LATEST | Canucks send two representatives at League Event: Says a lot about their future
The NHL and the NHLPA are hosting their annual Orientation Program in Virginia this week�an event during which teams usually send their top prospects with low to no prior NHL experience.
The Canucks chose to send Akito Hirose who's gotten a chance to see NHL action already; the Canucks other representative was Arshdeep Bains, who excelled in his first pro season in Abbotsford.
What's truly amazing about that decision is that while other teams chose to send their top draft prospects, the Canucks chose to send two undrafted players that were signed out of the NCAA and the WHL. That definitely is promising both for them and the team's scouting.
Bains was signed out of the WHL, and he's given the Canucks top pick value ever since he joined. The prospect developed an unreal two-way game during his first pro season and collected an impressive 38 points in 66 games, and there's definitely more to be expected from him this year.
Hirose, on his end, came from the NCAA and joined the Canucks straight away. In seven NHL games, he displayed great abilities, collected three assists and showed he belonged to Hockey's top level. There is still a doubt about his position on the team's lineup, whether it'll be down in the AHL or in Vancouver to kick things off.
One thing is sure, the Canucks' scout did an excellent job when they signed these two, and the fact that they were sent to Virginia alongside the game's very best prospect only presages good things moving forward.
| POLL | ||
Will Akito Hirose start the season in the NHL? | ||
| Yea | 238 | 45.5 % |
| No | 285 | 54.5 % |
| List of polls | ||
