Willander or Simashev? Defencemen seem like fit for Canucks on draft day
It’s no secret that the Vancouver Canucks would love to improve their defence, but how much will the team prioritize it in today’s NHL Draft in Nashville?
The Canucks have one of the worst prospect pools in the NHL according to The Athletic’s 2023 ranking, but they’re especially thin on the back end.
Vancouver has chosen a defenceman in the first round of the draft just twice in the last 17 years. They picked skilled winger Jonathan LekkerimƤki 15th overall last year, electing to go with the so-called “best player available” rather than prioritizing defence.
“It’s basically a draft and development league here, and you’ve got to be good at that, and you can never have enough good players on your roster,” Allvin told reporters in Nashville on Tuesday. “Obviously there are some harder positions to fill and definitely if you have a chance to pick those positional players, you’re probably looking to that. But overall our philosophy is [to take] the best player available.”
Austrian defenceman David Reinbacher is expected to be the first defenceman off the board today, and unlikely to be available when the Canucks pick 11th. Axel Sandin-Pellikka is also highly ranked, but the offensive-minded defenceman seems to not be a good fit for a Canucks team that already has Quinn Hughes.
That leaves two top blueliners the Canucks may have a chance at drafting today: Tom Willander and Dmitri Simashev, who prospects expert Daniel Gee profiled for Daily Hive last week.
The Canucks have shown interest in Willander, according to Harman Dayal of The Athletic and CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal, reportedly taking him out to dinner during the draft combine in Buffalo. When you see video of the smooth-skating Swede play, it’s easy to see why.
The 6-foot-1 right-shot defenceman is a “nightmare” to play against given he’s strong, skilled, and competes relentlessly for every puck, according to the Elite Prospects draft guide.
Willander’s draft stock rose after he excelled at the U18 World Championships, scoring eight points (3-5-8) in seven games.
He’s a “near-top-of-the-class skater,” according to Gee, and is a “safe bet” to become an NHL player.
As for Simashev, Gee says there’s a “strong chance,” that he’ll be the best defenceman drafted today. The Russian blueliner has great size at 6-foot-4 and 201 pounds, but he’s mobile too.
He reportedly met with Canucks management yesterday.
One drawback is that Simashev is under contract to the KHL until the end of the 2024-25 season, meaning the left-shot defender can’t play NHL games for another two years. Most defencemen take at least a year or two anyway, so perhaps that’s not as big a drawback as it might seem.
“[Simashev] shakes off forechecking pressure with ease, snapping hard, accurate, cross-rink breakouts to start transitional attacks,” Gee says. “His rare size and mobility combination makes him a relative monster defending the rush. Heās aggressive, exploits his above-average range, and finishes opponents on the outside of the ice.”
The Canucks could still elect to take a forward today, and they do need centres. But what is certain is that whoever they pick will instantly become the top-rated prospect in their system, and a player fans will have their eyes on for years to come.
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