The Young Stars Tournament kicked off on Friday and the Canucks’ prospects faced a tough test against an Oilers team led by Jesse Puljujarvi. Despite a lineup featuring Thatcher Demko and Olli Juolevi, the Canucks couldn’t hold the Oilers in check, falling 4-1.
Our regular “I Watched This Game” feature will return for the pre-season. For the Young Stars Tournament, it’s more about who stands out, for both good reasons and bad ones. So, we’ll be using a three stars format.
Three Stars:
3rd Star: Troy Stecher
The Canucks think very highly of Stecher and it was immediately apparent why. He used his skating and speed to escape danger in the defensive zone and did some excellent work creating chances in the offensive zone, particularly on the power play. He had a , nearly a third of the Canucks’ total.
Stecher didn’t sacrifice anything defensively, though it helped that he was paired with the steady Juolevi. If Stecher’s aim is to make the Canucks out of camp, putting up nine shots in his first game and quarterbacking the power play was a good start.
2nd Star: Marco Roy
The former Oilers’ second-rounder and current Canucks invitee made an impression on Friday, scoring the Canucks lone goal. But he was noticeable for other reasons too, showcasing some nice hands with the puck and showing versatility with strong work on the penalty kill and forecheck.
His goal was a good one, though, as he picked up a turnover created by some pressure from Rodrigo Abols, then showed great patience and strength on the puck as he cut across the slot on the backhand. When he finally got the shot off, it took a fortunate deflection and went up over goaltender Nick Ellis, who needs to .
1st Star: Thatcher Demko
It may seem odd to award the first star to the goaltender who gave up three goals, but Demko was the best Canuck on the ice and was hung out to dry on two of the goals. Demko made 29 saves and had to be sharp on several chances in tight.
Demko’s glove hand was particularly impressive, as he snared several shots that looked labeled for the top corner.
Honourable Mentions:
- Olli Juolevi’s appearance outside of the three stars isn’t an indictment on his play. He was quietly superb for the majority of the game, disrupting Oilers rushes, separating players from the puck, and turning it back up ice. While he gave Jesse Puljujarvi too much space on his second goal, he was also pretty blatantly interfered with on the play, so it’s hard to fault him. I get the feeling he’ll look even better when the games have more structure.
- Michael Carcone made it clear why the Canucks signed him after development camp, making himself noticeable repeatedly with his speed and tenacity on the puck. He finished with three shots, but I particularly liked his play in the defensive zone, where he tended to make good choices both with and without the puck.
- I liked what I saw from Cole Cassels, as he threw a couple hits, won a couple puck battles, and was on the ice for some of the Canucks’ only sustained offensive pressure. I’d like to see a bit more from him, but it was encouraging to see him looking effective again.
- Brett McKenzie, Curtis Valk, and Yan-Pavel Laplante had some good moments in the offensive zone, as did invitees Danny Moynihan and Kyle Maksimovich. Valk had three shots on net and hit the crossbar after driving past a defender with speed.
Dishonourable Mentions:
- Tate Olson had a terrible game, frequently mishandling the puck and getting knocked off stride by the Oilers. He was noticeably the worst Canuck on the ice. That's a tough start for the 19-year-old who is billed as having a well-rounded and composed game. It didn't show up on Friday.
- Invitee Alexis D’Aoust was one of my players to watch because of his 98 points last season in the QMJHL. Sure enough, D’Aoust looked at home in the offensive zone, but he looked hopelessly lost in the defensive zone. He frequently lost his check and ended up on the ice for three goals against.Ěý
- Several Canucks had mixed results, like Carl Neill, Guillaume Brisebois, Rodrigo Abols, and Jakob Stukel. They had good moments and bad moments, but mostly just didn’t stand out.
