The Canucks prospect development camp is in full swing in Shawinigan Lake with all sorts of fitness testing, on-ice drills, and, of course, . That last one is the brainchild of assistant coach Perry Pearn, who clearly missed his calling as a youth pastor.
A lot of the focus is on the Canucks’ top prospects, which is understandable, but I like to shine the light on the guys who might potentially someday become Canucks prospects: the invitees.
, which featured a couple standout QMJHL stars. This time around, there are a couple older NCAA forwards, another QMJHL scorer, a big Latvian, and Curtis Valk.
– Right Wing
6’1″ – 205 lbs – June 18, 1991 (25)
West Dundee, IL
Rochester Institute of Technology (31-4-7-11)
The Canucks have had success with a couple former RIT Tigers: Chris Tanev and Steve Pinizzotto. Okay, so they’ve had more success with the former than the latter, but why not take a chance on another Tiger?
Andrew Miller is the oldest player at development camp at 25, five months older than new Canucks goaltender Michael Garteig, the goaltender for Quinnipiac that knocked the Tigers out of the NCAA Tournament. Miller was one of three co-captains of the Tigers this past season, helping to lead them to their second straight Atlantic Hockey Championship.
While not a scorer, managing just 4 goals and 11 points in 31 games this past season, Miller does seem to come through in big situations.
In the 2015 Atlantic Hockey Tournament, Miller two of his ten points on the season in the final two games, ensuring a championship and getting named to the All-Tournament Team, while he tallied two goals and an assist in RIT’s four games in the tournament this year, including the game-tying goal in the semifinal to take the game to overtime.
Miller is known more for the defensive and physical sides of his game, as well as his intangibles, . Well, he co-won it. I’m starting to see a theme: co-captain, co-winner of a grit award...this guy must be a good teammate. Or at least a good person to co-habitate with.
There’s not much to get too excited about with Miller, though another professional team saw enough to give him a couple games: the AHL’s Binghamton Senators, who signed him to an amateur tryout contract after his season ended. He played two games. Maybe he’ll get a tryout with the Utica Comets this year, but I'm not seeing NHL upside.
– Left Wing
6’0″ – 197 lbs – December 8, 1995 (20)
Boston, MA
Halifax Mooseheads/Shawinigan Cataractes (67-36-34-70)
Danny Moynihan and his younger brother Connor joined the Halifax Mooseheads together for the 2013-14 season and played two-and-a-half seasons together before the elder brother got traded to the Shawinigan Cataractes.
Moynihan was the top scorer on the Mooseheads, racking up 24 goals and 49 points in 38 games, but took on more of a complementary role with the already stacked Cataractes, putting up 12 goals and 21 points in 29 regular season games, then 4 goals and 19 points in 21 playoff games.
That’s great production, even when you consider he was in his over-age season. He was just as productive the year before, with 33 goals and 70 points in 62 games, then putting together a great playoff run with 9 goals and 20 points in 14 games. That was alongside top prospects Timo Meier and Nikolaj Ehlers, but he proved he could produce without Ehlers, at least.
Moynihan was ranked 77th among North American skaters heading into the 2014 draft, but went undrafted and was unranked in 2015 and 2016 despite his improved numbers. He has some versatility, lining up at both left wing and centre, and is capable of playing with great players. He can certainly bury his chances and has decent size and speed.
Moynihan is also known for his proficiency in the faceoff circle, finishing the season with the sixth most faceoff wins in the QMJHL and a 57.2 winning percentage.
– Left Wing
6’1″ – 198 lbs – June 5, 1992 (24)
Lakeville, MN
University of Nebraska-Omaha (35-8-20-28)
Justin Parizek is one of the older players at camp, having just turned 24 last month. He’s coming off his Junior year at the University of Nebraska-Omaha, where his 28 points were good for third on the Mavericks while playing on the second line.
He averaged 2.86 shots per game, which is far from the likes of NCAA stars like Jimmy Vesey, Kyle Connor, or Brock Boeser, but does squeak him into the top-100 in the NCAA. Likewise, his 0.80 points per game put him just outside the top-100.
