Pair of youngsters making strong case for Canucks' opening night roster

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Cooper Godin
September 29, 2024 (10:26)

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A pair of youngsters at training camp are making a strong case for the Canucks' opening night roster.

On Monday, October 7th at 5 pm ET (2 pm PT), all 32 teams around the National Hockey League need to have their rosters finalized and submitted. That leaves teams just eight days to make some tough decisions when it comes to their respective rosters and it'll be no different for Patrik Allvin, Rick Tocchet and the Vancouver Canucks.

Heading into training camp, we all knew that there weren't many jobs up for grabs on the opening night roster, but with the way some players on the outside looking in have played, we could end up seeing some surprises.

Among those that have stood out so far are Jonathan Lekkerimaki and in his lone game of the preseason, Kirill Kudryavtsev.

Lekkerimaki had a solid season in Sweden and at the World Juniors, where he was named MVP on home ice. Entering his first season in North America in 2024-25, Lekkerimaki is making a strong case for the Canucks' opening night roster, registering three points in three games. Lekkerimaki will need to have a strong showing the final two games of the preseason to show the Canucks' coaching staff that he's ready to be in the National Hockey League on a full-time basis.

Jumping straight from the Ontario Hockey League to the NHL isn't easy to do, but with the way Kirill Kudryavtsev played on Friday night in Seattle, he looked like he has been playing professionally for years. While it's very unlikely that he'll be on the Canucks' opening night roster, he's certainly opening some eyes in the organization and if he's able to perform well down in the American Hockey League with Abbotsford, it wouldn't be a surprise to see him making his NHL debut at some point this season.

The Canucks have two preseason games left - Monday in Edmonton & Friday vs Edmonton at Rogers Arena. After Friday's game, we'll get a good idea on what the Canucks are thinking in terms of their 23-man opening night roster.