Top Vancouver Canucks Prospect Told By Rick Tocchet That He Can't Be Trusted in Big Moments
FOLLOW US
Photo credit: Canucks Daily
Vancouver Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet met with the media following the loss to the Dallas Stars that Top Prospect Jonathan Lekkerimaki is not ready to be trusted in the big moments of games.
After the conclusion of the inaugural 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, the Vancouver Canucks made some necessary roster moves that saw top-prospect Jonathan Lekkerimaki join the Canucks, but rick Tocchet is still not ready to give him a major role with the team.
Rick Tocchet still can't rely on Jonathan Lekkerimaki
Since the NHL season resumed, the Canucks have scored the least amount of goals in the NHL, which is one of the prime reasons why they are giving Jonathan Lekkerimaki another shot at finding his as an everyday player.
Another area of concern is that the teams leading goal scorer, Jake DeBrusk (21 goals) is the 3rd lowest across the entire league, sitting just behind Jason Schwartz of the Seattle Kraken and Frank Vatrano of the Anaheim Ducks.
Needless to say, with out making any trades at the deadline, the Canucks are looking for help upfront, and it has to come from prospects within their system.
Lighting up the American Hockey league with 19 goals and 9 assists for 28 points in 32 games, Lekkerimaki is their best bet to contribute on the powerplay and 5 on 5, but for some reason, Rick Tocchet still doesn't have full confidence in the 20-year-old.
Following the loss to the Dallas Stars where Lekkerimaki saw just over 12 minutes of ice-time, Tocchet told the media that due to his age, the youngster cannot be relied on just yet, especially in the big moments of games.
Rick Tocchet on Lekkerimäki: I think he's coming a little bit. He's trying, but you know, he's a young kid. You can't rely on him. #Canucks
It comes to a shock as many plays with him on the ice should be warranting more confidence from his head coach.
This is like, picture-perfect stuff from Jonathan Lekkerimäki. This is how you earn trust from the coach. Carry the puck into the zone, distribute to the wings, dodge a check, burst through the guts of the ice and get open for a chance on goal uncontested. #Canucks
Nonetheless, his comments on Lekkerimaki seem to be taken way out of context, but the way he said it does sound like a knock on the kid.
| POLL | ||
MARS 10 | 460 ANSWERS Top Vancouver Canucks Prospect Told By Rick Tocchet That He Can't Be Trusted in Big Moments Do you think Jonathan Lekkerimaki should be getting more ice-time for the Vancouver Canucks? | ||
| Yes | 368 | 80 % |
| No | 92 | 20 % |
| List of polls | ||
TRENDING NOW
