The Vancouver Canucks preseason has officially kicked off, and we’re still trying to figure out how this roster is going to be constructed come opening night on October 9th.
One spot that seems solidified is Danton Heinen skating on the left side of JT Miller and Brock Boeser. He’s spent mostly all of training camp and practices then after with them, and Heinen looks forward to getting in some game reps once Miller makes his preseason debut.
However, the biggest offseason question surrounding the Canucks had to be; “Who’s going to play with Elias Pettersson?”
We all know by now that Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet likes to play in duos. After he signed in Vancouver on July 1st, Jake DeBrusk has been slotted as the second half of Pettersson’s duo. But now, it begs the question, who will round out the trio?
Young prospect Jonathan Lekkerimäki was given all of the run alongside Pettersson and DeBrusk throughout training camp. The three built some early chemistry that earned them time together in the Canucks’ second preseason game against the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night. The line failed to find the scoresheet together, but they had no problems generating scoring chances.
While it’s encouraging to see the Canucks’ best prospect get a long look with high-end talent, there is a chance he isn’t ready for NHL action. And in that case, the club will need to start testing out other options to pair with the duo.
During Thursday’s split practice, we already saw a taste of that line juggling as Kiefer Sherwood skated with Pettersson and DeBrusk.
“There’s a lot of different options to go,” Tocchet said. “I could put Hoggy [Höglander] on the left, I know Jake [DeBrusk] can play the right side – he’s actually a good right-winger too. Sherwood could go up there. There’s a lot of different guys. I think Lekkerimäki has done a nice job in his time there. It’s a job we’re looking for somebody to take a hold of.”
One notable name not mentioned by Tocchet was Daniel Sprong, which was surprising considering the highlight-reel goal he scored last night to tie the game with 14 seconds left.
“Yes, he is,” Tocchet replied when asked if Sprong was a candidate. “I shouldn’t have forgotten [him] cause he’s a guy we’re really excited to help and teach. You saw that goal last night. He can do that. There’s just times in between where he gets a little lost. I’m excited to work with him, like, really excited. He is definitely a candidate to go there. It would be crazy not to give him a chance up there.”
The biggest concern in Sprong’s game has always been in his own end. Tocchet has spoken about wanting to help develop that aspect of his game and transform him into a complete player.
“I have a good relationship with him; he wants to learn,” Tocchet said in praise of Sprong. “He came in in good shape, really good shape. He’s been texting and asking for video. He wants to be a better player. Like I said, [he’s had] seven coaches on seven different teams; he’s got to settled in and really take this information.”
“Can he be a complete player? He can’t go unnoticed. Sometimes he doesn’t move his feet, he gets lost out there. I’d like to see his motor go like he did [last night]. And if he makes an aggressive mistake when he’s motoring, I can live with that. It’s just when he loses his guy or dives and does that. I haven’t seen [it] that much. He’s really conscious of it. You do some intel; you talk to some other coaches, too. But I think we’ve got a good handle on him. He knows what he has to do. He knows there’s certain things he has to do to earn the trust and the ice time.”
The Vancouver Canucks have three preseason games coming over the next four days. We’ll have to wait and see who receives that spot when they next suit up on Friday against the Seattle Kraken.
