Welcome back to the Blackfish Prospect Report.

We continue navigating through our summer Vancouver Canucks prospect content as we gear up for our regular Blackfish programming in a few short weeks.

As you may know, Team Latvia recently won their group at the 2026 Winter Olympic qualifying tournament. With the victory, Canucks’ netminder Arturs Silovs and forward Teddy Blueger are set to represent their country at the event. With international hockey on our minds, we thought that it would be a great time to turn our attention to the upcoming World Juniors and the Canucks prospects eligible to participate.

Of course, the World Juniors is a U20 tournament, which means all participants must be 19 or younger. After being spoiled with star-studded names such as Jonathan Lekkerimäki (tournament MVP), Tom Willander, and Elias Pettersson in the 2024 tournament, this year is shaping up to be a much quieter experience for Canucks fans. However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t a few names who could represent their respective national teams.

Here’s a look at each eligible prospect and their chances of potentially making the cut.

We’ll kick off our predictions with Team Sweden, as it’s the only team to carry a Canucks representative that we consider to be a “lock.”

Tom Willander will undoubtedly return for his second World Juniors after playing a key role in Sweden’s Silver Medal run last year. With fellow right-shot defenceman Axel Sandin-Pelikka also eligible, Willander will likely reprise his role on the second pairing. However, he should enjoy increased minutes on the second power play and maintain a significant presence on the penalty kill.

For many reasons, all eyes will be locked in on the club’s 2023 first-round pick next season. We’re expecting big things from him, both on the collegiate and International stage.

Our prediction: Willander is a lock for Team Sweden.

Next up, we have Melvin Fernström, who will be looking to secure his first spot on Sweden’s U20 roster. The young Swede has been a staple of the Swedish National team during his come-up, so there’s a very strong chance that we will see him represent his country at some point over the next few years. However, as a younger 18-year-old, he’ll have his work cut out to crack a role in 2025, especially in a meaningful role.

Fernström participated in the World Junior Summer Showcase, picking up two assists in four games, but he did not particularly stand out. With various options on the right side, there’s a good chance that he’ll fall just short. That said, he’s been a known U20 contributor at the J20 Nationell level, so depending on his 2024-25 start, there could be an outside chance for him to slide in as an additional forward.

Our prediction: Left off this year, but Fernström has a strong potential for 2026.

Finally, we have Vilmer Alriksson, who has never been a part of Sweden’s major international teams. Currently, he isn’t on the radar for a World Juniors spot. However, the rangy forward has shown steady development and possesses attributes that could be valuable to any U20 squad. He continues to impress during each of his Canucks’ camp events, and while it’s unlikely, a strong start to the season in Guelph could make him a dark horse candidate.

Sure, Alriksson could be a “homer” pick from us here at CanucksArmy, but we like to believe there is an off chance that he catches the eye with a hot start.

Our prediction: A potential dark horse, but Alriksson is likely left off any consideration.

With a total of four potential Canuck candidates, Canada has the largest pool of U20-eligible prospects. The issue is that no Canuck players have a guaranteed spot.

Following a potent draft-plus-one year, Sawyer Mynio stands as the best opportunity to earn a spot on this year’s roster. His combination of offensive prowess, defensive grit and shutdown ability adds an element that the team could use on the lower end of the team’s backend. Not to mention the penalty kill.

During the World Junior Summer Showcase, he saw several looks alongside top defensive prospect Zayne Parekh and earned praise from the coaching staff with a simple yet effective showing. If selected, his role would likely be that of a shutdown defender, with the potential to contribute to the power play with a booming shot from the half-wall.

Competing against high-end defenders like Tanner Molendyk, Oliver Bonk, and Sam Dickinson, Mynio may not secure a primary role in the rotation, but, given his versatile style, could earn a spot as an extra man who steps in if needed.

Our prediction: Mynio will make the team as a third-pairing/extra defender.

Anthony Romani represents the Canucks’ next closest representative to pose a shot at cracking a roster spot. And yet, we aren’t very confident in his chances. Before you question that, we know his 2023-24 campaign was incredible and that leading the OHL with 51 goals to go along with 111 total points is no easy feat. The kid can produce points. Even so, we don’t have to look far for prime examples of players who were posting prime seasons to be left off the roster: we’re looking at Prince George’s Riley Heidt (117 points in 2023-24, 97 in 2022-23) and Andrew Cristall (111 points in 2023-24, 95 in 2022-23); both of whom should crack the roster this time around.

Canada is loaded with heavy-hitting offensive producers, so Anthony Romani is no specialized case compared to his fellow competitors. There’s an off chance that he squeezes in, but an even better chance that he falls short in his final attempt to do so.

Our prediction: Romani will likely receive a look but is not expected to make the final roster.

While Riley Patterson and Parker Alcos show potential as young prospects, neither is seen as a World Junior calibre player at this stage. Patterson, coming off a solid rookie season, may warrant a look in future events if he doubles down with an elevated sophomore year, but that’s for another article a year from now.

Our prediction: Neither Patterson nor Alcos will receive consideration from Team Canada this year.

Basile Sansonnens has a solid chance to represent Switzerland, a team known for stirring the pot as a dark horse at the World Juniors. He has been a regular on Swiss international rosters throughout his career, including the recent Hlinka Gretzky Cup squad. With just three defenders from Switzerland’s 2024 team eligible to return, Sansonnens is well-positioned to earn one of the remaining spots.

The recent seventh-rounder does not carry a history of producing points, so fans should not expect anything noteworthy. Yet, as a 6’4, 200-pound 18-year-old, he should act as a complimentary piece to the team’s bottom-four pairings.

Our prediction: Sansonnens secures one of the final spots on Switzerland’s defence.

Locks: Tom Willander (Sweden)
Good Chances: Basile Sansonnens (Switzerland), Sawyer Mynio (Canada)
Dark Horses (likely not): Melvin Fernström (Sweden), Anthony Romani (Canada), Vilmer Alriksson (Sweden)
Not This Year: Riley Patterson (Canada), Parker Alcos (Canada)

We’ll wrap up this week’s installment with a few clips and training camp updates.

With pre-season underway, two names—Kirill Kudryavtsev and Ty Young—are missing from their respective CHL training camps.

Kudryavtsev was expected, as he’ll undoubtedly be pushing for a pro roster spot. However, Young’s absence was one of note. We’ve often reported about him losing his starting job to draft-eligible Joshua Ravensbergen, so there’s a good chance Young will be pushing for an ECHL spot alongside current AHL-signed Jonathan Lemieux. Stay tuned for more information as we approach Youngstars.

Please drop a comment with any questions you may have regarding Canucks’ prospects. We will cover a few pre-2024-25 season “mailbag-esque” questions for next week’s Blackfish installment.