Vancouver Canucks

Prospects climb

On Draft Day, the Vancouver Canucks used their picks to draft all positions, with a slight emphasis on forwards.

I will address all five picks, give opinion and add some insight to the drafting of the player.

First, I’d like to comment on the rookie/prospect camp held recently at 8 Rinks in Burnaby, B.C. - and the scaling of Grouse Mountain with the rewards waiting at the summit. With regards to their fitness levels and the possibity of eyeing some compatibility issues, the prospects finished up the camp by ascending the ‘Grouse Grind’ (a hike that rewards one with a tremendous vista of the Lower Mainland). Other activities that were off-ice included mixed-martial arts, yoga on Locarno Beach and a tour of UBC. A miniature Stanley Cup also awaited the winning group as well as a all participants receiving a jersey with their name on the back. The winning group was comprised of Patrick White, Pierre-Cedric Labrie and Prab Rai and Benn (Jamie?-Dallas draft pick, I can’t find him).

1st round pick, 2008:
Brampton Battalion, OHL - (forward) Cody Hodgson

Much ballyhoo has been made since the strong Battalion player was drafted 10th overall ten days ago. I believe that this hype will be worth it in the long run and kudos to the Canucks’ staff for taking Cody. He was named the ‘OHL’s smartest player’ by the Ontario Hockey League’s Head Coaches. That carries a tonne of weight in my books. In fact, the only clear distinction between Steven Stamkos and Hodgson in many scouts’ books is Stamkos’ top-end speed. Cody has great hands, is a defensively responsible individual and makes all players around him better in many ways. His leadership has been duly noted. His ties to Pat Quinn make the pick logical, though I was initially quite surprised that Kyle Beach was passed by. Watch for the chance, at least, that Hodgson puts that jersey on this fall.

Strictly by the numbers, Cody has put up huge numbers in the OHL. True, it does not translate usually at the NHL level. But his intangibles set him apart. Hodgson scored 131 points in exactly 131 games the past two seasons and led the Battalion to a 2nd place record this year, compared to 8th last annum.

On the radio, I heard a very compelling interview with Stan Butler, the Head Coach of Brampton. His praise of Hodgson is understandably infectious. Butler made the point that Cody has been playing against elite players such as Stamkos, John Tavares and Bryan Little since he was 16 and has “confidence in all situations”. The former Prince George Cougars’ coach also stated that Hodgson is much better than a ’safe pick’ as some have alluded to and did not back away from the comparisions of Cody to Chris Drury. He did not embrace it either. Instead, Butler enforced the ideas that Cody is “extremely focussed, all-business, not a boisterous player, but leads by example”. Butler called Cody the ‘Steve Largent’ of hockey - an idea that Hodgson is not thought of immediately as a high-end talent, yet proves his talent through determination and persistence.

When pressed, Butler stated that Hodgson would need to improve his ‘first-stride’ to compete at the NHL level. “Cody picks up points by himself…. His two wingers for the majority of this year scored 26 and 36 points this year” and “the last person to do that for me was Mark Savard”, he pointed out. That should tell us something. On playing in Vancouver in the coming year, Butler added “not to count him out” and that he would do well to develop his maturation. Cody’s best friend is Battalion forward Matt Duchene and the youngster is available in next year’s draft. Butler told us to watch out for him, we will hear a lot about the nephew of a Anaheim Ducks’ Assistant Coach. I presume that coach is Newell Brown, I could be wrong. With all this being said and quoted and the more I look into the drafting of Cody Hodgson, the more it stands out positively for the organization.

2nd round pick:
Saint John’s Sea Dogs, QMJHL (defenseman) - Yann Sauve

A highly skilled defenseman whose been labelled somewhat of a falling star. He was drafted first overall in his 2006 QMJHL draft and once fought Steven Stamkos in the Top Prospects game-his first fight in Major Junior hockey! He is a long shot prospect, which is not what you would normally like to see from a second round draft pick, especially when your team does not possess a third or fourth rounder….
Sauve has a skill set that is elite and the size to assert his will, but I’ll leave you with Red Line’s assessment of Yann:
Quote: “We recently focused on Yann Sauve in two viewings when Saint John was on the road in tough buildings, and our opinion is that he’s still just not getting it done. His offensive game (which we thought would be a strength) has stalled, and he often stops moving his feet against the rush. While he’s big and powerful and makes a crisp first pass, he still qualifies as an underachiever for Red Line.” — Kyle Woodlief (Red Line Report/USA Today)

5th round pick:
Seattle Thunderbirds, WHL (forward) - Prab Rai

Rai was a surprising pick and the lightning fast skater has put up some really good numbers for the Thunderbirds. That said, I grew up in Prince George and I am a life-long (or as long as they last in the ‘Dub’) Cougars fan. He was reportedly a 16 year-old forward on a club that was veteran laden and received no more icetime than Lightning standout draft pick Dana Tyrell. Yet, Rai was the complainer and forced the Cougs to trade him to Seattle. To his credit, Rai has responded and the Canucks hope (publicly, on canucks.nhl.com) his previous transgression will have at least provided him something to learn from. Rai is definately a long shot to make the AHL, as speed and a perimeter game seem to be his calling card. We shall see.

6th round pick:
Linkoping Jr., SWE JR. (forward) - Mats Froshaug

Hands down best draft pick I’ve seen the Canucks make in the latter rounds recently. Froshaug is a reliable, versatile two-way forward who produces. His contributions to the Danish World Junior Team were excellent, providing a solid pivot and scoring threat with 7 points in his 5 games. With Linkoping Jr. he compiled 18 goals and 18 assists in his 35 games. Impressive and worth the gamble in the 6th round.
*edit*- Played in World Championships and played 3-8 minutes per game but had no points. Proved he could skate with men, though Danes were overmatched.

7th round pick:
Red Deer Rebels, WHL (goaltender) - Morgan Clark

Clark is the son of Canucks’ goaltender coach, Ian Clark. With unimpressive stats in limited action for the Rebels,it will be interesting to see if Mrogan can win the starting job in Red Deer. Seems like the Canucks wasted this pick, but it is up to Clark himself to force this issue. The Canucks and Rebels are both deep in the ‘tending department.

June 30th, 2008
Robin Keith Thompson