Parizek may not have outstanding numbers, though they’re not bad by any means, but he does have some offensive skill. He has a hard shot, reasonable hands, and decent skating.
Parizek also has a long reach that he uses effectively killing penalties and scored three shorthanded goals last season.
Parizek has a bit of a BC connection, playing briefly for the Langley Rivermen in the 2011-12 season.
Altogether, Parizek seems like a capable, if unspectacular player. He’s the type of guy that is hard to get excited about when compared to some of the other invitees this year, but also the type of guy who might have potential to play on a fourth line in the NHL someday, where flashier players might be top-six or bust.
Not that he doesn’t have a bit of flash, judging from this end-to-end goal from his NAHL days:
– Centre
6’3″ – 187 lbs – February 17, 1997 (19)
Riga, Latvia
Boston Jr. Bandits (40-28-27-55)
The Canucks have had a string of Latvian invitees over the last few years: Ronalds Kenins, Miks Indrasis, and Rodrigo Abols. Kenins earned a contract after getting an invite, while Abols just got drafted by the Canucks, so Latvian invitees have a bit of a history of minor success with the Canucks. Eduards Tralmaks will look to out-do them this year.
Tralmaks has actually been in North America for several years, playing for the Boston Jr. Bandits since the 2013-14 season. He was the top scorer for the Bandits in the EHL, putting up 28 goals and 55 points in 40 games, well ahead of the next best player on the team.
That was good enough for fifth in points and a tie for second in goals in the EHL and he was .
That would be enough to get the attention of college scouts, but Tralmaks also made an impression at the U-18 tournament the year before. Though he had just 3 points in 6 games, he proved he could hold his own against top competition, . He has committed to Maine for the 2017-18 season and before heading to the NCAA.
The Latvian centre has a good-sized frame that he needs to grow into a bit, skates well, and can hit like a truck, to which Martin Svoboda, the victim of the hit in the video above, can attest. Tralmaks was only 5’10” during the 2015 U18 tournament where he delivered that hit; he’s added 5 inches in height since then.
It’s pretty obvious what the Canucks see in Tralmaks: he’s tall, hits, and can score. If they want to sign him, however, they’ll either have to wait a while, as he gives college a try, or convince him to forego his commitment to the University of Maine. The Canucks would have to be really convinced that Tralmaks has enough upside to make the NHL within the next couple years to do that. More likely, Tralmaks heads to the NCAA, where he can develop and scouts will have a chance to see him compete in a tougher league.
– Centre
5’9″ – 170 lbs – February 8, 1993 (23)
Medicine Hat, AB
Kalamazoo Wings (30-16-17-33)
The last forward invitee is an invitee in name only, as Curtis Valk has been an invitee previously and, while not actually in the Canucks system, he’s been system-adjacent for two seasons. He signed a two-way contract with the Utica Comets and has been plying his trade in the ECHL with the Kalamazoo Wings.
Valk has consistently been one of the K-Wings’ best players, with 27 goals and 63 points in 61 games with them over the past two seasons, despite a knee injury ending his first season early and causing him to miss the start of his second season. He got the call-up to the Comets late last season, playing a total of 12 games in the AHL, where he tallied 2 goals and 6 points, but he didn’t make an appearance in the AHL playoffs.
While it may be odd to see Valk at another prospect development camp, it’s clear that the Canucks are curious to see if he can make the most of his potential and he may yet earn an NHL contract.
While it’s rare to see non-goaltenders play two seasons in the ECHL and make the NHL—Alex Burrows being one of the few exceptions—Valk still has intriguing upside, putting up two 90+ point seasons at the end of his major junior career and scoring at a point-per-game pace in the ECHL. Players who do that generally don’t stay in the ECHL long and Valk seems like the perfect candidate to be an AHL star: offensive talent, small frame.
It’s possible the Canucks see him as just that and will look to entice him to stay in Utica with a two-way NHL contract, particularly with the Comets . If he does earn a contract, he’ll just be a hot streak and a few injuries away from making his NHL debut.
Optimistic? Sure, but Valk is a fun player to watch. I like fun.
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