Jonathan Lekkerimaki - Arrived in Abbotsford

[MS]

Not sure about rookie, but SHL has an U20 Junior of the year award. I remember Petey winning it years ago, and also when Carlsson was anounced last year it was mentioned somewhere around here.

Yeah, Lekkerimaki won both the Junior of the Year award (makes sense!) and the Rookie of the Year award (makes no sense at all!).

He literally played 50% of the games in a prior SHL season.

 

[Vector]

That is ... very strange considering he played 26/52 games for Djurgardens in 21-22. How was he still considered a rookie?

I think it’s closer to his Patrick Johnston words it “Junior Player of the Year” rather then true rookie.

 

[Vector]

Yeah, Lekkerimaki won both the Junior of the Year award (makes sense!) and the Rookie of the Year award (makes no sense at all!).

He literally played 50% of the games in a prior SHL season.

Is there two awards? I think it’s one and we’re conflating them.

 

[MS]

Is there two awards? I think it’s one and we’re conflating them.

Possibly?

The screenshot given has this text in it, which clearly says 'rookie' but maybe the connotation in Swedish is different?

Vi stort grattis till Jonathan Lekkerimäki (@orebrohockey) som har blivit framröstad som Årets Rookie i SHL 2023/24!

 

[Vector]

Possibly?

The screenshot given has this text in it, which clearly says 'rookie' but maybe the connotation in Swedish is different?

Vi stort grattis till Jonathan Lekkerimäki (@orebrohockey) som har blivit framröstad som Årets Rookie i SHL 2023/24!

I looked it up and there’s only one award. Why he was eligible, I can’t figure out.

 

[sting101]

Not a big issue with not being in Abby or not making Sweden. The minute i saw Raymond Kempe Olofsson Zetterlund Burakovsky and Mojo i knew he wasn't gonna play in the top3 lines which is not a slight at this stage at all.

 

[theslatcher]

That is ... very strange considering he played 26/52 games for Djurgardens in 21-22. How was he still considered a rookie?

Because he's a U25 who had less than 31 games played in the SHL when the season started.

 

[VanJack]

Apparently Lekerimakki has now be 're-assigned' to the Abbotsford Canucks.....To bad he's unlikely to arrive early enough to be of any help to them, unless they can find a way to climb out of the huge hole they're in, in their series with Ontario Reign.

 

[canuckslover10]

I wouldn’t mind calling him up to try and get him with Petey, this is an offensive series so we can take a few more risks than the previous series.

 

[Mr. Canucklehead]

I wouldn’t mind calling him up to try and get him with Petey, this is an offensive series so we can take a few more risks than the previous series.

I think he'll definitely be among a group of black aces that gets recalled.

I would guess -

Bains
Dries
Karlsson
Podkolzin
Lekkerimiaki
Raty
Sasson

Wolanin
Hirose
Irwin
Johansson
McWard
Pettersson

And Sawchenko all join as Black Aces.

 

[Lindgren]

I wouldn’t mind calling him up to try and get him with Petey, this is an offensive series so we can take a few more risks than the previous series.

I'd prefer to see Max Sasson.

 

[canuckslover10]

I think he'll definitely be among a group of black aces that gets recalled.

I would guess -

Bains
Dries
Karlsson
Podkolzin
Lekkerimiaki
Raty
Sasson

Wolanin
Hirose
Irwin
Johansson
McWard
Pettersson

And Sawchenko all join as Black Aces.

personally id have lekkermaki,podz,raty,and dries for the forward group in that order, for defence id say Wolanin, Mcward, Irwin, and Pettersson in that order.

 

[Szechwan]

I think it's a bad idea to throw him into a playoff game, but boy would it be nice to have a sniper actually putting pucks on net on the PP

 

[StrictlyCommercial]

Kind of ehhhh to miss the AHL playoffs and not get any WHC time. He really could have used the AHL experience.

 

[VanJack]

If I was Lekerimakki, I'd be pretty choked about being cut from Team Sweden. I can only assume he went back, because the Swedish officials assured him that he'd have a legitimate shot at making the roster. That appears not to have been the case.

I understand the Canucks not wanting to stand in his way of going back to Sweden and giving it a shot......But with hindsight, he should have stayed put in Abbotsford.

 

[arttk]

If I was Lekerimakki, I'd be pretty choked about being cut from Team Sweden. I can only assume he went back, because the Swedish officials assured him that he'd have a legitimate shot at making the roster. That appears not to have been the case.

