Jim Benning and Trevor Linden have promised a youth movement in Vancouver. In previous years that promise combined with the cutting of young, NHL-ready players like Brendan Gaunce and Ronalds Kenins would have led to scoffing and eye rolls. How can you get younger when you cut young players?
This time around, however, the youth aren’t getting cut in favour of older veterans, but in favour of even younger prospects. With Gaunce and Kenins assigned to Utica, the path to a 23-man roster for the Canucks just got a lot more clear, and it looks like 19-year-olds Jake Virtanen and Jared McCann will be on it.
It’s tough to see both Gaunce and Kenins get cut, but particularly Gaunce, who had a great Young Stars tournament and was a solid two-way performer in the pre-season. With Chris Higgins’ injury, it looked like the door was open for Gaunce.
Gaunce just wasn’t as spectacular as Virtanen or McCann, which has always been his downfall. He’s all substance, no flash, and the pre-season loves flash. Seriously, never go to the pre-season’s website: it’s just one interminable flash intro.
Kenins, meanwhile, got flat-out outplayed. I thought he was solid enough in the pre-season -- I certainly don’t think he was as bad as some people -- but he lacked the exciting energy of his play from last season. You know who was full of exciting energy? Virtanen and McCann.
Gaunce and Kenins do have something going for them that Virtanen and McCann don’t, however: the ability to get sent down and get called up this season. Neither player is eligible for waivers either, so the decision to send both down to Utica makes sense from an asset management standpoint as well.
Virtanen and McCann, on the other hand, are either on the Canucks roster to start the season or they don’t play for the Canucks this season at all. Once they get sent down to Junior, they have to stay there.
The upshot for Gaunce and Kenins is that both will likely be back up with the Canucks sometime this season. Heck, one of them still might be in the opening lineup.
The Canucks roster is down to 26, including Chris Higgins. That means three players need to be cut, but one player can come back up once Higgins goes on Long Term Injured Reserve.
That roster also includes Adam Cracknell and Alex Biega. While Cracknell has an outside shot of making the team as the 4th-line centre, it’s far more likely that he gets put on waivers.
Assuming Cracknell and Biega get sent down, that leaves one more cut and only two players remains that can be sent down to the AHL without going through waivers: Ben Hutton and Bo Horvat. Hutton has been one of the Canucks’ best player in the pre-season, but if the Canucks don’t want to risk losing anyone of significance on waivers, he’ll get sent down.
Then Higgins goes on IR and the Canucks can call someone up to replace him. Is it Hutton, giving the Canucks’ 8 defencemen or is it Gaunce or Kenins to replace Higgins on the left wing?
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