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Breaking down Klimovich's head-turning game for Canucks at Young Stars (VIDEO)

Daniel Gee
Daniel Gee
|
Sep 19 2022, 5:21 pm
Breaking down Klimovich's head-turning game for Canucks at Young Stars (VIDEO)
James Snook-USA TODAY Sports

“I am getting better everyday.”

In what was his second-ever solo media availability, Danila Klimovich pushed through a language barrier to provide some insightful answers to the assembly of reporters interested to hear the 19-year-old’s post-game thoughts at the Young Stars Classic. 

The interest is for good reason. The Canucks’ second-round pick in 2021 was the star Sunday night for Vancouver. Klimovich, who skated on a line with two 22-year-olds Tristen Nielsen and Chase Wouters, flourished under their tutelage, setting up the game-winning goal, as well as scoring his own, to keep the Canucks’ record perfect through two games in Penticton. 

When asked about his confidence level after such a performance, the Belorussian opened up about last season.

“I believe in myself more — last season sometimes [there was] doubt.” 

Klimovich made a superman-level jump in 2021-22, going from junior hockey in Belarus, to arguably the second-best hockey league in the world, the American Hockey League. In Abbotsford, he had multiple hurdles to overcome; system learning, structure, lower time-on-ice, learning a new language, a new country — that’s a lot for any person, let alone a teenager. 

Regardless, Klimovich’s raw tools and offensive instincts always made him worth the project, and coming into this tournament, it was time to see if he could leverage that ability into results against divisional rival prospects. 

Klimovich’s vision and passing into open ice

Like a lot of players who possess far-above-average shooting ability, their other tools and habits are often overlooked. On Sunday night, Klimovich’s playmaking was on centre stage. 

Looking far more confident carrying the puck, the 6-foot-1, 208-pound winger flashed high-end vision and execution against the Winnipeg Jets.

On the onset of the second period, Klimovich completed a smart low-to-high carry on the near-board-half-wall, cutting inside the high slot. By doing this, he opened up new pass lanes from the top of the point. From there, he identified a cutting Dylan MacPherson and perfectly slipped a cross-zone pass into space for the defender to skate onto. 

Klimovich wasn’t done there. On his next shift, after rolling out of a battle on the end-boards, the right-hander pivoted, identifying Nielsen cutting backdoor, and layered a pass through multiple Jets’ players to give the Fort St. John-born winger a wide open net. 

Neilson could barely believe it in his post-game presser, 

“I was shocked — I was like, oh my goodness, it was a perfect pass, I couldn’t have asked for a better one” 

On top of all of this, Klimovich was actively preserving possession on the rush. Despite being guided to the outside on a couple of entries, he did a wonderful job executing cutbacks, bumping pucks into the middle of the ice for trailing linemates to skate onto — in simpler terms, he’s problem solving. 

Soft area activation and transitional shooting

Another area of Klimovich’s game that was particularly strong was his off-puck positioning. Wouters and Nielsen, were regular brawlers below the goalline, leading to multiple prolonged offensive sequences. This was great news for Klimovich who activated into high-danger areas all night, stick set, ready to fire at will. These off-puck habits allowed Klimovich to score his first of the tournament. 

It wasn’t a long wide-up wrister from the top of the circle, but it still counts the same. Waiting backdoor, Klimovich jumped on a Nielsen rebound to add an insurance tally for the Canucks. 

Beyond that, Klimovich had an eye-popping play that had the entire press-row impressed. Working the puck into the Jets’ zone, Klimovich dragged past a probing stick, adjusted his rush pattern inside, and rifled a shot through the defenders legs, using him as a screen. Deception, high-end shot mechanics — this is a legitimate high-end sequence.

For all of Wouters and Nielsen’s help, there were too many occasions where Klimovich was wide open for shots, but was just ignored. Priority number one should be to leverage his shooting skill and some nasty tunnel-vision represented a small blemish on a great night for the line.  

Inexperience in structure and possible defensive improvements?

In a Saturday post-practice media availability, Klimovich talked about working on his defensive game. 

“Coach sent me D-zone plays — I try to watch video.”

A somewhat mixed-bag of solid defensive reads and some questionable decisions, Klimovich showed he’s still very much a work in progress in his own zone. While he is sealing off pass lanes fairly well and can legitimately push pressure when he moves his feet and throws his weight around, he can lose his check during longer sequences, often overloading into areas that his teammates already were covering. This is where we see the most raw parts of his game.

Coach’s view

When Abbotsford Canucks coach Jeremy Colliton was asked about Klimovich’s game, he had this to say,

“I thought today, he took a step forward, especially I thought the second period on. Just a little harder on the puck, stronger on the puck, and when he does that, he has a heavy shot, he’s got some vision, and he made a couple really nice plays to create offence for us. Hopefully, he can continue to raise his pace, with and without the puck. You can see the tools are there but I thought today was a step forward.” 

A step forward is what Klimovich and the organization needed, a chance to show that development from last season and the work he put in this offseason has led to tangible results. Regardless how this upcoming year in Abbotsford will unfold, we can say at the very least, it started on the right foot. 

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