Tom Willander remains at the top, Elias Pettersson returns to the mix after being reassigned and Sawyer Mynio could be back in action soon
Reading between the lines, there’s good news on the Sawyer Mynio front.
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Neither the Canucks nor the Thunderbirds commented when asked for an update on Mynio’s status. It’s commonplace, though, in the WHL for a player upgraded to day-to-day at midweek to be back in the lineup by the weekend. It’s believed to be a shoulder injury. He has missed four games.
Assuming he’s healthy, the 6-foot-1, 181-pound Mynio is expected to be in mix for the Canadian world junior team this season. Their selection camp is usually announced in early December.
Mynio was among the 13 defencemen who went to the Team Canada summer camp in Windsor, Ont., and Plymouth, Mich.
He’s staying on in our Canucks top-10 prospects power rankings this week. If he sits idle for another week, he will get likely bumped for as long as he’s sidelined.
With that mind, here’s the current top-10. Last week’s rankings are in parenthesis. To be eligible, a player must have been born in 2000 or later and can’t be on the big team.
1. Tom Willander, D, Boston University Terriers (1)
The 19-year-old Willander assisted on both goals in Boston University’s 2-2 draw with Maine on Saturday. Boston University (5-5-1) won the shoot-out that followed and gets two of three points that Hockey East awards in a game, but the contest remains listed as a tie in the standings. Willander (11-2-7-9), a sophomore who was Vancouver’s first-round pick (No. 11) in 2023, is fifth in team scoring. Boston University hosts Merrimack on Friday.
2. Danila Klimovich, RW, Abbotsford Canucks (2)
Abbotsford (7-8-0-1) opened a six-game road trip Tuesday morning with an 4-2 win over the Bakersfield Condors, and the 21-year-old Klimovich showed off his shot with a second-period goal. Klimovich (14-5-4-9), who was a 2021 second-round draft pick, is the team’s leading scorer.
3. Elias Pettersson, D, Abbotsford (3)
4. Max Sasson, C, Abbotsford (7)
Sasson, 24, had a goal and an assist on Tuesday, giving the 2023 free-agent signee seven points in his past seven games. He was named the game’s first star. Sasson (16-4-4-9) has been centring Abbotsford’s top line, playing between Klimovich and Ty Mueller.
5. Cole McWard, D, Abbotsford (8)
The 2023 free-agent signee had an assist in a 4-3 loss to the Coachella Valley Firebirds on Saturday and then potted a goal Tuesday. The 23-year-old McWard (16-2-3-5) has been getting first-unit power-play minutes of late as well.
6. Jett Woo, D, Abbotsford (4)
Woo (15-1-4-5) had a season-high five shots in the Saturday loss. The 24-year-old, who was a 2018 second rounder, has been getting top pairing minutes with Akito Hirose, 25.
7. Kirill Kudryavtsev, D, Abbotsford (6)
The 20-year-old and 2022 seventh rounder recorded an assist on the Klimovich tally Tuesday. He was a healthy scratch for Friday’s 4-1 loss to Coachella Valley, which reads as the team being mindful of the development process with Kudryavtsev (13-1-4-5).
8. Sawyer Mynio, D, Seattle Thunderbirds (5)
Mynio (15-4-13-17) has missed the past four games but still sits third in scoring for Seattle (6-13-2-1). The Thunderbirds are home to Lethbridge on Saturday. They’re at Victoria for two and then Vancouver for a Sunday matinee the following weekend.
9. Vilmer Alriksson, LW, Guelph Storm (NR)
Alriksson, 19, put up four assists in an 8-5 win over Niagara on Friday. Alriksson (15-4-9-13), who’s a 2023 fourth rounder, and the Storm are at North Bay on Thursday and at Sudbury on Friday
10. Ty Young, G, Abbotsford (NR)
Dropped from last week’s list: Riley Patterson, Barrie Colts C (No. 9) and Aku Koskenvuo, Harvard Crimson G (No. 10).