Vancouver Canucks prospects of week 4: Utica Comets edition
Artyom Manukyan (RW) (Avangard Omsk, KHL)
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Our reliable Russian prospect is at it again. Artyom Manukyan had a quiet week, picking up a lone assist through three games. It sure looks like that hot start has cooled off, but from what I can tell, his ice time is stable. The KHL season is a grind, so expect ebbs and flows. Also keep in mind Manukyan was picked in the sixth round for a good reason. My curiosity is still there, but once the other leagues get going, it will be difficult to stand out as well at this pace.
Tabs on a pair of European prospects
We haven’t had a chance to really talk about Kristoffer Gunnarsson and Toni Utunen. Why? Because nothing has showed up on the scoreboard. For Gunnarsson, he has played 72 career games in the SHL and has failed to register a point. He’s played three games with Frölunda this year and nothing has happened yet. Well, he has an opportunity for infamy, I guess. According to Elite Prospects, the most career games a defenceman went pointless for is 89, held by Fredrik Ericson.
As for Utunen, he has no points in seven games with Tappara. However, he has logged significant minutes in the Finnish Liiga and the Champions Hockey League. The World Juniors may be a good opportunity to see his progress if the points don’t pop up very often. He is rather difficult to track, but when I can get the Liiga site to work better for me, I can try to gather his analytics. Yeah, Finland tracks those.