Canucks News: Jake Virtanen Moving in Right Direction with AHL Comets
The past few days have been all about Vancouver Canucks rookie Brock Boeser, but we shouldn’t forget that talented young player still with the AHL Utica Comets.
For many NHL prospects, going through the American Hockey League is a normal procedure, and fans often call for it. Toronto Maple Leafs winger William Nylander, for example, played 75 AHL games before he became a full-time member of the Leafs — fans liked that. With Vancouver Canucks prospect Jake Virtanen, however, fan views are are different.
Virtanen, Vancouver’s sixth-overall pick in 2014, cracked the NHL roster out of training camp in 2015. He spent the entire season playing NHL hockey while Nylander, the player many Canucks fans would have preferred over Virtanen, was still in the AHL.
Today, Nylander is tied for 35th in NHL scoring with 21 goals and 57 points in 73 games. Virtanen, on the other hand, is with the AHL Utica Comets — and struggling to score.
But that doesn’t mean the end of the world for Virtanen, who is still one of Vancouver’s top prospects.
Proving He Belongs
Ben Kuzma (The Province) — ‘I have to prove that I belong’: Would-be Canuck Virtanen turning corner with Comets
"“Jake is still a young guy (20) and people forget that,” said Green. “He went through a stretch where I know he was getting frustrated because he wasn’t getting the points. And that was a good time to break it down to him that the goals and assists will be a by-product of doing things to be a difference in a game.”"
For many Canucks fans, it’s easy to see that Vancouver made the wrong choice picking Virtanen over Nylander or Winnipeg Jets star Nikolaj Ehlers. Virtanen has just seven goals in 56 AHL games this year; Ehlers and Nylander rank 31st and 35th, respectively, in NHL scoring.
Looking at it that way, you may be right. Ehlers and Nylander would have been better choices than Virtanen, and they would have been of great value to the Canucks in this difficult 2016-17 campaign.
But don’t forget about Virtanen, because he could come bursting into the NHL soon.
As Utica head coach Travis Green told Ben Kuzma of The Province, Virtanen is progressing well. It hasn’t been showing in his point totals, but that shouldn’t be the focus anyway.
Last season, as well as this summer, Virtanen’s biggest issue seemed to be his attitude and level of commitment. Wanting to play in the NHL is one thing, but wanting to put in the work to be there is a whole different story.
Virtanen seems to have understood that, and he is making progress accordingly.
Next: 2016-17 Season Has More Positives Than You Think
If he comes to 2017 training camp in better shape than last season, he should have great chances at cracking the roster. There will be tough competition at right wing, with Loui Eriksson, Brock Boeser, Reid Boucher and Derek Dorsett already there — but it looks like Virtanen has finally turned the corner, which might just be enough.