Prospect Info: Jonathan Lekkerimaki, #15 Overall, 2022 NHL Draft

[Just A Bit Outside]

liljegren has never recovered from mono.

That’s just an allergic reaction to have to play for the Leafs.

Lek looking like a blown pick right off the bat from new mgmt.

 

[Cupless44]

That’s just an allergic reaction to have to play for the Leafs.

Lek looking like a blown pick right off the bat from new mgmt.

Yes it does like a poor pick right off the bat in the first draft for this management. I wanted Ohlgren not another small. soft wimpy winger

This management is starting to look pretty poor actually. Not a whole lot better than Benning, sadly. I see little difference which is why I only watch about 40% of the games now. I see no hope, no change and can no longer be bothered after being a fan for all 52 years. Apathy has finally set in.

Bad contract for Boeser, should have traded Miller, now a brutal 8 year commitment to this pouty, lazy prick while we now have to move our captain. They are just piling on to the cap hell that Benning created.

Same unwillingness for a proper rebuild, same jerk owner. Same stupid talk of making hockey trades for young players instead of picks and prospects. Good luck with that.

 

[SeawaterOnIce]

In hindsight...it would have been wise to maybe dump a shit contract with the pick. These middle round 1st round picks are a total crapshoot but that f***ing draft was weak.

 

[credulous]

In hindsight...it would have been wise to maybe dump a shit contract with the pick. These middle round 1st round picks are a total crapshoot but that f***ing draft was weak.

the canucks 100% should have moved the pick for help on the backend. either lundqvist or marino. it also would have been a good draft to move down to get more picks

 

[1440]

ahh yes, prospect struggling, must be a flu or mono.

He hasn't struggled though. He barely played, but when on the ice was very good. No reason for him to be benched based on play ergo illness or injury seems more likely.

 

[Yultron]

No matter how Lekkerimacki finishes the season he is not a bust and I won’t call him a bust until after next season as concluded

So many of us were ready to write off Klimovich after he only had 18 points in the AHL last season and now in his D +2 season he is killing it .

 

[F A N]

My hope is that Lekkerimaki's struggles this season humbles him and wakes him up. That's where the competitive and drive comes in Allvin.

As for the merits of picking Lekkerimaki, the Canucks apparently ranked him 7th overall. You don't trade down (unless it's a really good deal) when the guy you ranked 7th overall is available at #15. As far as the Canucks are concerned, this was a premium pick. If you believe in drafting BPA off of the team's list, this is a guy that the Canucks would have drafted 7th overall.

 

[1440]

Totally unacceptable performance at this tournament for a player with the skill level Lekkerimaki is touted to have. As a smalller skilled player this is the ideal platform for him, he should be blowing the doors off the barn

And even despite having no points, I really wouldn't mind Sandin-Pellikka if we end up with a shit pick at 15 again

What games have you been watching? He hasn't been getting much ice time, but he is also the second youngest forward on the Swedish roster. Like ASP, he has been given PP minutes and looked good during them. Do not forget that he is 6-18 months younger than most of the other Swedish forwards and is still recovering from Mono. Of course he isn't going to be physically dominant and is going to get sheltered a little. Strength and speed will come with time in the gym, but the puck skill and hockey sense he has shown are much harder to teach.

If you want to be concerned about a Canucks prospect, Pettersson has been much less impressive despite his really good physical tools.

 

[bossram]

No matter how Lekkerimacki finishes the season he is not a bust and I won’t call him a bust until after next season as concluded

So many of us were ready to write off Klimovich after he only had 18 points in the AHL last season and now in his D +2 season he is killing it .

Klimovich has 15 points in 25 games. Certainly an improvement, but not sure I'd call that "killing it". I was very, very adamant about selecting Stankoven at that spot. I think it's safe to say he's trending up.

Lekk was a selection I wouldn't have made. It's not an exaggeration to say he's trending very badly.

 

[Chrysalis99]

No matter how Lekkerimacki finishes the season he is not a bust and I won’t call him a bust until after next season as concluded

So many of us were ready to write off Klimovich after he only had 18 points in the AHL last season and now in his D +2 season he is killing it .

Agreed. I haven't seen him in the World Juniors but what I saw in vids shortly after the draft was good. If the Canucks had him rated the #7 BPA they are expecting him to be playing full time AHL and pushing for time in the NHL at D+2. If he's not doing that he's not the bust, the management team who drafted him is.

 

[PuckMunchkin]

Benched for the last two periods vs Finland..

 

[krutovsdonut]

i think the true measure of this prospect's progress will be whether he makes eough impact that i learn to spell his name. for now the jury is out.

 

[Snatcher Demko]

It's not looking like a good pick at all, but it's too early to make any judgement yet as for Lekkerimaki himself. There needs to be a longer time-frame for recovery and physical development.

I don't like the pick generally though - why spend a 1st round pick to draft a smallish winger who isn't a play-driver? That sort of an asset should not be even a target in the first round when even established young wingers are being sold for peanuts. The team has nothing on defence and down the middle, and those assets actually have more relative value and more difficult to acquire by trade. They should redefine what BPA means in today's league.

 

[credulous]

i'm generally not a fan of picking for need but there's definitely a case to be made that you should only draft centers, dmen and goalies (and maybe not even goalies). lots of teams have won with questionable wing depth but no team has ever won without at least a few stars at center and defense

 

[canuckking1]

i'm generally not a fan of picking for need but there's definitely a case to be made that you should only draft centers, dmen and goalies (and maybe not even goalies). lots of teams have won with questionable wing depth but no team has ever won without at least a few stars at center and defense

Winger is the easiest position to fill through trade or free agency. Guys like Miller, Reinhart and Fiala went for a mid-late 1st+small add and you got guys like Bjorkstrand going as cap dumps. Heck, a guy like Garland is likely being traded or a mid-round pick this summer.

