Notes

• The NHL Trade Deadline has come and gone, and what with March being right around the corner, we are officially into the NHL’s stretch drive. The same can be said for most other leagues as well. The Comets have just 20 games to go, and it only gets less as you look elsewhere.
• The CHL leagues have just under three weeks to go, with each of the OHL and WHL finishing up on the 18th of March. The QMJHL finishes on the 17th, but since there are no Canucks prospects in that league, does anyone here really care? I guess if you wanted to get some Zadina watching in, it’s something to be aware of.
• Across the pond, things are wrapping up even sooner. The SHL (along with Elias Pettersson and Kristoffer Gunnarsson) finishes on March 10th. The Finnish Liiga’s season ends on the 10th as well, but TPS Turke (Olli Juolevi and Petrus Palmu) actually play their last game on March 8th. Allsvenskan (Jonathan Dahlen and Rodrigo Abols) finishes up on the 7th of March, while the Czech Extraliga (Lukas Jasek) completes its schedule on the 4th. But none of them can match Nikita Tryamkin and the KHL, whose final game of the season is tomorrow.
• However, the clear winner is the NCAA, which has already finished its regular season schedule. Divisional quarterfinals will start next weekend and the schedules should be announced shortly. Canucks fans should be particularly torn on Adam Gaudette. Do we want him to go as far as he can and challenge for a national championship, or do we want Northeastern to bow out early so Gaudette can jump into the Canucks lineup and bring even more positivity? Tough call.
• The Dexter School (Jack Rathbone) is playing its final game today, as far as I can tell. I was told by someone on the Canucks staff earlier in the year that the plan, as far as he knew, was for Rathbone to finish the season with Dexter, and then possibly move onto the USHL, where the Youngstown Phantoms hold his rights. I’m not sure if that’s still the case, but we should be finding that answer out soon. Honestly, I have no idea how the post-season works for US high school hockey, so I’ll have to do some digging.
• Big news on the televised hockey front, the CHL Saturday showcase actually involves some Canucks prospects this week! Tune into Sportsnet at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday to see Jonah Gadjovich, Brett McKenzie and the Owen Sound Attack take on the Guelph Storm. From a draft eligible perspective, Ryan Merkley (Guelph) is the one you’ll want to keep an eye on, but Aidan Dudas (Owen Sound) deserves some of your attention too.