LATEST | Five Canucks named in The Athletic's under-23 rankings

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Cooper Godin
January 16, 2024 (4:05 PM)

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It's that time of year again where The Athletic ranks the top players in the National Hockey League under the age of 23 and in the most recent list, the Canucks were well represented.

The first member of the Vancouver Canucks organization to be ranked was Jonathan Lekkerimaki, who is coming off an MVP performance at the 2024 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship.

Lekkerimaki laned at 66 on The Athletic's list, which has him in Tier 7. Tier 7 is categorized as a player who is, or will become, a middle of the lineup guy or a bubble top line player.

"Lekkerimaki has been very good versus pros this season, being a top scorer for Orebro, and was named MVP of the most recent world juniors. Lekkerimaki has immense offensive talent. He can beat most defenders with his 1v1 play. He makes highly skilled dekes at pace and can skate well enough to get by checkers. His shot is lethal, with a bomb of a one-timer that projects to beat NHL goalies from the dots. Lekkerimaki could always score, but as a smaller wing who tends to stay on the perimeter, the question is whether the way he plays will translate to the NHL. I think his compete is just good enough that it will, but I admit that there have been times watching him I've leaned the other way." Corey Pronman of The Athletic said about Jonathan Lekkerimaki.

Joining Lekkerimaki in Tier 7 is his World Junior teammate Tom Willander, who is currently in his first season in the NCAA at Boston University where he has nine points in 17 games. While at the World Juniors, Willander played well and should play an even bigger role at the 2025 tournament in Ottawa in December.

"Willander has been an important part of a top Boston University team this season and for Sweden's U20 team. Willander's skating is his main asset for the NHL. He has a quick, powerful skating stride and can push the pace up ice with the puck. Willander's skating allows him to close on checks well and be a quality defender, especially when combined with having some physicality in his game. His pure offense will likely never excite you. He sees the ice well and can make very good outlets, but he's not high-end with his offensive IQ. Willander can project to play against top NHL forwards though and provide secondary offense." Pronman said.

The final three Canucks on The Athletic's list have all landed in the final tier, Tier 8, which is for players who will be middle of the lineup. Those three Canucks are - Vasily Podkolzin (139th), Aatu Raty (160th), Arturs Silovs (162nd).

Podkolzin, Raty and Silovs have all played quite well for the AHL's Abbotsford Canucks this season. Podkolzin and Raty have 19 and 22 points respectively thus far, while Silovs has 11 wins, three shutouts and a 2.98 goals against average.

Which Vancouver Canucks prospect are you the most excited about? Let us know in the poll below!

POLL
Which Canucks prospect are you the most excited about?
Jonathan Lekkerimaki	516	53.6 %
Tom Willander	199	20.7 %
Hunter Brzustewicz	144	15 %
Elias Pettersson	104	10.8 %
List of polls