With NHL teams operating under a strict salary cap structure, it’s imperative to build out prospect depth charts through the draft and entry-level free agency.
Teams will go through cycles with, and without, a full deck of draft picks depending on where they see their organization in relation to challenging for playoff success.
It’s not a secret. The teams that see themselves as legit Stanley Cup contenders have historically been aggressive trading out draft capital when they can add legit NHL players to their rosters in-season.
Trading out draft picks, and prospects, has an enormous trickle-down effect on organizational depth.
Every one of the Canadian franchises find themselves in different scenarios.
Every month this season, I’ll look at various prospects on each of the Canadian NHL teams. This month, we’re looking at the top three prospects from each Canadian NHL franchise.
(Qualifier: To be considered an NHL prospect the player must be considered an asset to either his organization, or another team in the league in a trade scenario.)
CALGARY FLAMES
Dustin Wolf, G, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
Wolf isn’t the biggest goaltending prospect in the league, but he’s very efficient. He’s off to a bit of a slow start (4.05 GAA, .890 SV%), but he’s coming off a fantastic 2021-22 season in Stockton. It’s usually best to develop goalies slower than skaters. With Dan Vladar now signed through the 2024-25 season, and Jacob Markstrom through 2025-26, Calgary is taking its time with Wolf.
Matt Coronato, FWD, Harvard, NCAA
Coronato is coming off a very productive freshman season at Harvard and enters his sophomore year with, I’m sure, an expectation to eclipse his first-year statistics.
It will be interesting to monitor the plan both the player and the team have after this season. Does he come out of school and turn pro? Or does he return for a junior season at Harvard?
As much as I appreciate his skill, patience with the puck, vision, playmaking and goal scoring, he needs to find another gear before becoming an NHL regular. He gets hunched over in motion and he’s not a burner between the blue lines off the rush.
Jakob Pelletier, FWD, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
He, like Wolf, is off to a slow start with the Wranglers this season. Through four games he is without a point and his three-zone game has been average. Having said that, he scored 62 points last year in Stockton and was an impressive plus-22. He’s not a big body, but he’s very competitive and brings plenty of skill and will to the dance. Calgary has a very deep NHL roster, so it’s going to take some time but Pelletier is an NHL prospect who should produce, at worst, secondary offence and see time on the power play.
EDMONTON OILERS
Note: I haven’t included players who are currently moving up and down on the Oilers roster due to cap, injury, or recall scenarios. This means no Philip Broberg or Markus Niemelainen.
Xavier Bourgault, FWD, Bakersfield, AHL
Bourgault has plenty of flash and dash to his game. He handles the puck very well and shares it as much as he directs it on goal.
He’s best suited playing in a top six role, aligned with other high-end offensive thinkers. Bourgault is exceptionally dangerous on the power play with his vision and ability to find open space.
The first-year pro logged big minutes in the QMJHL playing for Shawinigan. He averaged 1.74 points per game in the 2021-22 regular season and was a big reason why the Cataractes advanced to the Memorial Cup.
And, so far in the AHL, he hasn’t skipped a beat.
Reid Schaefer, FWD, Seattle, WHL
Schaefer is a big, strong, rangy forward who isn’t shy about directing pucks on net. He’s difficult to defend with his length, too.
He’s an early-season contender for the “Cy Young Award” in the WHL with a stats line that reads 10 goals and two assists through his first seven games.
Carter Savoie, FWD, Bakersfield, AHL
Currently on season-opening injured reserve
Savoie is a gifted talent offensively. He produced at a high level in college and projects to have top six NHL upside in time. He would benefit from gaining more quickness and speed in open ice because it will make him more elusive at the NHL level.
Here is the scouting report for Savoie, while at Denver, before he signed with the Oilers in the spring:
MONTREAL CANADIENS
Full transparency: I had a difficult time prioritizing the top three prospects in the Canadiens’ system. The organization has taken advantage of the amount of selections it has had over the past five seasons (49). The Habs have built up a significant number of assets.
Note: I did not include Juraj Slafkovsky on this list since he is currently out with injury and made the NHL roster out of training camp.
Owen Beck, FWD, Mississauga, OHL
Beck had an outstanding training camp with Montreal and went deep into their main camp before being sent back to the OHL.
He plays the game the right way. He’s aware in all three zones. He’s excellent in the face-off circle and can be used in all situations. He plays quick and fast.
He’s the kind of prospect who, in my estimation, projects as a solid third line centre who can also be used in the top six if required.
Joshua Roy, FWD, Sherbrooke, QMJHL
A fifth-round selection in 2021, Roy is trending towards being a potential NHL scorer in time.
He is averaging nearly two points per game to start the season in Sherbrooke. All this kid does is produce offence. His all-round game has made strides as well. He is earning my trust as he ramps up his attention to detail on and off the puck.
Sean Farrell, FWD, Harvard, NCAA
Farrell is a highly skilled, elusive forward who is quick in small areas. His hockey sense is elite. Farrell sees the ice at a different level than most playmakers. His element is offence, but his compete in all three zones, and detail in his own end, is very reliable. He won’t penalty kill as a pro, but coaches don’t have to be concerned about defensive zone starts with him.
OTTAWA SENATORS
The Senators have graduated some of their top prospects to the NHL roster. It’s a positive sign for Ottawa, which looks poised to contend for a playoff spot in 2022-23. Players like Jake Sanderson and Shane Pinto are already looking comfortable at the NHL level.
Ridly Greig, FWD, Belleville, AHL
Greig suffered a bit of setback playing for Team Canada at the summer WJC in Edmonton. The injury held him out for a couple weeks and interrupted his preparation for the Senators training camp.
