Former NHLer says gives his take on the Canucks and Sammy Blais: We're in for a treat

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Cooper Godin
September 15, 2024 (9:27)

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A Former NHLer says Sammy Blais has legit shot of making the Vancouver Canucks' roster out of training camp.

Back in August, the Abbotsford Canucks signed 2019 Stanley Cup champion Sammy Blais to a one-year AHL contract with an invite to Vancouver's training camp on a professional tryout (PTO).

As training camp opens on Thursday, Sammy Blais is set to be the only player, as of right now, on a professional tryout and it's going to be tough for him to crack the opening night roster, but one former NHLer and an ex-teammate of his believes he has a chance.

In a recent interview with Jeff Paterson of Canucks Army, former NHLer Landon Ferraro said that he believes Sammy Blais could make the Vancouver Canucks' roster out of training camp.

"I played with him in Chicago (AHL) in St. Louis' system in his rookie year, so I got to know that younger group because there were a lot of them,» Ferraro said. "He's a guy that's had some knee issues and is trying to battle back from that. When he's on his game, he's a big, heavy forward that can make some plays. It's just, does he have his pace back? If he has his pace, he's going to make a run at a spot here I think. I've seen him from his first year on. The game is there. But as a fellow guy that's had a lot of injuries, it's taxing on you and it's just whether you can get your body to cooperate or not."

Ferraro, who has 77 NHL games under his belt and countless others in the AHL and Europe, knows how tough it is to come into camp on a professional tryout as he did so with the Vancouver Canucks back in 2019. His PTO was unsuccessful which led to him signing with Berlin in Germany's top division, the DEL, the league where he would play the final four years of his professional career.

One tough aspect of this for Sammy Blais is that he's only signed to an AHL contract and will need an NHL deal with the cap-strapped Vancouver Canucks. He'll need to have a strong showing during the preseason to convince Patrik Allvin and Rick Tocchet that he belongs in the National Hockey League and not down in Abbotsford.