Vasily Podkolzin to make Canucks season debut on Lindholm line Sunday in Anaheim

Vasily Podkolzin will skate in his first NHL game of the season on Sunday when the Vancouver Canucks take on the Anaheim Ducks at the Honda Center.

Podkolzin, 22, has 15 goals and 28 points in 44 American Hockey League games with the Abbotsford Canucks this season. He has previously skated in 118 NHL games during his young career.

Sportsnet’s Dan Murphy tweeted out earlier on Sunday that Podkolzin will skate on a line with Elias Lindholm and Conor Garland during the game in Anaheim. Casey DeSmith is expected to make his 18th appearance of the season in goal.

Podkolzin will become the 29th different skater to dress for a game with the Canucks this season when he first takes to the ice against the Ducks on Sunday evening.

Under the previous management regime headed by Jim Banning, the Canucks originally selected Podkolzin with the No. 10 overall pick in the first round of the 2019 NHL Draft.

The 6’1″ winger spent the first two seasons immediately after his draft year with SKA St. Petersburg in the Kontinental Hockey League. Podkolzin collected 11 points in 35 games with the club in the 2020-21 season; in the 2021 playoffs with SKA, he racked up six goals and 11 points in just 16 contests.

Podkolzin arrived in North America ahead of the 2021-22 season and quickly established himself as an NHL regular, amassing 14 goals and 26 points in 79 games that year. But he fell out of favour with the team in 2022-23, managing just seven points in 39 NHL games and ultimately being demoted to the AHL.

Although he has yet to find his game in Vancouver, Podkolzin still offers a tantalizing blend of attributes that could eventually help him become a valuable player at the top level. He’s a big, strong player with a good shot and a high level of compete in his game.

Through 118 career NHL games over parts of two seasons with Vancouver, Podkolzin has racked up 18 goals and 33 points. He’s added 22 goals and 46 points in 72 AHL contests with Abbotsford.

Looking to break out of a miniature slump, the Canucks will hit the ice at 5:00 p.m. on Sunday evening for a game against a Ducks team that currently ranks seventh in the Pacific Division.