The Vancouver Canucks held their first day of on-ice workouts at their practice facility in Burnaby, which included two 20-minute games at the end of the practice. Included with the minor pro veterans that are signed to play for AHL affiliate Manitoba this year, the Canucks invited junior prospects as well as a few free agents from both the college and junior leagues. The first 20-minute game saw the Blue squad top the White team 1-0 with the only goal coming from Jason King. The second game saw more of the same as Blue beat White 3-0 with Jesse Schultz scoring two goals and Nathan Smith adding the empty netter.

Forwards

Ryan Kesler has come into this camp as the most touted prospect at the forward position. He played his game and displayed his great skating ability. Along with fellow prospect Brandon Nolan on the white squad, the line was able to create chances through grit and hard work but weren’t able to put any of them away. Another strong line for Team White was the line that included the Quebec league duo of Marc-Andre Bernier and Francois-Pierre Guenette who both displayed the chemistry of being line mates for several years. Bernier also displayed his offensive abilities as he showed nice one-on-one moves as well as improvement in skating abilities. He didn’t have the great speed through the neutral zone but showed good quickness and agility in the offensive zone. Guenette played a strong game at center ice setting up Bernier a couple of times and being responsible in the defensive zone.

The Blue squad had the most dominant line on the ice as the trio of Tim Smith, Jason King and Jesse Schultz scored all three goals in both mini games. King scored the only goal in the first half as he took a feed from Smith and drove to the net putting the puck past Wade Flaherty. He showed good jump and was attacking the net on every opportunity. Schultz showed his scoring touch potting two goals in, including one on a penalty shot against Julien Ellis-Plante. Smith displayed a nice combination of grit and skill fighting for pucks and setting up his line mates with scoring chances. With the departures of both Reid and Fedorov, both Smith and Schultz look to have ability to make the jump to the next level. Nathan Smith had an average game, playing strong without the puck and when in possession he seemed at a loss as to what to do with it.

The most intriguing free agent was Domenic DeBlois, the son of former NHLer Lucien DeBlois, who showed some crafty moves and could be interesting player for ECHL affiliate Columbia Inferno. Another free agent to look out for is the diminutive forward Tyler Mosienko who showed excellent speed and the non-stop hustle of a player looking for a contract. Another long shot but impressive free agent on the first day was Guilio Scandella who was flying all over the rink and if he continues at that pace he could see himself land at the ECHL level.

Defensemen

Those who expected an offensive show from Kiril Koltsov almost went away disappointed as he was very quiet for most of the scrimmage. Koltsov played a solid game making nice passes and clearing out the defensive zone very effectively and making nice contact, showing his offensive prowess on one rush weaving through the other team and making a nice pass. On the other hand his defensive partner, Tomas Mojzis, was very impressive carrying the puck and making tape to tape passes. He also laid out Nolan with a clean hip check drawing the attention from the sparse crowd. Another solid first day was Kevin Bieksa, who played a good two-way physical game in his first day of a pro training camp. Also in his first pro camp, David Schulz played well and didn’t seem to have any of the problems that were attributed to him during his evaluation process. Nathan McIver also played well defensively, especially holding his ground as King drove to the net, displaying nice strength. Thunderbird defenseman Mathew Hansen fought the puck most of the day as he was giving up the puck on the forecheck and having difficulties in his own zone.

Goaltenders

The top prospect in the Canuck organization didn’t look rusty at all as Alex Auld stood tall between the pipes for the Blue squad, including stopping a two-man breakaway. Rob McVicar looked solid as well, and should see significant time in the AHL if there is no work stoppage. On the other hand it was a shaky start for 2004 draft pick Elllis-Plante, who looked very nervous and timid at the beginning of his stint in net. After looking very shaky on two early goals, he seemed to calm down a bit despite the Blue squad’s crowding of his crease area.

Copyright 2004 Hockey’s Future. Do not duplicate without permission of the editorial staff.