The Prospector is a regular feature at Pass it to Bulis where we pan the Canucks prospect pool in search of gold.
The 2016 World Junior Championships starts on Boxing Day, including a marquee game between Canada and Team USA. The Canucks have three prospects heading to the tournament representing three different countries. Let's take a look at each player, how their season is going, and what we can expect from them in Helsinki.
Brock Boeser - Team USA
Boeser has been superb in his freshman season for the University of North Dakota. His 13 goals in 20 games has him tied for the team lead in goalscoring with senior (and ancient, undying vampire) Drake Caggiula. He and Caggiula are tied for third in NCAA goalscoring.
Among under-20 players, Boeser is first in goals. He’s also fourth in points among that age group. Amazingly, only three of his goals have come on the power play, so he's creating and finishing a lot of chances at even-strength. He’s also 12th in the NCAA in shots on goal.
He’s heading into the World Junior Championships on a particular tear, with 8 goals and 14 points during a 10-game point streak. Heck, he’s even on a 5-game goalscoring streak.
You couldn’t hope for a better post-draft season. Well, you could, but then you’d be visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve for being too greedy.
But enough talking about it, let’s take a look at a highlight video of the first half of his season, which is, as , better than the highlight videos for some entire teams.
Look, I know we’re all here for the ridiculous snipes, and holy smokes can this kid ever shoot the puck, but my favourite moments are the diving shortstop snag at the blueline at 1:15 and the ridiculous tic-tac-toe assist at 2:35.
As an 18-year-old, it’s unclear how large a role Boeser will play, though having chemistry with North Dakota teammate and Team USA returnee Nick Schmaltz will likely land that pair on the third line together, where they will get offensive opportunities but also be expected to play a strong two-way game. That shouldn’t be an issue, as Boeser .
Boeser’s shot will make him a constant scoring threat, but most of the offense will run through the expected 2016 first overall pick Auston Matthews. Still, Boeser is such a talent that it's hard to imagine him not standing out for Team USA.
Jake Virtanen - Canada
Virtanen is in a very different situation from Boeser as a returning player to Team Canada. He had four points in seven games last year in a depth role, but will be this year.
He’s likely to play with Brayden Point, who has absolutely dominated the WHL this season, putting up an astounding 18 goals and 43 points in 19 games. The pair will likely be on the second line behind the likes of Dylan Strome and Mitch Marner. With those two attracting a lot of attention, Point and Virtanen might have an opportunity to provide some serious secondary scoring.
Unlike Point, Virtanen hasn’t been racking up points this season, but he has at least stuck in the NHL. He has just one goal and four points in 19 games with the Canucks, but he’s been or has, at least, been underrated at keeping the puck out of his end of the ice.
Virtanen’s one NHL goal, however, was a beauty, as he chipped the puck out of the zone, skated onto it with speed, then cut hard to the net and snuck a backhand under Steve Mason’s arm.
With his strength, speed, and NHL experience, we should expect Virtanen to have a breakout performance in Helsinki. In a certain sense, , who has dual citizenship in Finland and has a tattoo of the Finnish coat of arms.
Lukas Jasek - Czech Republic
EDIT: Nevermind. Jasek was one of two final cuts by the Czech team and will miss the tournament. He is only 18, so he'll potentially have another opportunity next year.
It’s really hard to know what to make of Lukas Jasek, who has been playing against men in the Czech senior league, but gets limited ice time and produces next to no offence at that level. He has just one goal and one assist in 14 games for HC Trinec. Here’s his one goal:
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prospect Lukas Jasek first career Extraliga goal for
— Ryan Biech (@ryanbiech)
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He did, however, produce like crazy when he was sent to the Czech U-20 league. In 6 games, Jasek racked up 6 goals and 16 points, pretty clearly establishing that he is far too talented for that league. He’s first in points per game in the U-20 league and it's hard to imagine him getting sent back down again, so he'll likely hold that position for the rest of the season.
That puts him in an awkward position: too good for the junior league, but not getting the opportunities he needs in the senior league. We can only hope that the current arrangement won’t be detrimental to his development, but we can at least assess how he compares to his peers at the World Junior Championship.
Jasek's best production came at the international level, where was outstanding for the Czech U-18 team last year in the Ivan Hlinka tournament, leading the team in scoring with 4 goals and 7 points in 5 games, good enough to finish tied for fifth in tournament scoring, one point behind Brock Boeser.
The Czechs have some depth at forward and could boast some legitimate star power up front if the Bruins release David Pastrnak to play and they also have Pavel Zacha. But secondary scoring was a problem for them last year, so Jasek could potentially help provide some scoring punch.
He’ll likely play on the third line, though that could change depending on performance.
Catching up with the Comets
While the focus in this edition of The Prospector is on the players going to the WJC, let’s take a quick peek at the Comets, who are 6-2-2 in their last 10 games and are currently sitting fourth in the North Division, but just 3 points back of the Albany Devils and St. John’s IceCaps.
Hunter Shinkaruk continues to lead the Comets in scoring with 12 goals and 23 points in 22 games. He just had a 4-point night against the Springfield Falcons.
Brendan Gaunce is having a fantastic season, with 9 goals and 15 points in 17 games. He has 13 points in 12 games since getting sent down from the Canucks in November and has 5 points on his current 3-game point streak.
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prospect Brendan Gaunce scores to tie the game at 1 for Utica. Shinkaruk with the assist.
— Ryan Biech (@ryanbiech)
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Jordan Subban has been getting his points in clusters, 2 or 3 games at a time, with 5-game dry spells in between. He has 4 goals and 12 points in 21 games. He has been praised, however, for his improving defensive game and he seems to be developing nicely in his rookie year.
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Subban scores to the up 4-2. Nice pass from Gaunce from behind the net and nice celly!
— Ryan Biech (@ryanbiech)
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Joe Cannata has struggled lately after a strong start, but has gotten goal support in his most recent games, giving him 3 straight wins. Only issues is that he allowed 11 goals against in those 3 starts. His save percentage is down to .907 on the season and it looks like Richard Bachman, who has a .931 save percentage so far in December, will likely get the larger share of the starts for the time being.
Finally, there’s Alexandre Grenier, who looked capable of being an NHL regular in his all-too-brief call-up and is currently second on the Comets in scoring and first in shots-on-goal. He has 6 goals and 17 points in 28 games.
