Welcome back to our Blackfish Prospect Report.

While the Vancouver Canucks’ management has made plenty of headlines this summer with various moves and signings, it’s been relatively quiet on the prospect front. However, with European pre-seasons now underway, we’ve got some early updates and even a couple of clips to share. We’ll also preview when North American prospects will kick off their camps and when their seasons will begin.

Though news releases haven’t focused on prospects specifically, there’s been significant activity around the farm team this summer. Abbotsford has brought in several fresh faces on AHL contracts, adding more competition for roster spots. While the team has yet to announce its Training Camp dates, we expect it to be held in early October once the NHL parent clubs start setting their lineups.

As you’ll see in the chart below, tons of bodies have been added and will be looking for a spot (red indicates AHL contracts). While many of the names at the top of the lineup are shoo-ins, barring any making the big club out of camp, we are very interested in what’s in store for young names.

Youngsters like Ty Mueller, Josh Bloom, Kirill Kudryavtsev, and Elias Pettersson will all be in the mix for spots, with some expected to be handed a more locked-in role — we’re looking at you, EP26. Abbotsford’s lineup is loaded with talent, so it will be interesting to see how these younger prospects fare and where they ultimately find themselves in mid-October. Some new signings may head to Kalamazoo, but expect a heated battle for positions.

One notable addition is Sammy Blais, who signed an AHL contract with an attached NHL PTO. Currently, the Canucks hold 47 contracts, so Blais will need a strong camp to crack the NHL lineup. Yet, even if it’s just at the AHL level, he offers a solid middle-six veteran option with offensive upside for Abbotsford.

Kudryavtsev’s development path is still an intriguing debate. Although we predicted he might return to the OHL for his final year of eligibility to make a Memorial Cup run, depending on roster needs, he could end up in Abbotsford or Kalamazoo.

However, with such a crowded left side, we can’t help but think that a return to the Soo for one last “kick at the can” for a Memorial Cup enjoying 20-plus minutes is the best route for now. Developing the game while playing among men is always the goal, but sometimes, ice time offers a major leg-up.

We’ll wrap up our Abby section with some news: Jonathan Lekkerimäki has been invited to the NHLPA Rookie Showcase. The event, which will take place in Washington on September 4th, will allow Upper Deck (the NHL’s official trading card) to photograph and video a list of young up-and-comers. The last representative from the Canucks to take part in the event was Quinn Hughes in 2019.

Tracking SHL pre-season games has been challenging this year, with many being played without streams, but we’ve seen glimpses of Lucas Forsell. He’s appeared in three pre-season games for Färjestad, playing in a top-six role in two of them. He even scored in his most recent outing.

With his rights expiring in the summer of 2025, the 2024-25 season will be huge for Forsell’s future within the organization. With another strong roster, his work will be cut out for him. But given that he’s consistently proven that he provides with minutes, he can elevate his game and provide. We hope to see him get the opportunity to showcase that. Otherwise, we could be looking at another young Swedish prospect fade off into the distance.

He’ll have one last pre-season match to suit up in before the club begins its 2024-25 season with Champions League matches on September 6th, 8th, 12th, and 14th. Färjestad kicks off its SHL regular season on September 21st.

Melvin Fernström has split his pre-season games between the SHL and J20 levels. On paper, he registered an assist in his J20 match, but we can confirm that he was the third or even fourth player to touch the puck – you cannot rely on J20 pre-season statics. Although the sample size was very limited, we were slightly disappointed with the number of turnovers we saw in his J20 match. Though his aggressiveness was positive, the number of giveaways was concerning. Again, it was pre-season, and we could only view the third period, but we were still left wanting more among his U20 peers.

It’s still unclear whether he’ll spend most of his season with the SHL squad or the J20 circuit, but expect him to bounce between both levels. The Junior club starts its regular season on September 6th, while the parent (SHL) club begins on September 21st.

Lastly, Hugo Gabrielson has found a new home in the Allsvenskan with Nybro Vikings IF after his previous team (Vasterviks) was relegated to a lower tier in last year’s campaign. Gabrielson has been seeing third-pairing minutes across four exhibition games, but he did manage to score a goal – when Hugo Gabrielson scores, the hockey season has officially begun.

Nybro will enjoy four additional pre-season games before kicking off their regular season on September 20th.

The Canadian Hockey League will be well represented this year, with eight Canucks prospects spread across the OHL, WHL, and QMJHL. Most teams are opening training camps this week and will commence their pre-season over the weekend, if not already.

Basile Sansonnens, whose rights were acquired by the Rimouski Océanic in the CHL Import Draft, has been officially loaned and will report to the QMJHL. This isn’t a shock, as it was reported back in July (Development Camp) that this would be the case, but it’s now official. We expect him to take part in pre-season games where he’ll have opportunities on either September 6th or 7th.

Due to Canucks’ main camp, there’s a good chance that he will miss the opening weekend of his team’s games. However, he’s expected to make his QMJHL debut on September 28th.

As for the Ontario boys, most camps are set to open throughout the week, with many jumping into pre-season games by the weekend. Vilmer Alriksson opens camp on August 28th, with pre-season games starting September 1st. With YoungStars and main camp on the docket, he’ll only have the means to suit up in three games – September 1st, 6th or 7th – before the regular season opens on Friday, September 27th.

Riley Patterson is slated to begin his sophomore season with the Barrie Colts. He will have the opportunity to play in four of six pre-season matches, with games on August 31st and September 2nd,6th and 7th. Their regular season begins on Friday, September 27th as well.

With only four later games scheduled for the North Bay Battalion, Anthony Romani will only have the chance to suit up in two pre-season matches, with games on September 6th and 8th. Much like most of the league, his third OHL season kicks off on Friday, September 27th.

Finally, Kirill Kudryavtsev may or may not be attending the Soo Greyhounds camp – although we assume he will. Unfortunately, with only later September exhibition matches, he’ll only be available to take part in one match with the Soo on Sunday, September 1st, before joining the rest of his Canucks’ prospect teammates. Of course, although his team kicks off their regular season with the rest of the league on September 27th, the young Russian could have other plans to attend his first Abbotsford training camp in early October.

Finally, we have the Western League kids, where the Canucks will have three representatives this season.

This group is headlined by Sawyer Mynio, who’s expected to take on a major role with the Seattle Thunderbirds. He’ll have the opportunity to suit up in three games before heading to Penticton, with matches on September 6th, 7th and 8th.

Meanwhile, Parker Alcos (Edmonton) and Ty Young (Prince George) will face each other in their only two available games on September 7th and 8th.

Unfortunately, there have not been sufficient details on NCAA news yet. We should have more details shortly, with the season just over a month away.

Of course, most of the names mentioned today will be showcased in Penticton at the YoungStars Classic event. After a four-day event from Friday, September 13th, to Monday, September 16th, all members will stick around to participate in the Canucks’ main camp just days after.