They’re not getting to play much in Vancouver, so the Canucks have sent Vasily Podkolzin and Jack Rathbone to Abbotsford.
The struggling youngsters are AHL-bound, but how long they’ll play with the Abbotsford Canucks remains to be seen.
General Manager Patrik Allvin announced today that F Vasily Podkolzin and D Jack Rathbone have been assigned to Abbotsford (AHL).
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) November 29, 2022
This is the first time in Podkolzin’s career that he has been sent to the AHL for regular season games. He did appear in two playoffs games with Abbotsford last season, but was sent down only after Vancouver’s season ended.
Podkolzin is having a rough sophomore season, with no goals and just three assists in 16 NHL games this season. The 21-year-old Russian has appeared in just one game since being injured in a fight on November 13, and has been a healthy scratch in each of the last three games.
Rathbone, 23, has been a healthy scratch in 16 of Vancouver’s 22 games. He no goals and just one assist in six games, and hasn’t appeared in a game since November 9. The Massachusetts native scored 40 points (10-30-40) in 39 AHL games last season.
This is an opportune time for the Canucks to utilize their local AHL affiliate, as Abbotsford (7-7-2 record this season) has six straight home games upcoming, beginning Tuesday night. Vancouver, meanwhile, has four straight home games at Rogers Arena.
Vancouver is on a hot streak of late, having won three games in a row, and five of their last six. It has them back in the playoff race.