Canucks prospect Riley Patterson continues strong play in OHL during preseason contest

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Cooper Godin
September 8, 2024 (4:05 PM)

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Vancouver Canucks prospect Riley Patterson continued strong play in OHL during a preseason game on Saturday night.

Riley Patterson and the OHL's Barrie Colts were back in preseason action on Saturday night as they traveled to Brampton to take on the Steelheads, 24 hours after a tough loss to the Sudbury Wolves.

After not playing in Monday's Labor Day win over Owen Sound or Friday's loss to Sudbury, Riley Patterson returned to the lineup against Brampton and picked up where he left off from the Colts' first preseason game on August 31st. In that game, Patterson scored as the Colts defeated the Oshawa Generals.

30 seconds into Saturday's game against Brampton, Patterson picked up a primary assist on Tai York's goal to give the Barrie Colts a 1-0 lead over the Steelheads.

Then, eight and a half minutes later, Patterson lit the lamp for a second time in the preseason. The 18-year-old received a pass across the ice in Brampton's zone from Tai York before firing home a shot on a short angle over the glove of Steelheads netminder Jacob Gibbons to extend Barrie's lead to 2-0.

Through two preseason games, Riley Patterson has three points, five shots on goal and is 8-for-11 in the faceoff dot. This was likely Patterson's final game of the preseason with the Barrie Colts as he'll be on his way to Penticton, British Columbia this week for the 2024 YoungStars Classic, which gets underway on Friday night with the Canucks taking on the Edmonton Oilers.

Patterson will also likely stick around for at least a few days with the Canucks' main training camp, which begins on September 19, and it wouldn't be surprising if he gets into a preseason game with Vancouver as well before being sent back to Barrie for the season.

The Burlington, Ontario native is poised to have a strong second season in the OHL after registering 29 goals and 62 points in 68 games last season. Patterson and Cole Beaudoin, a first-round pick of Utah, are going to be a lethal duo all season long in the Ontario Hockey League and could have another first rounder on their line as well - Emil Hemming, who was selected 29th overall by Dallas back in June.