When it comes to ‘make it or break it’ seasons for the Vancouver Canucks, one name stands out above all others.
Vasily Podkolzin
Now 23 and five years removed from being picked 10th overall in the 2019 National Hockey League Draft at Rogers Arena, Vasily Podkolzin finds himself at a crossroads with the organization. No longer waiver exempt, Podkolzin will head to training camp in Penticton without any kind of safety net if he’s going to earn a full time job with the hockey club.
At his age and with his draft pedigree, it’s almost certain that another NHL team would pluck Podkolzin if the Canucks tried to get him through waivers and send him to AHL Abbotsford.
The raw tools are undeniable. However, since scoring 14 goals and adding 12 assists in 79 games as a raw rookie in 2021-22, Podkolzin has struggled to make any kind of impact. A year later, he scored four times in 39 NHL games, but last season, he didn’t find the back of the net and managed just two assists in 19 regular-season games. He also found his way into a pair of playoff games but was a non-factor.
The idea of Podkolzin being a scoring force at the NHL level seems unlikely, but the question is can he find a way to carve out a role that will allow him to assert himself on a nightly basis. His 71 hits in 19 games last season projected to 306 over an 82-game schedule. That was a comparable pace to Dakota Joshua, who led the Canucks with 244 hits despite being limited to 63 games last season.
With the hockey club loading up on wingers in the offseason, Podkolzin’s path to full-time NHL employment isn’t getting any easier. He will definitely be one to watch as camp gets underway to see whether he can work his way up the depth chart and ultimately onto the season-opening roster.
Phil DiGiuseppe
For many of the reasons Podkolzin is in tough, Phil Di Giuseppe is facing a similar fate. Now 30 and entering the final year of his contract, Di Giuseppe will need to have a strong training camp and preseason to crack the Canucks’ lineup. The veteran winger can lean on his NHL experience and the fact he has been in similar situations heading into past seasons. And his penalty killing utility may set him apart in the minds of the Canucks’ coaching staff. But as this team attempts to get better, a player like Di Giuseppe may find himself squeezed out of full time work in the NHL.
On paper, the Canucks have Brock Boeser, Jake DeBrusk, Danton Heinen, Conor Garland, Dakota Joshua, Kiefer Sherwood and Nils Höglander ahead of Di Giuseppe on the winger depth chart. Then younger players like Podkolzin, Nils Aman and Linus Karlsson enter the conversation. Di Giuseppe appeared in a career-high 51 games last season, scoring five goals and adding five assists.
He also suited up in 11 of the team’s 13 playoff games chipping in with a goal and a helper. At this stage of his career, Di Giuseppe offers a strong work ethic and an understanding of what it takes to compete in the NHL. But is that enough for him to make this team out of training camp once again?
Nils Aman
If Podkolzin and DiGiuseppe find themselves feeling the heat, Nils Aman has to be in the same category. The one thing that perhaps gives the 24-year-old Swede an edge is that he plays centre in an organization that doesn’t have a lot of NHL depth at the position. Aman managed just 3 goals and seven points in 43 games with the Canucks last season and when the team was at full health he was shifted from the middle to the wing.
Aman has the security of a two-year contract that kicks in next season, so he doesn’t have to play for a new deal. But he has to show up from Day 1 of training camp and prove there is more to his game. He has size to fit in at the big league level, but outside of penalty killing hasn’t demonstrated traits that set him apart at the NHL level. A career 40% face-off man, that’s a tough way to make a living as a centre in the best league on the planet.
And as the organization bulks up on forwards in an attempt to improve, Aman is in jeopardy of losing his NHL job. With that very real possiblity looming, it should be interesting to see how he intends to make a mark through camp and the preseason.
Noah Juulsen
Last season represented the first full season in the NHL for the hard-working Abbotsford native. Juulsen played in 54 games for the Canucks — more than twice as many as he had played in any previous season since being a late first round draft pick by Montreal in 2015. Now 27, Juulsen appears to be the seventh defenceman on the Canucks depth chart and showed last season he can step in and perform.
But with Filip Hronek, Tyler Myers and Vincent Desharnais all ahead of him on the right side of the defensive depth chart and all with term remaining beyond this season and with 2023 first rounder Tom Willander a big part of the hockey club’s future and Cole McWard bidding for an NHL job, is there room and a role for Juulsen beyond 2024-25? A pending unrestricted free agent after this season, Juulsen will provide depth when opportunity knocks.
Through no fault of his own, however, he may be running out of runway to remain in the Canucks organization and stay in the NHL on a full-time basis. A popular teammate who battles hard when called upon, Juulsen is the kind of player the Canucks should want to keep in the fold although it may mean time in the minors. But if he has eyes on NHL employment, he may be in a position of showcasing himself to other teams whenever he gets the chance to play.
Arturs Silovs
This one may be a bit of a surprise addition to a list like this, but hear me out. Silovs did everything the Canucks asked of him, stepping into the pressure cooker of Stanley Cup Playoff hockey and helping the Canucks push Edmonton to Game 7 in the second round. The 23-year-old Latvian handled the assignment splendidly and certainly established a body of work that is something to build on, But every season presents new challenges and for Silovs, he needs to prove he can grow his game as a full time NHL’er.
With the Canucks poised to make a push in the next couple of seasons, the 23-year-old Latvian will need to hold up his end of the bargain in however many starts he gets as Thatcher Demko’s understudy. And while there normally isn’t a lot of pressure on the back-up, in this case Silovs needs to show he can handle the assignment and deliver victories for the Canucks. If he falters, the team may have no choice but look to acquire a veteran backstop to provide the stability needed on the nights Demko takes a breather. And with Demko expected to be held to 50 to 55 starts, that leaves a lot of nights that the Canucks are going to need quality NHL goaltending.
The position is unique because there are only two jobs on an NHL roster, and Silovs looks to have one right now. But if the team was forced to bring in another veteran with NHL expereince, who knows what that means for Silovs in the big picture. This season isn’t make it or break it for Silovs becoming a full-time NHL’er because he can be sent to Abbotsford and continue to develop in the AHL. But it’s certainly a golden opportunity for Silovs to launch his NHL career and leave the minors behind. The pressure will be on for him to grab the brass ring and make the most of it.
Minor League Make it or Break it candidates
Based on age, contractual status and spots on the organizational depth chart, it feels like now or never for a number of players in the Canucks system. Those include Jett Woo, Akito Hirose, Guillaume Brisebois, Linus Karlsson, and perhaps even Arshdeep Bains. This doesn’t mean these players need to become full-time NHL players next season. But turnover is inevitable and others will be entering the system vying for the same opportunities.
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