 

[M2Beezy]

Benched for the last two periods vs Finland..

The last two periods of a hockey game usually are not important anyways so I wouldnt read too much into that

That and the flu, getting over mono, schedule and Abbotsford floods

Still too early to judge or make observations...

 

[WetcoastOrca]

Winger is the easiest position to fill through trade or free agency. Guys like Miller, Reinhart and Fiala went for a mid-late 1st+small add and you got guys like Bjorkstrand going as cap dumps. Heck, a guy like Garland is likely being traded or a mid-round pick this summer.

Agreed. It’s kind of crazy how every draft the experts seem surprised that some team goes off the board and picks a D much higher than projected.
Looking back, picking a D in the Juolevi draft was not a terrible move but they got the wrong guy. But just taking Tkachuk was the safest move even though he’s a winger. Sometimes you can just over think gimme putts.
And Calgary ended up trading Tkachuk for a top Center in Huberdeau and a top pairing D in Weegar so ultimately got those top positions filled.

 

[Nick Lang]

Yes it does like a poor pick right off the bat in the first draft for this management. I wanted Ohlgren not another small. soft wimpy winger

This management is starting to look pretty poor actually. Not a whole lot better than Benning, sadly. I see little difference which is why I only watch about 40% of the games now. I see no hope, no change and can no longer be bothered after being a fan for all 52 years. Apathy has finally set in.

Bad contract for Boeser, should have traded Miller, now a brutal 8 year commitment to this pouty, lazy prick while we now have to move our captain. They are just piling on to the cap hell that Benning created.

Same unwillingness for a proper rebuild, same jerk owner. Same stupid talk of making hockey trades for young players instead of picks and prospects. Good luck with that.

Spot on. I'm sad and apathetic as well. Boeser and Miller ... $14mil in wasted cap. Is the plan just to never acquire draft picks? This is the only place you get true value and we could have just used the $14 mil in UFA. Some people seem to think you can just be smarter than everyone and trade your way to a better team but the players teams get back are rubbish for the most part.

 

[Blue and Green]

Klimovich has 15 points in 25 games. Certainly an improvement, but not sure I'd call that "killing it".

Killing it, no, but 13 ES point in 25 AHL games is solid for a kid just coming up to his 20th birthday and his play is definitely headed in the right direction after a rough start.

Zack MacEwen was another big, raw guy; he was at about the same level in his 21YO rookie season as Klimovich is now, 18 months younger than MacEwen was.

 

[bossram]

Killing it, no, but 13 ES point in 25 AHL games is solid for a kid just coming up to his 20th birthday and his play is definitely headed in the right direction after a rough start.

Zack MacEwen was another big, raw guy; he was at about the same level in his 21YO rookie season as Klimovich is now, 18 months younger than MacEwen was.

Yeah, I said it's a nice improvement. I don't think he was a great pick.

MacEwen never panned out to much, so not sure if that's a great comparison. They're not similar players,

 

[PuckMunchkin]

The last two periods of a hockey game usually are not important anyways so I wouldnt read too much into that

That and the flu, getting over mono, schedule and Abbotsford floods

Still too early to judge or make observations...

Actually I missed most of the 1st period so for me it was too late to observe Lekkerimäki.

Agreed. It’s kind of crazy how every draft the experts seem surprised that some team goes off the board and picks a D much higher than projected.
Looking back, picking a D in the Juolevi draft was not a terrible move but they got the wrong guy. But just taking Tkachuk was the safest move even though he’s a winger. Sometimes you can just over think gimme putts.
And Calgary ended up trading Tkachuk for a top Center in Huberdeau and a top pairing D in Weegar so ultimately got those top positions filled.

He is a winger.

Unless they are turning him in to a C in Calgary and I've completely missed that fact.

 

[vancityluongo]

In hindsight...it would have been wise to maybe dump a shit contract with the pick. These middle round 1st round picks are a total crapshoot but that f***ing draft was weak.

lmao it's very canucks that dylan guenther is tracking very well and lekkerimaki is not

 

[ahmon]

Winger is the easiest position to fill through trade or free agency. Guys like Miller, Reinhart and Fiala went for a mid-late 1st+small add and you got guys like Bjorkstrand going as cap dumps. Heck, a guy like Garland is likely being traded or a mid-round pick this summer.

Thats a fallacy.

Reinhart can actually play center. You can use him both ways.

Fiala got a 1st and Brock Faber who is not a small add - he's one of the better defensive prospects from the states.

Bjorkstrand went for little value as teams were capped out.


In general, centers by nature are slightly more important than wingers, just like defenseman naturally can impact the game more than forwards. But its not to the point where wingers aren't valued or important.

If you focus on need rather potential impact, that's how you get Juolevi over Tkachuk.

 

[Blue and Green]

Yeah, I said it's a nice improvement. I don't think he was a great pick.

MacEwen never panned out to much, so not sure if that's a great comparison. They're not similar players,

They were both big, raw and possessed some tools but Klimovich is obviously the better prospect because he's clearly ahead of where MacEwen was at that age. MacEwen is still hanging around the NHL as a lesser 4th-liner; Klimovich has a real chance to do better. Some people expected too much last season and thus got the wrong impression.

Lekkerimaki is not having a good D+1 so far but I'll reserve judgement somewhat for now because he's very young and there could be extenuating circumstances contributing to his struggles. Klimovich had a rough first month this season and has turned it around.

 

[WetcoastOrca]

Actually I missed most of the 1st period so for me it was too late to observe Lekkerimäki.


He is a winger.

Unless they are turning him in to a C in Calgary and I've completely missed that fact.

Yeah my bad. Thanks for pointing that out.