Welcome back to the Blackfish Prospect Report.
Abbotsford Canucks
The baby Vancouver Canucks began their week by extending their win streak by four games with a 4-2 win in Bakersfield. That high was short-lived, unfortunately, as they dropped consecutive games in San Jose over the weekend.
With a .500 record of 10-10-0-1, they are fifth in the Pacific Division and now in the bottom five regarding goals allowed leaguewide.
*Insert “bed goes up, bed goes down” Simpson’s GIF*
On the bright side, Danila Klimovich continues to light the lamp amidst a strong bounce-back campaign. With another two goals over the week, he’s now up to nine goals and 12 points, putting him on pace for 33 goals and 48 points. Those 12 points currently place him third among U22 skaters in goals.
What’s most encouraging about Klimovich’s play is the confidence radiating from the way he makes plays and engages in play. He’s attempting more moves, engaging on the forecheck, and generally playing like a revitalized player.
Not to mention, eight of his points (five goals, three assists) have come at even strength, proving he’s not simply feasting on the man advantage. That said, adding him as a shooting threat alongside Jonathan Lekkerimäki on the power play has greatly boosted Abbotsford’s special teams success.
Of course, his two-way game and decision-making habits still need refining, but we absolutely love the resurgence in his game.
Speaking of Lekkerimäki, it’s been a somewhat forgettable return to the AHL after his NHL stint. Over the week’s three games, he went pointless and was a minus-four while recording *just* 10 shots on goal.
Statistically speaking, there weren’t many high-danger opportunities, aside from a breakaway turned penalty shot.
Since his return, he’s managed just one goal and 15 shots in five games.
We’ve touched on the value of Lekkerimäki spending an extended period in the AHL, and these struggles are a prime example of why.
Before his promotion, he began finding his rhythm, scoring goals and shooting at will. That flow was interrupted by the NHL call-up. Naturally, as a player, his goal is to enjoy promotion and play at the highest level possible.
Yet, his game felt like it scratched the surface at the American League level. Clearly, the promotion isn’t directly linked to his current struggles, but it certainly impacted his rhythm. He’ll get it back, and the NHL experience was invaluable. But now, he just needs to get back to the basics again.
Ty Mueller, meanwhile, hasn’t had a call-up, and he’s doing just fine. Mueller added another goal and assist this week, bringing his tally to eight points (four goals, four assists). He also remains effective in the face-off circle, winning 50% of his draws while playing in a variety of positions and situations.
The real story on the farm continues to be the two young defenders, who combined for five points over the week.
Elias Pettersson, the aggressive shutdown defender, scored his first AHL goal over the weekend. Picking up the puck at the blue line, he unleashed a well-placed shot that beat Yaroslav Askarov cleanly above the shoulder.
Pettersson added an assist the next night with a smart backhand pass that set up Tristan Nielsen.
On the downside, Pettersson had his first negative week of the season, going minus-three, which brings his overall rating to plus-two for the year.
As for Kirill Kudryavtsev, he’s been putting on a show over the past few weeks, adding another three assists this week and firing at over a point-per-game pace over his last six games.
Since November 11th, only three U21 players have collected more points than Kudryavtsev — all forwards and all having played more games.
Kudryavtsev has solidified his spot on the team’s secondary powerplay unit and has established himself as one of Abbotsford’s top-minute earners, consistently seeing ice time into the 20s. He now joins Pettersson as one of only two Abbotsford defenders boasting a positive plus/minus rating for the year.
Don’t let the youngster’s shine distract you from the steady contributions of
Cole McWard. While he didn’t register any points this week, he’s taken over as the team’s top power play quarterback and has been a steady two-way presence. We mentioned McWard as a
potential option for the next call-up to Vancouver, and he’s still right at the top of the list.
In goal, Nikita Tolopilo continued his up-and-down campaign. On one hand, he was rock-solid with a 34-save 3-1 victory in Bakersfield. On the other hand, he allowed six goals on 28 shots in San Jose. Unlike last season, Tolopilo struggles to find consistency in his sophomore year.
Ty Young also had a tough outing, allowing four goals on 29 shots, splitting his season record to 2-2-0.
CHL
Sawyer Mynio grabs the spotlight for the second week running, even though he hasn’t played since November 8th.
Canada’s roster choices had some surprises, but Mynio has a strong chance of earning a role on the left side. San Jose prospect Sam Dickinson and Nashville’s Tanner Molendyk are likely locks. This means that Mynio will have to outperform Seattle Kraken prospect Caden Price and 2025 draft favourite Matthew Schaefer to secure his place. A feat that we believe can be done.
Initially listed as week-to-week with an upper-body injury, Mynio has been downgraded to day-to-day. If there were significant concerns about his availability, he probably wouldn’t have been invited.
We hinted at the possibility of Vilmer Alriksson making Sweden’s preliminary roster, though that may just be us sticking our necks out for a homegrown talent.
Nonetheless, Alriksson is doing everything in his power to earn that spot. He’s now enjoyed 11 consecutive games on Guelph’s top line, amassing 19 points (nine goals, 10 assists), including a 14-point streak across nine games.
Firing at a 61-point pace, Alriksson is on track to double his rookie numbers from last season and is now leading Guelph in goals, second in points, and third in shots on goal with 66.
Whether it’s crashing the net, snapping a shot from a distance, or using his size to be a force, his game has reached a new level this year. Don’t be surprised if he finds himself in the AHL by season’s end.
Riley Patterson also had a productive week, tallying three goals and an assist. He notched his second multi-goal game of the season over the weekend, including a shorthanded goal.
He also called a game in overtime, courtesy of a beautiful breakaway move to tuck the puck under the bar.
Patterson has had an up-and-down year, but he’s currently riding a four-game point streak and is up to 19 points on the season.
Anthony Romani remains sidelined with a broken clavicle. We’re nearing the seven-week mark since the injury, so hopefully, an update will be available soon.
Sweden
Not too much news out of Sweden, but Melvin Fernström continues his promising draft-plus-one campaign. While he’s found a comfortable home in the SHL, occasionally, he heads down for a game at the J20 level, like last week when he posted two goals and an assist.
In the J20 league, Fernström is riding a five-game point streak, with five goals and four assists during that span.
Having participated in the Summer World Junior Showcase, there’s still an outside shot that he will make the Swedish World Junior team — his recent showing at the SHL level as an 18-year-old is certainly helping his case.
NCAA
Three Canucks prospects flew to Belfast, Northern Ireland, to take part in the “Friendship Four” tournament — an annual exhibition event where four college teams compete for the Belpot trophy.
This year, Boston University (Tom Willander and Aiden Celebrini), Harvard (Aku Koskenvuo), Notre Dame, and Quinnipiac participated.
Koskenvuo got the start in Harvard’s first game but allowed three goals in the first period and was pulled, marking his first early exit of the season. As a result, he rode the bench for game two.
Aiden Celebrini opened the weekend by scoring his first goal of the year and adding an assist. His goal was the tournament opener. Unfortunately, the tournament is nothing more than an exhibition and does not officially count toward his season point totals. Yet, it’s a good confidence boost for a third-pairing defender struggling to find offensive contributions.
Tom Willander went scoreless in Belfast but played a key role in Boston University’s win over Notre Dame to capture the 2024 Belpot Championship.
The former first-rounder represents the lone lock regarding Canucks prospects making their respective World Junior teams. Sweden should announce their preliminary rosters soon, and Willander is all but guaranteed to have his name on the list.
That’s it for this week’s edition of the Blackfish Prospect Report. Thanks for checking in!
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