Canucks Young Stars Shine in Penticton Classic

The Vancouver Canucks annual young stars tournament took place this past weekend at the Okanagan Events Centre in Penticton, British Columbia. Hosted by the Canucks, it also featured young stars, rookies, and prospects, from the Edmonton Oilers, Winnipeg Jets, and Calgary Flames.

A couple of notes off the top: 23-year-old defenceman Cole McWard has been dealing with a minor injury and has not been able to attend the weekend events. Jett Woo, a 24-year-old defenceman, was also absent for a different reason. Woo was invited to participate in the Canucks main training camp that begins Sept. 19th, also in Penticton.

New Abbotsford Canucks head coach Manny Malhotra is back in Canuck colors for the first time in almost a decade. The former NHL face-off specialist told Canucks Army that “This has been circled on my calendar for quite some time.” Malhotra is going to be a great addition to Abbotsford. His vast NHL experience should translate seamlessly to the coaching level.

Some notes from Game 1 against the Oiler’s young stars. A 2-0 Vancouver win. First off, this Canucks squad is fast with precise puck movement. Other than about 8 minutes late in the first period, the Canucks dominated. Led by the forward line of Jonathan Lekkerimaki, Arshdeep Bains, and Aatu Raty. Lekkerimaki looked good, real good, he could crack more than half of the NHL rosters right now. But with the Canucks depth, he may not make this one. Sportsnet’s Ian McIntyre reported that if the Canucks had advanced beyond the Oilers last Spring, Lekkerimaki was discussed as the replacement for Brock Boeser, who was out with a blood clotting issue. That says a lot about how Canucks management feels about him.

Max Sasson, who signed a two-year entry-level deal with the Canucks in March of 2023, had a great game. He has excellent hockey sense and is skilled at advancing and passing the puck.

Elias Pettersson, the other one, D Petey, looked steady and reliable. There was nothing flashy from him in this particular game, but he can lay a hit. Canucks fans are going to love this guy.

Also of note is that goaltender Nikita Tolopilo was solid in the shutout win. He didn’t face a lot of shots, but he did make several difficult saves.

Overall, this team was a very cohesive unit, especially considering it was a short tournament with little preparation.

In each of the last two games, against the Jets and Flames, the Canucks were outplayed through about half of the game, before flipping the script for comeback consecutive wins.

Some player notes. Sawyer Mynio and Christian Felton look great as a D pair. Mynio adapts his play well to whatever is transpiring on the ice. Felton is very offensive-minded and uses the boards well.

Anthony Romani, Danila Klimovich, and Vilmer Alriksson all looked good. Romani has a nose for the net and won’t back down from any opposing player. Klimovich had an excellent tournament, he hit everyone and had ample chances in the top six and on the powerplay. Alriksson, who stands 6’6″, is a massive physical presence who can also make plays and put the puck in the net.

Following the tournament, head coach Malhotra told Ben Kuzma of The Province that “Having veteran guys in the lineup helped,” he went on to sum up the tournament: “It was good to see the resiliency of the group, obviously not pleased with the starts. But credit to the guys to get to the game we wanted.”

I would like to personally thank a very good friend of mine, Joe Warshawsky, of Fernie B.C. He was in Penticton and took in all three Canucks young stars games, supplying me with great reports and information after each game. Joe could have been a professional hockey scout, he is that good at evaluating talent. Thanks again, Joe.