PENTICTON — The best two moments in Brock Boeser’s two games here this weekend were when he didn’t score, which tells you what kind of Young Stars tournament the Vancouver Canucks’ uber-prospect is having.
It’s not that Boeser has been poor. Far from it.
You can see the poise and confidence he has with the puck. And his talent around the net was obvious on shots he made that struck posts in games against prospects from the Winnipeg Jets and Calgary Flames, who dumped the Canucks 6-2 on Sunday afternoon.
But after scoring four goals in nine games in the National Hockey League last spring after he was fast-tracked to the Canucks from the University of North Dakota — output that has him mentioned as a potential Calder Trophy candidate this season — Boeser seemed capable of standing head-and-shoulders above his peers in this tournament.
He hasn’t.
The same goes for teammate Olli Juolevi, a fifth-overall pick who was the first defenceman drafted in 2016, whose most notable moment Sunday was when East Coast League winger Brett Pollock turnstiled the Canuck on his way to a third-period goal for the Flames.
Calgary’s top prospect in this tournament, highly-regarded college free-agent Spencer Foo, scored twice in his team’s win.
Edmonton Oilers’ first-round pick Kailer Yamamoto stood out in the one game he has played here.
Second-rounder Jansen Harkins has been among the better Jet prospects in Penticton.
But neither Boeser nor Juolevi has been among, say, the top-five Canuck prospects so far.
Vancouver ends its tournament today against the Oilers prospects.
Now, it would be so West Coast if jittery Canuck fans start panicking about Boeser and Juolevi — one has a place on the NHL team to lose, the other is a candidate to claim one — due to quiet performances in a rookie tournament.
The Canucks’ training camp doesn’t even open until Tuesday.
But there is a lot at stake for Boeser and Juolevi in September, and it would be good for them to generate some momentum among their peers before moving up in class against NHLers.
“I said before the tournament that I want to come here and compete,” Boeser, 20, told reporters Sunday after his second pointless game. “I think I’m bringing my compete. I think we’re getting some chances, but obviously we can do a little better.”
Both Boeser and Juolevi were emphatic that they are not looking beyond this tournament to bigger competition.
“No, not at all,” Juolevi, 19, said. “This is where our training camp starts. This is the first thing for us. You’ve got to be ready every day, every practice, to be your best. I always give 100 per cent on the ice. Mistakes happen; that’s normal. I just want to show that I do my best.”
He looked far from his best against Pollock, who wasn’t the only Flame to torch Juolevi one-on-one.
In his first season of professional hockey, Juolevi will need a brilliant training camp and pre-season to make the Canucks, who signed three free-agent defencemen over the summer.
Boeser, however, is a pre-camp favourite to make the Canucks after his impressive test-run alongside Bo Horvat and Sven Baertschi at the end of last season.
Yes, Canuck general manager Jim Benning added one-third of an NHL lineup during the off-season. But management understands that providing room for their kids to develop is critical, and having at least a couple on the NHL roster is proof to fans and everyone else that there is, in fact, a rebuild going on in Vancouver and the Canucks’ player-development scheme is working.
“If I work my hardest and compete in the pre-season and earn a spot, I feel the management and staff will give it to me,” Boeser said before the game. “That’s what management has been saying: If guys come to camp and earn spots, they’ll be on the team. That’s the way I look at it.
“Obviously, it’s a hard league to play in. Whether you’re going from college to pro or junior to pro, it’s a huge jump. But I think getting my feet wet last year will help me tremendously. After playing those nine games, I feel I can play in the NHL and if I make the Canucks, I can really help the team. I’m going to compete at training camp, every game, every practice, at the highest level and hopefully earn a spot.”
It’s clear to those spend time around the Canucks and Boeser that he has that “it” factor. The winger who amassed 94 points in 74 games and won an NCAA championship at North Dakota possesses the confident aura that elite players often exude. Canuck goalie prospect Thatcher Demko has it, too.
Having experienced illness and a degree of hardship in his family while growing up in Minnesota, Boeser has maturity and perspective that most people his age do not. He is equipped to handle whatever is coming.
“We know what his skill set is, and he has that ‘it’ factor,” Canuck player-development director Ryan Johnson said. “But the way he’s able to mentally approach the game, you just can’t teach that to guys. It’s going to carry him a long way.
“He has an incredible knack of handling high-pressure situations very well. Him stepping in last year and having the success that he did, it did not shock me one bit. It’s not overconfidence. Some guys just have that ability to do it.”
Now, Boeser just has to do it again.
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