Vancouver Canucks training camp is in the books.
Spanning four days in Penticton, Canucks training camp 2024 was a fascinating exercise. The pace was high, the on-ice focus was on breakouts and rush attacking and the talent level on display seemed notably higher than in previous years — except, perhaps, in net.
This week the club will begin a gauntlet exhibition schedule featuring five preseason games in seven days. With no time to waste, the Canucks have made an initial round of cuts to their training camp roster already and will presumably move even more ruthlessly to get down to their numbers following Tuesday and Wednesday’s back-to-back set of preseason games.
As we ruminate on what we observed in Penticton and where the various training camp battles sit ahead of the preseason, let’s update the Canucks depth chart and empty our notebook on everything we saw in the Okanagan over the past week.
GO DEEPER
Canucks training camp scrimmage: 3 players who helped themselves and 3 who didn’t
Note: Players who have already been cut from Vancouver’s camp roster are shaded red, while players who aren’t currently on an NHL contract — and are at camp on a professional tryout basis — are shaded green.
Jake DeBrusk’s speed and shot-making were on display throughout Canucks training camp, and it appeared as if the club’s marquee free-agent acquisition was already well on his way to building some meaningful chemistry with Elias Pettersson.
We hadn’t really understood how long Danton Heinen was until we had the opportunity to observe him this week at Canucks training camp. Listed at 6-foot-1, Heinen’s frame plays larger than that because he’s got a massive wingspan. He’s almost built more like a wing in basketball than like a typical winger in hockey. Heinen leveraged his reach to impressive effect throughout camp on two-on-two battle drills, during which he regularly frustrated whomever he was competing against with his Doctor Octopus arms and strong stick.
It’s easy to forget Nils Höglander is still only 23 years old. The “pint-sized power forward,” to steal a favourite description from Pettersson, was a standout throughout training camp. He was an absolute wrecking ball on a line with Conor Garland during the Sunday scrimmage, flummoxing his teammates off the rush and along the wall. Höglander is unlikely to convert on 20 percent of his shots this upcoming season the way he did last year, but a breakout could still be coming if he’s able to level up his two-way game. He certainly looked at camp like he’d put in the work this summer.
Phillip Di Giuseppe is an every-year training camp superstar, and that was the case again in Penticton. The competition for one of the final forward roster spots is going to be especially fierce this year given Vancouver’s wing depth, but Di Giuseppe is a known quantity for the Canucks and performed well at camp.
At camp on a professional tryout, Sammy Blais had some very strong moments — especially in two-on-two battle drills late in practice sessions — but wasn’t at his best during the intrasquad scrimmage on Sunday. Blais will need to be nearly perfect from here on out given he’ll first have to earn a contract before he can earn a job with the big club.
After a brilliant showing at the Young Stars Tournament, Arshdeep Bains had a decent camp. His pace has improved and he has professional details in all facets of the game. Decent, however, isn’t going to be enough given the competition on the wings in Vancouver this season.
Tristen Nielsen and Vilmer Alriksson avoided the first round of cuts and are poised to get an opportunity to play in the preseason. That’s especially impressive in Alriksson’s case, as he’s still just 19. He’s clearly turned heads at camp, including coach Rick Tocchet’s, and one wonders if the club may sign him to an entry-level deal before returning him to junior (given Alriksson’s age, his contract would be eligible to slide).
J.T. Miller didn’t dazzle with highlight-reel-type offensive plays — he’s one of those veterans who can flip a switch when the hockey actually counts — but his intensity in battle drills stood out. He’s also one of the key veterans the coaching staff leaned on to successfully lead drills.
Pettersson may not have dominated training camp in a way that has this market buzzing, but he looks like his usual self again. Vancouver’s star Swede has flashed slick dekes and passes and shown off his elite offensive IQ at various points, particularly during the rush-attacking drills. He appears to have his confidence and swagger back, even though he was relatively quiet during the scrimmage.
After a successful season mostly spent on the wing, Pius Suter will shift back to centre. Suter’s positional savvy and two-way IQ aren’t going to shine in a camp environment that mostly rewards speed and high-end skill, but he looked comfortable centring a line with Daniel Sprong and Bains which bodes well for his transition back to the middle.
At last year’s training camp, Nils Åman made an excellent impression. He looked noticeably stronger and was one of the team’s best players during scrimmage. He hasn’t looked poor at this fall’s camp by any means, but it’s a bit disappointing that he’s been so quiet given the fierce competition to win the 13th forward spot.
