On today’s episode of Canucks Conversation, David Quadrelli and Harman Dayal analyzed Aatu Räty and Jonathan Lekkerimäki’s performance in the Vancouver Canucks’ first preseason game against Seattle last night and previewed their future roles.
Aatu Räty stuffed the stat sheet against the Kraken, as RinkWide’s Jeff Paterson noted on X, finishing with an assist, two shots on five attempts, three hits, a giveaway and a takeaway, two blocked shots, and went 14-4 in the face-off circle.
“It was a masterful, all-around performance,” Harman said. “I said yesterday I wanted to see him dialed in, playing with the details of a centreman on both ends of the ice, with and without the puck. He was enormously impressive. His skating looks significantly better than last year; the way he was able to get up the ice, and every touch he had with the puck was quick and decisive. Everything was bang-bang; he was playing with a ton of confidence, and that was fully on display on the power play. On the breakout, under pressure—and that’s often the biggest test for young centres making the jump from the AHL to the NHL… It was an unbelievable start. Obviously, the consistency aspect is going to be huge—it’s just one game—but he looked like a completely different player than what I’d seen previously.”
The discussion shifted to Lekkerimäki, who had an up-and-down preseason debut.
“He started the game a little tough; I noticed him not going into board battles, which isn’t something Tocchet will want to see, and slow decision-making with the puck, which isn’t his game,” said Quads. “He figured it out by the second period and settled in, making a smart play at the end of the game to set up Pius Suter to ice it. His poise with the puck, especially on the power play dealing with the smaller ice surface, was good from the second period onward.”
“It was a decent showing. In my mind, he’s going to need to reach a higher level if he wants to make the team,” Harman added. “I agree, the longer the game went on, the more it felt like the nerves started to dissipate. I liked a couple of passes he had off the rush—one where he went in on the left side and made a nice feed into space for Boeser, which led to a dangerous chance, and the play where he drew the penalty. You like to see plays like that. He looked generally sharp on the power play, so it was a decent showing overall, considering it’s his first preseason outing.”
Vancouver heads to Abbotsford to play the Flames tonight in their second preseason game, and players getting the opportunity to play in these back-to-back games will likely be seeing different looks in the lineup than last night. Räty’s strong performance in game one will help his bid to stay on the NHL roster, but he’ll have to keep it up with different linemates throughout the preseason.
“After last night’s game, how could you not think Räty is a legit contender for that 13th forward spot?” asserted Harman. “It’s just one game; it’s a long preseason with six games total, so he’ll need to sustain that level. Who knows who will have a big night tonight and the rest of the week, but he’s certainly part of the mix now.”
“It’s an interesting challenge for Räty playing in back-to-back games because he’s not going to have Garland and Höglander,” said Quads. “We know Elias Pettersson is going to play with Jake DeBrusk on his wing, and you’d assume Lekkerimäki would get a shot with Pettersson. Trying to project the second line, I would assume Räty is going to be the second-line centre with a number of options at wing… I would like to see Räty play with Daniel Sprong and Kiefer Sherwood.”
“I’d love to see Sherwood on his wing because he brings that speed and ‘pain in the neck’ element on the forecheck, which complements Räty and how he plays positionally—supporting the puck and staying above the play,” Harman continued. “To have Sherwood as this disruptor who’s elusive down low and can ramp up the pace of that line—I like that potential fit. If Räty is out there making plays, I’m not worried about offensive chances dying on Sherwood’s stick.”
For Lekkerimäki, tonight presents a tremendous opportunity to showcase his ability to perform with some top NHL-level talent in Elias Pettersson and Jake DeBrusk, assuming he does play on Pettersson’s wing. We saw flashes of his potential last night against Seattle, particularly his big-league shot, but he’ll need to make more of a splash if he wants a chance to make the team come the regular season.
Watch the full replay of today’s show below!
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