The Vancouver Canucks AHL farm team was already on a roll — winners of five in a row — when Lekkerimäki was sent down from the big team
All the victories in this string have come at the Abbotsford Centre.
Lekkerimäki, who was playing his first game with Abbotsford since Jan. 4, bagged the winner Sunday versus San Jose with 0:48 remaining, and was named the game’s first star. He’s up to 13 goals with Abbotsford this season, which marks the team high. He’s played 11 games with Vancouver so far this season.
Abbotsford centre Aatu Räty has been an offensive sparkplug in the team’s recent success. He’s the reigning AHL player of the week, after totalling nine points in Vancouver’s four wins last week. He had one goal and three assists in a 6-3 victory over the Ontario Reign on Tuesday, three assists in a 5-2 triumph over Ontario, and one goal and one assist in Sunday’s win over San Jose.
Räty was held off the scoresheet in a 3-2 triumph over San Jose on Saturday.
Here’s our latest instalmentof our Canucks top-10 prospects power rankings.
Lekkerimäki returning to the mix — players with the big team are exempt from the top-10 — and the offensive outburst from Räty brings some notable movement.
As a reminder, players also must be born in 2000 or later to be eligible. Last week’s ranking is in parenthesis.
1. Jonathan Lekkerimäki, RW, Abbotsford (NR)
Lekkerimäki (22-13-7-20) was on a line with Nils Åman and Tristen Nielsen in his return to the lineup. Along with leading Abbotsford in goals, the 20-year-old is second in shots (85), trailing only Danila Klimovich (86).
2. Tom Willander, D, Boston University Terriers (1)
The 2023 first-round pick helped BU (13-7-1) to a pair of wins in a home-and-home last weekend against New Hampshire, with a 6-3 triumph on the road Friday followed by a 2-1 overtime victory as hosts on Saturday. Willander (20-2-9-11), who’s a 19-year-old sophomore, was held out of the points column. BU, who jumped three spots this week in the USCHO national rankings to No. 8,has a home-and-home this weekend with their crosstown rivals Boston College (16-4-1), who are No. 1.
3. Aatu Räty, C, Abbotsford (5)
Abbotsford’s representative at the upcoming AHL All-Star Classic, Pettersson (36-1-12-13) leads the team in plus-minus (plus-eight). The 2022 second rounder, who’s 20, tied a season high with four shots on Sunday. He’s been paired up of late with Mark Friedman.
5. Kirill Kudryavtsev, D, Abbotsford (3)
Kudryavtsev (31-2-14-16) remains Abbotsford’s top-scoring blueliner, and the 2022 seventh rounder is also second on the team in plus-minus (plus-seven). The 20-year-old teamed up with Cole McWard on Sunday
6. Nils Åman, C, Abbotsford (NR)
The 2022 free-agent signee is on a six-game points streak (4-5-9), including notching one goal and two assists on Saturday and one goal and one assist on Sunday. Åman (27-6-18-24), who’s 24, has jumped into the team lead in scoring with this spurt.
The 2022 free-agent addition had an assist on Sunday. The 24-year-old Bains (21-3-14-17) has four points (1-3) in his past five games.
8. Ty Mueller, C, Abbotsford (6)
Mueller (34-7-13-20) returned to action this weekend after missing three games with an undisclosed injury, and the 2023 fourth rounder had an assist Sunday. The 21-year-old is tied for third in team scoring and was on a line Sunday with Sammy Blais and Linus Karlsson.
9. Sawyer Mynio, D, Calgary Hitmen (7)
Mynio (23-6-16-22) recorded an assist in a 3-2 shootout loss to Medicine Hat on Saturday and a goal in a 4-1 win over Regina on Sunday. The 19-year-old, who was a 2023 third rounder, was picked the game’s third star in the latter. The Hitmen (25-12-3-2) are at Moose Jaw on Wednesday.
10. Artūrs Šilovs, G, Abbotsford (8)
The 23-year-old, who was a 2019 sixth rounder, recorded his third-straight win in Sunday’s 5-4 triumph over San Jose. The victory was the 50th in the AHL for Šilovs (5-3-0, 2.53 goals against average, .906 save percentage).
Dropped from the rankings this week: Danila Klimovich, RW, Abbotsford (9); Riley Patterson, C, Barrie Colts (10).