Aatu Räty is one of several young players getting a plum opportunity to play with skilled NHL linemates in camp. The 21-year-old Finnish forward has skated on a line with Höglander and Garland. That trio has been excellent in camp and the scrimmage. They’ve hounded the puck relentlessly and creatively manufactured offence down low. Höglander and Garland have unquestionably been the main drivers, but Räty hasn’t looked out of place as a complementary piece.
Max Sasson has had a quiet camp relative to his fast, high-energy playing style which usually catches your eye. He didn’t make much of an impression during Sunday’s scrimmage. He hasn’t made any big mistakes that would raise concerns, but there have been a couple of moments — such as the two-on-two battle drills where he was schooled by Heinen — that reveal the gap between him and established NHL players.
Given the Canucks’ lack of right-handed centres, Nathan Smith is perhaps a name worth getting more familiar with. The 25-year-old pivot, who has 14 career NHL games under his belt with Arizona, caught our eye on a couple of occasions in camp. He made a strong play to force a turnover on the forecheck and set up Mark Friedman for a goal in Sunday’s scrimmage, too. Smith isn’t going to make the team for the start of the season, but he could become a depth recall option if the Canucks run into multiple injuries down the middle midseason.
Ty Mueller didn’t always produce “pro reps” at camp, but he showed sparks of potential. During Sunday’s scrimmage, he completely danced around Filip Hronek, making the veteran Canucks defender look silly, on an offensive zone entry and converted it into a rush scoring chance.
If there was any lingering concern around Brock Boeser in the aftermath of his blood clot, it should have been alleviated in camp. Boeser was moving around the ice well and his playmaking off the rush was consistently sharp.
Garland has been a buzzsaw throughout camp. He battled tenaciously, drove offence and even drew hoots and hollers from his teammates for blocking a shot on Day 3.
Jonathan Lekkerimäki looks closer to being NHL-ready than we anticipated before camp. He’s already lethal off the rush as a one-on-one attacker. In addition to his high-velocity shot, he’s shown high offensive IQ and playmaking ability skating alongside Pettersson and DeBrusk. While his line didn’t manufacture a ton offensively during Sunday’s scrimmage, his play away from the puck significantly exceeded our expectations. There are still parts of his game that look raw, but he’s entering preseason with a credible chance of making the team.
Kiefer Sherwood is going to be an exciting bottom-six addition. Based on what we saw at camp, it wouldn’t be surprising if he emerges as a fan favourite this season.
Sprong’s shot is so nasty it made our jaw drop at least once or twice per day at camp. He’ll have to quickly acclimate to Tocchet’s system and non-negotiables away from the puck — Vancouver’s head coach noted a drill in which Sprong dove in too deep as the F3 and it led to an odd-man scoring chance for the other side — but his pure skill has been evident.
Linus Karlsson is often the forgotten name when discussing the Canucks’ depth winger options. He shouldn’t be completely overlooked, though. Karlsson shined through the first three days of camp with his heaviness and small-area skill, even though he failed to make much of an impression during the final day’s scrimmage.
Danila Klimovich is an enigma. There are some drills and plays where he’ll show the type of eye-popping dynamic skill and creativity that makes you think he could still develop into something intriguing. He had a couple of dazzling sequences off the rush during the scrimmage, for example. But then there are other moments where he’ll make a poor read or the type of alarming mistake that makes you question whether he’ll ever be able to harness his athleticism and skill.
Riley Patterson is raw but looks like an interesting long-term project. His dogged puck pursuit definitely stood out at times during the scrimmage.
There isn’t a depth chart in the world that Quinn Hughes wouldn’t fill top slot on.
Carson Soucy was paired with Vincent Desharnais throughout camp on a defense pair that could be tasked with playing matchup minutes if it’s given some run in the preseason (and, perhaps, beyond). Soucy scored a goal in the scrimmage and was his usual imposing self in battle drills throughout camp.
Derek Forbort looks the part of a Tocchet-style depth defender.
Although Christian Wolanin was bumped down the lineup as the club took a look at Kirill Kudryavtsev during camp, we’d posit that it was more about getting a look at the young defender than it was about Wolanin’s performance.
Kudryavtsev, however, should be on Canucks fans’ radars as a player who could play NHL games this season. The slick, undersized puck-mover isn’t a high-upside prospect, but he looks pro-ready right from the jump, although he was a bit inconsistent with his decision-making in Sunday’s scrimmage.
Elias Pettersson had some excellent moments early on in training camp and has a ton of pro-level skills, but he faded a bit as camp went along. It will be fascinating to watch his progress through the preseason and into the early part of the year down in Abbotsford.
