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The big World Juniors preview event features three Canucks prospects vying for roster spots on the national team squads this winter
Published Jul 30, 2024 • 4 minute read
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Vancouver Canucks 2024 third-round pick Melvin Fernström is playing for Team Sweden at the World Junior Summer Showcase in Michigan this week Photo by Bruce Bennett /Getty Images
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The World Junior Summer Showcase started on Sunday in Plymouth, Michigan and three Vancouver Canucks prospects have been invited to the evaluative national team event.
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Forward Anthony Romani (2024, Rd. 6) and defenceman Sawyer Mynio (2023, Rd. 3) will be suiting up for Team Canada starting on Wednesday, while 2024 third-rounder Melvin Fernstrom has already skated in two games for Team Sweden.
2023 first-round pick Tom Willander was also supposed to play for Sweden, but an injury means the promising defender will have to miss out on the tournament.
Here’s what we’ve learned so far:
Melvin Fernström poses for a portrait after being drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft at Sphere on June 29, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo by Candice Ward /Getty Images
Melvin Fernstrom
The first player picked by the Canucks in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft is the first to pick up a point at the Summer Showcase.
Fernstrom, a skilled right-shot winger taken 93rd overall, nabbed a nice assist in the last minute of a 7-2 thumping at the hands of the split-squad USA Blue team on Sunday.
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The 18-year-old, drafted largely for his shooting and playmaking ability, found an open teammate in the slot with a quick cross-seam pass on the power play for the primary helper.
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Fernstrom wasn’t able to find the scoreboard in the next game, a 2-1 loss on Monday to Team USA White. The Americans scored twice in the opening minutes and never looked back.
Fernstrom, a 6-foot-2, 187-pound forward, has been skating on the right side of Sweden’s third line and is also playing on the top power play unit.
The Balsta product led Sweden in scoring at the U18’s last season with eight points (3G, 5A) in seven games.
Fernstrom “knows how to produce,” Elite Prospects’ Cam Robinson told Postmedia last month, with his shot and ability to distribute the puck being his best traits.
Fernstrom, who played six games with top prospect Jonathan Lekkerimaki at Orebro HK last season, is also adept at finding open space away from the puck — and finding the back of the net once it gets to him.
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His shot may not be a laser like Lekkerimaki’s, but Fernstrom did score 31 goals and added 32 assists in 45 J20 Nationell games last season.
The knocks on his game include not being a great skater and being somewhat soft on the puck.
You’d think those are fixable problems.
Fernstrom was in Vancouver last month at a more personalized development camp, where instead of the usual 50 prospects there were 28 to hit the ice. The shift gave the players more one-on-one time with a coaching staff that included new Abbotsford bench boss Manny Malhotra and the Sedin twins, among others.
As for Willander, the Canucks’ top defensive prospect was initially on the Sweden roster but was pulled due to injury last week. The injury is said to not be serious and the 19-year-old Boston University sophomore is expected to be fully healthy once training camp begins.
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Tom Willander (VAN) was on the roster initially, but is not in camp due to injury. Nothing serious, but keeping him out of action here. https://t.co/XGXw3qu29G
— Chris Peters (@chrismpeters) July 28, 2024
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Willander, 19, is expected to play a key role for Sweden at the 2025 World Juniors in Ottawa.
He had four goals and 25 assists in 38 games for BU in his freshman season last winter.
Prospect winger Anthony Romani poses after becoming th 162nd overall selection in the 2024 NHL Draft on June 29 in Las Vegas. Photo by Candice Ward /Getty Images
Anthony Romani
From finally getting drafted to getting his first call to represent Team Canada at the international level, the last month has been a whirlwind for OHL sharpshooter Anthony Romani.
Romani, taken by the Canucks in the sixth round, joined fellow 2024 draftee Riley Patterson (2024, Rd. 4) on the ‘I Only Touch Greatness Podcast’ last week where he told host Ryan Haze he was excited to go to world junior summer camp and “show what I can do.”
“It’s kind of a step toward (making the World Junior Championship) team so I was really excited to get that call,” Romani said. “It’s my first Hockey Canada camp too, so it’ll be pretty cool to put on that Hockey Canada jersey. It’s always been a dream.”
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What Romani did to get the call — scoring a league-high 58 goals in 68 games while tallying 53 assists last season — showed determination and belief in himself after getting passed over at the NHL Draft a year before.
The 19-year-old Pickering native went back to basics before last season, asking his coaches and trainers what he needed to work on — and came back on a mission.
“It was kind of eye-opening for me and I think, obviously, it’s had a little bit of motivation for me, too … it’s kind of an obstacle I’ve had to overcome there and I feel like I’ll have a chip on my shoulder probably for the rest of my career.”
Romani played big minutes and a big role first-line role for the North Bay Battalion last season, after being one of the younger players on a deeper team the year before.
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The 6-foot, 183-pound right-shot winger is a gifted offensive player who uses his skill and skating ability to create chances for himself and his linemates.
He’s also a highly-competitive athlete whose family has close ties with former Canuck Raffi Torres.
It’s not clear where Romani will factor into Canada’s lineup — he’s the lowest pick among forwards at camp.
Canada’s first game is on Wednesday against Sweden in Windsor, Ontario.
🇨🇦’s National Junior Team Summer Showcase is on the ice in Windsor! 👏
La vitrine estivale de l’équipe nationale junior du 🇨🇦 est en cours à Windsor! 👏 pic.twitter.com/a9F6hiPF31
— Hockey Canada (@HockeyCanada) July 29, 2024
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Also donning the Maple Leaf will be Canucks defensive prospect Sawyer Mynio, a 19-year-old left-shot D-man who stood out on a suspect Seattle Thunderbirds team last season.
Mynio, picked by the Canucks in the third round in 2023, has a budding two-way skill-set. The Kamloops product is a capable defender who also put up 53 points (16G, 37A) in 63 WHL games last season.
“He’s very calm with the puck. Moves pucks well. Defends well. Smart.”
Next up on Building Blue is BC born, Sawyer Mynio, selected in the third round of this year’s #NHLDraft. pic.twitter.com/kmNjRJ6sRn
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) August 4, 2023
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The Summer Showcase wraps up on Saturday with a full-squad USA team taking on Canada.
mraptis@postmedia.com
twitter.com/mike_raptis
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Courtesy : https://theprovince.com/sports/hockey/nhl/vancouver-canucks/canucks-prospects-world-junior-summer-showcase-melvin-fernstrom-assist-anthony-romani-living-the-dream-sawyer-mynio-whl-ohl