I love the way Greig plays the game. He’s a throwback. Ridly is an intense competitor who plays exceptionally hard between the whistles. When he was in junior, I personally saw him get hauled down on a breakaway and go face first into the post. He was bloodied but picked himself up, wiped his nose off, and proceeded to score on the penalty shot. He’s character personified.
Greig can be used in all situations and play up and down the lineup.
Lassi Thomson, D, Belleville, AHL
Thomson will benefit from playing the entire season in one place this year. The pandemic held back his progression. He bounced back and forth in his first year of pro between Ilves (Liiga) and Belleville (AHL). Last year Thomson did suit up for 16 NHL games with Ottawa while spending most of his year skating in Belleville.
He’s a sound skater who outlets efficiently and has a booming shot from distance. On the power play he can score from far out with a lethal one-timer. His defending will need to improve before he becomes an NHL regular, though. The fact he is quick to space benefits him when he’s out of position.
Overall, he’s a work in progress in his zone, but he’s competitive and has some offensive upside.
Roby Jarventie, FWD, Belleville, AHL
There was a time when Jarventie’s game lacked detail. He lacked commitment in his zone and wasn’t using his large frame to his advantage.
His game has evolved. I don’t expect him to be a shut down/match up forward at the NHL level, but he has definitely been coached up and bought into working harder in all three zones.
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS
Matthew Knies, FWD, Minnesota, NCAA
Knies is the top prospect for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
He brings a combination of skill, finesse and size. He can attack with speed off the rush, making defenders back off in the process. When he’s at his best it’s clear he projects to be a power body at the NHL level.
His season at Minnesota is off to a solid start. He’s playing to his identity.
Topi Niemela, D, Karpat, Liiga
A coveted right-shot defender who’s a well-rounded talent. Coaches trust players like Niemela. He’s efficient in all three zones. He defends well. He’s quick to take away time and space for opponents. He moves pucks very well, too, and can be used in all situations.
Alex Steeves, FWD, Toronto, AHL
Steeves looks close to being a player the Leafs can consider as a call up to the NHL roster when needed.
He had a very productive first year at the pro level, scoring 23 goals and 23 assists — including eight power play goals — for the Marlies in 2021-22.
He’s quick out of the blocks this year as well, which gives him a head start. But he’s not a pure open ice burner between the blue lines.
He can play both centre and the wing. A competitive player whose element leans offence, but he does manage the game up and down the ice.
A potential recall forward at this stage, but he’s trending up and could become a middle six candidate in the future.
VANCOUVER CANUCKS
Jonathan Lekkerimaki, FWD, Djurgardens, Allsvenskan
The Canucks’ first pick in the 2022 draft has potential to be an NHL goal scorer in time. He’s an elite shooter who has a “shoot first” mentality in the offensive zone.
There are some bad habits in his game that will need to be coached out of him as he matures. He doesn’t push back much and he cheats in his own end, blowing his zone before his team has full control.
There will be nights he can frustrate, but there is also potential he can be a difference maker more often than not.
Danila Klimovich, FWD, Abbotsford, AHL
Klimovich burst on to the scene at the U18 Worlds in Texas in 2021, scoring six goals (all on the power play) in five games. He was selected in the second round of the same draft by the Canucks.
The learning curve has been steep, but he’s progressing nicely, all things considered.
Klimovich is a big body forward who moves efficiently and gets involved. He doesn’t back down in the trenches.
He has better than average skill, but I don’t see a top six NHL forward on the horizon quite yet. He could be a third line player who kicks in some secondary scoring in time.
Aidan McDonough, FWD, Northeastern, NCAA
It’s going to be very interesting to see how the Canucks handle the scenario with McDonough. He is a senior at Northeastern. I’m confident saying Vancouver would like to sign him to an entry-level contract when his college season ends, but McDonough holds the cards and controls his destiny. This scenario reminds me a lot of the one we had in Florida when Zach Hyman was a senior at Michigan. We were forced to trade his rights to Toronto to recoup a draft pick, after we knew he had no intentions of signing with us at the time.
McDonough doesn’t skate the way Hyman does, but he does have better offensive tools at the same stage of development. He’s a big body who can one-time pucks on the power play or go to the crease area and battle for rebounds and tips.
He’s going to need time in the AHL before playing to his identity at the NHL level. If his skating improves, he has a chance to be a productive pro.
WINNIPEG JETS
Rutger McGroarty, FWD, Michigan, NCAA
It took me time to warm up to McGroarty in his draft year. (The Jets took him with the 14th pick overall).
McGroarty is 6-foot-1, but he has the kind of build that makes him look taller than his listed height. He’s a heavy player who gives opponents all they can absorb in front of the net and along the boards.
His skating will determine his ceiling. He isn’t NHL quick or fast at this stage of his development, but he has plenty of runway ahead to work on his pace.
It’s good to see Rutger has started his NCAA career on a positive note. He’s playing to his identity at Michigan.
Here is how McGroarty projected heading into the draft in Montreal:
Ville Heinola, D, Manitoba, AHL
Heinola’s development path has been uneven in Winnipeg. I honestly expected him to be an NHLer by now. He was selected by Winnipeg in the first round of the 2019 draft and has suited up for NHL games every year since. He’s off to a solid start at the AHL level this season.
Heinola isn’t a heavy defender. He relies on his hockey IQ and game management. He can be used at even strength and the power play. I don’t see him as a regular NHL penalty killer, though.
Chaz Lucius, FWD, Manitoba, AHL
Lucius enters his first full year of pro hockey. There is potential for him to develop into a middle six NHL player who can provide some secondary scoring, but his body of work is only four games old at the AHL level.
Here is a look at how I viewed him at the end of his college season last year, before he turned pro.