On a one-way contract and seemingly having fallen behind Kudryavtsev — who is five years younger — on the left-side depth chart, one wonders if Akito Hirose could be a player the Canucks might try to include in a preseason or early season trade. After all, they moved on from two one-way contracts last fall (Jack Rathbone and Jack Studnicka) after those players fell out of their NHL plans.
Guillaume Brisebois exclusively practiced with the American League group throughout camp, a solid indication of where his stock sits internally.
Sawyer Mynio stood out to Tocchet during training camp and avoided the first round of cuts on Sunday. Mynio will surely spend this season in junior but may have an opportunity to be blooded in preseason action, which would be a remarkable opportunity for a 19-year-old player to earn.
Hronek made some uncharacteristic reads during Sunday’s scrimmage, but that shouldn’t obscure how assertive and dialled in he was throughout the four days of on-ice sessions in Penticton. He seemed more vocal and comfortable with the group this season and made some preposterous shots.
Tyler Myers is a dependable pro in this environment. He was paired up with Wolanin and then Kudryavtsev as camp went along, which doesn’t shed a ton of light on how the Canucks plan to deploy him this upcoming season.
Desharnais was as advertised, mixing it up physically with his teammates — especially Miller and Heinen on occasion — and looking more mobile than he did in the playoffs last spring when he was battling through injury. He made a solid first impression.
Noah Juulsen was paired with Hughes throughout camp but wasn’t a standout performer. He struggled during the scrimmage, in particular, to handle the likes of Höglander both on the rush and along the wall. Juulsen’s physical play and exceptional penalty-killing work keep him on the inside track for the seventh spot on the blue-line depth chart, but he’ll want to leave no doubt during exhibition play.
Friedman was one of the singular standout players of training camp, putting an exclamation mark on his solid work with a lovely goal during Sunday’s scrimmage. Friedman’s practice habits, competitiveness and versatility will make him difficult for the club to jettison as they make final decisions on the 23-man roster over the next two weeks.
It was a relatively quiet camp for Jett Woo, who seems more likely to be in the mix as the first man up as opposed to breaking camp with the big club.
Christian Felton had some moments in his first NHL training camp but doesn’t quite have the consistency of a polished professional player yet. The college free agent seems poised to earn a look in preseason action, which would represent an excellent start to his first NHL season.
Parker Alcos is an intriguing project for the Canucks. He’ll need to add weight and sharpen up his puckhandling, but he showed real hockey IQ in all three zones. He’ll have a lengthy development road ahead of him, but there’s something there.
Artūrs Šilovs got better the longer camp went. He looked rusty early on and didn’t seem to settle in until the second half of the Day 2 session. Šilovs capped camp off with a sensational performance during the scrimmage, stopping all 16 shots he faced — including some jaw-dropping saves — in a single period of action. Considering he nearly dragged the Canucks to the Western Conference final last spring, we’d expect him to have the slight, early edge on recent signing Kevin Lankinen for the starter’s crease.
Lankinen’s signing is a major boost to the organization’s goaltending depth given the uncertainty around Thatcher Demko’s health. There were moments during camp where we were genuinely concerned about the Canucks’ goaltending situation, but between Šilovs’ standout showing on Sunday and the Lankinen signing, we left training camp feeling far more confident in the options than we did after Friday’s session.
Nikita Tolopilo decisively outplayed Jiri Patera in camp. Patera was routinely beat by shots and never found his groove, whereas Tolopilo was solid albeit unspectacular.
Ty Young earned the promotion from Group C, which largely consisted of AHL and junior quality players, to the NHL-filled Group B on Day 3. That’s a positive sign for Young, as was his performance during the second half of the scrimmage. It’s notable that Young has remained with the club through the first round of cuts, which suggests he may get a brief look — or at least the opportunity to backup — during the exhibition schedule.
Demko is recovering from an exceedingly rare muscle ailment, while Dakota Joshua is recovering from surgery to remove a cancerous growth after he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. Both players are out indefinitely.
Joshua and Demko were present in Penticton, but only Demko was actively skating. Demko’s sessions often involved facing shots from Cole McWard — who is week to week with a lower-body injury — and going through drills. Before Sunday’s scrimmage, he was doing some relatively advanced work, including some post-integration movements, and the Canucks insist publicly and privately that they’re optimistic about his progress.
Teddy Blueger was skating with Group C, which is the American League group, in a non-contact jersey at training camp. He was described by Canucks management as day to day before camp and appears to be close to rejoining the main group.
(Photo of J.T. Miller celebrating with Filip Hronek and Pius Suter: Matthew Stockman / Getty Images)
