Each week I will be featuring the Vancouver Canucks top three prospects of the week. Along with any other notable performances, should there be any that deserve mentioning?
1. Arvid Costmar
The Vancouver Canucks may very well have found themselves a late-round steal when they drafted Costmar in the seventh round, 215th overall, in the 2019 NHL draft.
Following his demotion from the men’s Swedish Hockey League to Linkopings J20 team in the SuperElit league, Arvid Costmar has been sensational. In two games this past week, he has registered two goals and three assists. One goal came in regulation, while the other was the shootout winner in a 4-3 victory versus the Vaxjo Lakers. The shootout winning goal counts towards that player’s statistics in European hockey.
Costmar turned playmaker in his next game, recording three assists in a 6-1 drubbing of Sodertalje. Costmar has been very proficient in other areas of his game as well and currently leads all players in the SuperElit league in faceoff percentage at 72.28 %.
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Here is what I had to say about him in a scouting report I did last season.
"Costmar is a solid two-way centerman who projects to be a bottom-six forward. He takes pride in his play in the defensive zone and is very efficient on the forecheck. He displays a good work ethic and engages well in board battles. He has decent vision in the offensive zone.Best assets ;Work ethic and play without the puckAreas for improvement ;Needs a more explosive stride and shot velocity"
2. Carson Focht
Many deemed Carson Focht as a surprise pick at the 2019 NHL draft when the Canucks selected him in the 5th round with the 133rd overall pick. He had been previously passed over and hadn’t had a season that statistically jumped off the page. However, the Canucks scouting staff must have seen something that they liked and so far he hasn’t disappointed.
In his first Western Hockey League game of the season for the Calgary Hitmen, Focht wasted little time in making his presence felt. He opened the scoring for the Hitmen late in the first period knotting the game at 1-1. Later, he had the primary assist on the game-tying goal with only 18 seconds remaining in the third period. Focht also recorded a game-high seven shots on goal. However, the Hitmen fell short losing 3-2 in overtime to the Swift Current Broncos.
3. Arturs Silovs
In keeping with the trend of selecting recent draftees, my third star of the week goes to Arturs Silovs. Despite surrendering an early goal, Silovs turned in an outstanding performance in this first Ontario Hockey League start for the Barrie Colts.
The tall Latvian goaltender stopped 37 of 39 shots to earn the second star of the game honours in a 6-2 victory over the high-flying London Knights. The Canucks chose Silovs with their sixth-round pick, 156th overall.