Patrick Alvin Vancouver in Tampere
TAMMERFORS. When Patrick Alvin, 48, had to pick his first draft pick as general manager, he called up one of his countrymen.
If Vancouver’s general manager is going to repeat that trick this summer, it won’t be that Swede named Leo Carlsson.
– I saw him in one game during the season when we were closer to the top five for a while, and then we started to win a little bit, says the NHL president.
About 1.5 years ago, playmaker Patrick Alvin became the general manager of the Vancouver Canucks.
On Tuesday, he flew to WC Tampere to spend a few days at WC Hockey.
– I try to get out and see as much hockey as possible. I’m trying to keep up so you have some understanding of what the scouts are talking about. In this case, it fits in terms of time. It’s slightly younger players and possibly free leads to look at, he says when Sportbladet is having a conversation.
In honor of Leo Carlson
In the NHL draft lottery that took place just over a week ago, Vancouver ended up in 11th place, which likely means they won’t have a chance against, say, Leo Carlson. The 18-year-old is expected to climb into the top five in the draft in Nashville this summer.
– I saw him in one game during the season when we were closer to the top five for a while, and then we started to win a little bit.
How good do you think it is?
Obviously I think he’s a very talented and good player and he’s here too. That’s a big deal for being so young. It’s interesting to see him center too, I’ve never seen him there before, but then he became an attacking winger. But as I understand him, he feels more comfortable in the center, says Alvin.
What are Vancouver primarily looking for at the position heading into the draft?
– We are looking for the best player no matter what position he is in, there is a lot that can happen for these players to play.
Happy to choose Lekkerimäki
When the 48-year-old picked his first draft pick as Vancouver Chiefs last year, he selected Jonathan Lecrimaki in the first round.
Lekkerimäki next season will be on loan to Örebro in the SHL, something Patrick Alvin is very happy about.
– The information I got from Bobbie Hagelin and Mikael Samuelsson (Vancouver scouts) is that they think it was really fun with Örebro, the way they are going to play and with Johan Hedberg’s NHL experience as a coach and player, I think Jonathan can learn there a lot.
The Vancouver Canucks are coming off a botched season with no playoffs as Patrick Alvin fired head coach Bruce Boudreau midway through the season to hire Rick Tucci instead.
Pettersson’s contract must be negotiated
On the other hand, who maintained an even and good level throughout the season, the king of the team was Elias Peterson, with 102 points.
He was one of our best players here this year, a leader and made great strides since last year. He’s maintained a very high level for so long and that’s been impressive. His 5-on-5 production was also impressive.
Elias’ contract expires after next season and that means you can start negotiating this summer and it will be expensive. What do you see there?
– Of course, Elias is an important and important part for us if we want to be good for many years to come. He’s a big league player and he has to make sure to help the other players improve and take on more responsibility and lead the team. I expect that from him.
Definitely Oliver Ekman-Larson was the season’s heaviest player in the senior Canadian national team. The 31-year-old’s massive contract, with a salary of just over seven million dollars a season through 2027, has come under fire. But Alvin believes OEL will make a strong comeback this fall.
– I think Oliver is very vindictive and determined to come back and he knows he has to change a bit in his pre-season training. He had a hard time last year when he was in the bathroom and broke his foot. I hope and believe he can come back and play at the level he needs to be. This means that he must have a good summer and good preparation.
