Canucks prospect tracker: Zlodeyev on the move, Truscott on top

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It’s a shortened edition of the weekly tracker, where we count the efforts of the Vancouver Canucks’ highest profile prospects:

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Dmitry Zlodeyev

Where there is smoke, there is usually fire.

The signals coming from Russia proved true last week as Canucks prospect Dmitry Zlodeyev was traded from Dynamo Moscow to Spartak Moscow in a four-player deal that saw both teams trade a pair of forwards. It’s a move that should pump some oxygen into a dizzying season of ups and downs by the sixth round of 2020.

Zlodeyev, who last season was knocking on top-notch KHL’s door, was playing junior-level hockey with Dynamo Moscow’s MHL team when the move was announced Wednesday.

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Just a day earlier, the 19-year-old center was playing in the furthest reaches of the globe, scoring a goal and an assist for the Dynamo in a 6-0 win over Primorsky Krai Taifun in the stadium’s port city of Vladivostok. From Russia. Far East and not far from the North Korean border.

Zlodeyev had a 3-0 goal primary assist, gaining entry to the offensive zone on the power play and handing it over to a teammate up front.

His goal, also in the power play, was pretty, with the Voronezh native catching the goalkeeper leaning towards his near-side post and firing a wrist shot from the far side left side circle, post and inside.

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The exchange sent Zlodeyev back into Moscow orbit, with the 5-foot-11, 183-pound two-way forward tying the skates on Saturday for Spartak’s second-tier VHL team Khimik Voskrekensk.

Zlodeyev did not register a point in the 4-3 win over HC Ryazan, but did account for the penalty and the team’s power play as he played the final six minutes. He finished the game with a rating of plus 1 with a shot at the net and a two-minute penalty in 9:27 of ice time.

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The trade wasn’t the only good news for the annoying player known as ‘Villain’ in Russian hockey circles. Zlodeyev was selected to represent Russia at the Four Nations U-20 tournament in mid-November, a sign that the teenager will likely be included in Russia’s youth world championship squad for the tournament that begins December 26 in Red Deer and Edmonton.

Russia’s WJC group includes the US, Sweden, Slovakia and Switzerland.

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Zlodeyev scored three goals and four assists in 10 MHL games this season. He also has one goal and one assist in five BVS games.

Joni jurmo

Last month he said he is better equipped to handle adversity.

They put it to the test last week.

Joni Jurmo, who was not in Jukurit’s lineup for a couple of games to start the week, returned to the third defensive pair in Saturday’s 5-3 win at Tappara in the Finnish Liiga game.

The 6-foot-4, 198-pound mobile defender on the left side skidded for 9:23 and had a secondary assist, a shot at the net and a minus-1 rating in the win.

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Jurmo, 19, was selected in the third round of the 2020 NHL draft. He has one goal, six assists and a minus-1 rating in 17 games this season.

Aidan mcdonough

Fire your shot.

Aidan McDonough, who has one of the best pitches in college hockey this season, scored again last week, scoring his sixth goal for No. 20 Northeastern in a 5-3 loss to UConn on Tuesday.

McDonough’s goal was not one of his patented heavy punches, but a backhand in the power play slot.

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The 21-year-old power forward, drafted in the seventh round in 2019, also had a fairly primary assist in the game, ending the affair with two points, five shots at the net and a rating of minus 1.

McDonough didn’t register a point in a pair of wins last weekend, a 5-0 win over Maine on Friday and a 3-2 win over the same team on Saturday, but they are tied for seventh in the NCAA. with six goals in eight games. The leader is Taylor Ward of Omaha, a 23-year-old Kelowna product who has 10 goals on the season.

Jacob truscott

He’s on the most stacked team in the NCAA this season.

But even with four top-10 picks in this past draft in the lineup, you’ll find the Canucks’ fifth round in 2020 at the top of the statistical list.

Jacob Truscott, a 6-foot-1, 179-pound left-footed defender, leads the No. 2 Michigan Wolverines in plus-under with a striking plus-11 on the season.

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Usually this wouldn’t be a big deal, but for a D-man whose defensive skills needed to improve after his freshman season, Truscott has been more reliable in his own zone than Owen Power, the first overall pick of 2020 ( minus 1 overall) and his own defensive partner, fourth overall pick Luke Hughes (plus 9).

Truscott is also second on his team in blocked shots, with nine in eight games.

The 19-year-old didn’t score a point in a win and loss last week to Wisconsin, but he posted a combined plus-2 in the pair of games.

Truscott was drafted in large part for his great shooting and offensive skills, so the fact that he is making progress in his defensive game bodes well for his development.

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The Michigan native has one goal and five assists in eight games this season.

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