May 9, 2016; Nashville, TN, USA; A view of a net and pucks on the ice during warmups prior to the game of the San Jose Sharks against the Nashville Predators in game six of the second round of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena. The Predators won 4-3. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
May 9, 2016; Nashville, TN, USA; A view of a net and pucks on the ice during warmups prior to the game of the San Jose Sharks against the Nashville Predators in game six of the second round of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena. The Predators won 4-3. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports /
The Vancouver Canucks need to stock up on prospects, but the NHL draft won’t be enough.
The most essential part of a rebuild is without a doubt the acquisition of prospects. In an attempt to collect as many as possible, most franchises start to stock up on draft picks early. The Vancouver Canucks, however, dealt several draft picks away for immediate help in the playoff race, and kept veterans until free agency.
Those moves are starting to backfire.
Luckily, the NHL draft is not the only way to acquire young, talented players. The NCAA, CHL and European pro leagues all have some undrafted prospects.
In the summer of 2016, the Canucks added undrafted free agents Troy Stecher from the University of North Dakota and Michael Carcone of the QMJHL Drummondville Voltigeurs, among others. This year, they have already signed CHL free agents Jalen Chatfield and Zack MacEwen.
As the different paths of Stecher and Carcone are showing, signings like these don’t guarantee success. But, in the organisation’s current situation, they are certainly worth their contract spots.
So, let’s take a look at five European skaters the Canucks could target this summer. Most of them still have valid contracts in Europe, but they usually have out-clauses in case of North American offers — or have ways to simply terminate their deals.
Swedish defenceman Andreas Borgman has been drawing NHL interest for a while now, and the 2016-17 only made him more interesting. The 21-year-old was never drafted, but his development curve is pointing straight upward.
A strong skater with an offensive mindset, Borgman is exactly the kind of player NHL coaches covet. Plus, with guys like Erik Karlsson, Victor Hedman and Oliver Ekman-Larsson already in the league, clubs know that Sweden can develop skilled blue-liners.
Borgman combines speed, offensive skills and a good physical game. He has good timing in his hits and will become even better with gained strength and experience. Likes to join the rush. (EP, 2013)
In 2016-17, Borgman took the next step in his career, moving up to the top-tier SHL. With HV71, he recorded five goals and 15 points in 45 games. In addition, Borgman made his debut for Sweden’s men’s national team.
The Canucks have done good work building up a new defensive core, and the six-foot, 205-pound Borgman could be the next great addition.
In an attempt to rebuild the offensive core, the Canucks added Nikolay Goldobin and Jonathan Dahlen at the trade deadline. The latter has been a standout player in the Allsvenskan, Sweden’s second-tier league, but he is not the only one.
Undrafted forward Victor Ejdsell made his SHL debut in 2014-15 but failed to establish himself there. Because of that, the 21-year-old moved to BIK Karlskoga for the 2016-17 campaign and had a true breakout year. Ejdsell won the league scoring title with 25 goals and 57 points in 50 games.
What stands out the most about Ejdsell is probably his size. At 6-foot-5 and 214 pounds, he has an excellent frame. But most importantly, he has the skating ability to move around well, along with terrific puck skills and a nose for the net.
Ejdsell’s size alone probably has NHL scouts excited. If he can translate his scoring to the North American game, he could become a great player within the next few years.
You never know how well scoring translates from second-tier leagues in Europe to the NHL or even the AHL, but it’s certainly worth a shot when you are rebuilding and can get a player like Ejdsell without losing assets.
Next up is defenceman Sebastian Aho (who is in no way related to the Finnish Carolina Hurricanes forward with the same name). Aho has been talked about a lot going into the past two drafts, as he was already a regular in the SHL. However, likely due to his size and defensive deficiencies, no team used a draft pick on him.
At 5-foot-10 and 176 pounds, Aho does not have ideal size for an NHL defenceman. But, there are qualities that make him worth a contract.
From Elite Prospects:
A mobile defenseman with tremendous hockey sense. Is on the small side, but usually solves situations easily with his exceptional way of reading the game. Likes to carry the puck and does that with confidence. Very good passer and a defenseman that can be used in most situations. (EP 2014)
To me, that sounds a lot like Canucks D-man Troy Stecher. While Stecher does struggle defensively sometimes, he can often make up for it with speed and hockey sense, as he anticipates plays and intercepts passes.
Again, this would be a great addition for the Canucks, as they have nothing to lose.
German winger Maximilian Kammerer joined the WHL Regina Pats for his 2013-14 draft season, but failed to make an impact. In 40 games for the Pats, Kammerer had just one goal and three points. In the playoffs, he got to play in just one game and went scoreless once more.
But, Kammerer did not give up and finally had a breakout season this year. In 2016-17, he led his team with 15 goals and added 11 assists in 51 games. The numbers don’t sound great, but Kammerer ranked third in scoring on a bad team that missed the DEL playoffs.
The DEL Rookie of the Year can play all three forward positions and is a quick, hard-working skater with a great shot arsenal. And at 20 years old, Kammerer still has plenty of time to improve.
Kammerer has drawn interest from NHL clubs this season and was reason for some NHL scouts to visit Germany, the Calgary Flames among them.
Perhaps Kammerer will get an invitation to prospect camp before a team decides to sign him, but it is certainly worth a shot.
Last on the list is another Swedish defenceman: Calle Rosen of the SHL Vaxjo Lakers. The oldest player on this list, Rosen is already 23 years old. But that doesn’t mean he can’t be a promising prospect.
In his second full year in the SHL, Rosen recorded six goals and 19 points in 41 games. Not outstanding numbers, but enough for a young defenceman who plays a sound defensive game as well.
In a recent interview with hockeysverige.se, Rosen talked about NHL interest, but didn’t give clubs too much hope. Here is a translation with my limited Swedish skills:
“I have received signals that there are some teams who are interested. I feel like staying here in Vaxjo and would be best to develop. “You never know how it will be next season, but I have a contract with Vaxjo another season and that’s what I focus on. “I actually haven’t thought about it too much. The focus is on Vaxjo. I want to win a national championship and doing it with Vaxjo would be fantastic. That’s what I’m focusing on now.”
That does not sound like Rosen is keen on moving over this summer, but I also wouldn’t rule it out. Players don’t want to start the conversation about themselves moving to the NHL, but if the chance is there, they will listen and be excited about it.
If the Canucks are one of the teams that are interested, they should certainly give it a shot.
