. He was a crucial part of the successful fore check for the Aces and was the first guy back in the corners. Lynden Breen is a hard working player that will impress tons of coaches and GM’s along the way.

[Pure961089]

A lot of buzz around Christian Fitzgerald, I wonder if the Canucks can sign him, they have the inside lane advantage already with him being here before collage free agency opens up.  And he can play all 3 forward positions as reported by Faber.  2nd best skater behind Willander. 

[Pure961089]

1 hour ago, NUCKER67 said:

Hughes - Hronek

Pettersson - Willander

Jurmo - Brzustewicz

Hirose - Woo

Kudryavtsev - Johansson

 

The D depth sure looks good (future)

Imagine a player like Jurmo after he's been cooking for a couple years 6'4 215 Lbs and skates like the wind and he's a 5.  All those bad habits coached out of him. After a while those defensive habits become second nature, becomes part of your instinct.  Someone that fast who's  a defensive nightmare and so hard to contain because of his size.  Just imagine.  

[johngould21]

1 hour ago, BCNate said:

Bains

Aman

Johansson

Sasson

McWard

Hirose

Tolopilo

 

That's 7 prospects that I would peg as mid round picks that we have added as College/Euro/Non Qualifiers in the past 2 years.  PA has been far more active in this area than most, which has gone a long way to supplement our depth in the prospect pool.  

 

Save for this years 2nd, and our 2026 7th, we have a full slate of draft picks for the next 3 years (also have the Devils 4th this year).  Hopefully we start acquiring some picks as opposed to sending them out.  This group seems keen on adding big mobile players, so the more the better.

 

I am a big fan of what Allvin is doing.

Linus Karlsson is missing from your list too!

 

[BCNate]

8 minutes ago, johngould21 said:

Linus Karlsson is missing from your list too!

 

We got him in a trade prior to this management group coming in.  I was trying to focus on the free assets that we have signed.  I think that these guys take away a little of the sting from trading away as many picks as we have over the past few years.

[VegasCanuck]

I think a lot of fans are selling Lekkerimaki short based on the fact that he had a bad start last season, most likely due to having Mono last summer and was likely still feeling the effects at the start of the season. His coach in the World junior alluded to the fact that he still wasn't 100% for the tournament at the start of January and that was why he was playing sheltered minutes. Combine that with injuries last season and the fact that he was one of the youngest guys in last draft.

 

Look at how he was in the playoffs once he got back to full strength (injury probably helped him, oddly). He was a point per game and tied for 2nd on the team for points at 15.

 

The kid has elite level skill, let's see how he does this year with being healthy, before we start discounting his ability.

[-Vintage Canuck-]