I understand the Canucks not wanting to stand in his way of going back to Sweden and giving it a shot......But with hindsight, he should have stayed put in Abbotsford.

I think you guys are thinking too much. What he needs the most is to workout and get stronger and faster. Not playing a couple of games at the end of the season and potentially getting an injury delaying that is fine. It’s not like a bunch more games this year will drastically accelerate him making the NHL next year.

 

[VanJack]

Who's 'overthinking it'? The fact is that he got five minutes of meaningless time in an exhibition game or two leading up to the World Hockey Championship. And now that he's been cut, I assume he's done with competitive hockey for the year.

You'll never convince me that playing in five playoff games for Abbotsford wouldn't have done a lot more for his development. As for 'injuries' it's the same risk he'll be facing if the plays in the AHL next season

Anything the kid could do to accelerate his adjustment to the smaller NA rink would have benefited him. That's just reality,

 

[PuckMunchkin]

Who's 'overthinking it'? The fact is that he got five minutes of meaningless time in an exhibition game or two leading up to the World Hockey Championship. And now that he's been cut, I assume he's done with competitive hockey for the year.

You'll never convince me that playing in five playoff games for Abbotsford wouldn't have done a lot more for his development. As for 'injuries' it's the same risk he'll be facing if the plays in the AHL next season

Anything the kid could do to accelerate his adjustment to the smaller NA rink would have benefited him. That's just reality,

Doubt either option would have done much for his development.

 

[arttk]

Who's 'overthinking it'? The fact is that he got five minutes of meaningless time in an exhibition game or two leading up to the World Hockey Championship. And now that he's been cut, I assume he's done with competitive hockey for the year.

You'll never convince me that playing in five playoff games for Abbotsford wouldn't have done a lot more for his development. As for 'injuries' it's the same risk he'll be facing if the plays in the AHL next season

Anything the kid could do to accelerate his adjustment to the smaller NA rink would have benefited him. That's just reality,

At his age the most important thing at the end of a season is practice and working out.

Real life is not some kind of rpg where you rack up exp and then you magically level up. You hear all the greats talk about what does it for them is practice and getting their body in shape. Yes games matter but it really doesn’t unless they prep their body and practice skills for it and is ready for it.

There will be a time when games experience matters but right now, he needs to get stronger, faster and practice his skills. I assume he got some of that done with the WC team which is more valuable than playing some AHL games especially it’s almost a given he is going to stay in the A for half a season next season regardless of how he plays in the preseason.

 

[Brock Boeser Laser Show]

Needs a good summer of training. Hopefully he stays in Vancouver to get himself ready for September.

There is a small part of me that wishes he was in the lineup against the oilers because it would be hilarious watching Skinner try to track his shot.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

not that he would likely crack the playoff lineup anyway but i thought he was ineligible. am i wrong?

 

[arttk]

Here is a clip of Kobe talking a little bit about training. Can’t find the full thing but the point he made was, he basically chucked a bunch of air balls in his first playoffs and people thought he was a choke artist but the truth was he was young and his core wasn’t strong enough at the end of the season. So he worked out more in the offseason so his core will be there the next playoffs.

Jordan talked about this in doc, practice and workout is where they get better and games are really they show off the stuff they work hard behind the scenes for.

Lekk is young, he had a reasonably long season, missing the AHl playoffs is more a bummer for us than him.

 

[Vector]

not that he would likely crack the playoff lineup anyway but i thought he was ineligible. am i wrong?

Why would he be ineligible?

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

Why would he be ineligible?

isn’t there a rule that you have to have been called up at some pt in the RS to be eligible for the playoffs?

or maybe it’s just being under contract? my feeling is there was something to be put in place for teams to not just load up on ringers from euro leagues in the playoffs and/or stash guys there during the RS, like the oilers used to do in the 80s

 

[Vector]

isn’t there a rule that you have to have been called up at some pt in the RS to be eligible for the playoffs?

or maybe it’s just being under contract? my feeling is there was something to be put in place for teams to not just load up on ringers from euro leagues in the playoffs and/or stash guys there during the RS, like the oilers used to do in the 80s

It’s just eligible contract. You’re conflating this with rules for waivers, non-ELC contracts, games played outside North America, and the signing deadline.

Jannik Hansen played in the playoffs before he played a regular season game.