The Vancouver Canucks have signed one of their prospects after he finished his season in the NCAA. No, not Tom Willander, whose Boston University won in overtime on the weekend to stay alive a little longer. Instead, the Canucks signed goaltender Aku Koskenvuo, whose season with Harvard University ended on Sunday in heartbreaking fashion with a 2-1 overtime loss to Clarkson.
The Canucks drafted the 6'4" Koskenvuo in the fifth round of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. Despite his draft position, Koskenvuo was actually the second player drafted by the Canucks in 2021, behind only Danila Klimovich in the second round. Koskenvuo's two-year contract carries an $850,000 cap hit at the NHL level but it's entirely likely he'll spend both years of the contract predominantly in the AHL, where he'll earn an $80,000 salary to go with his $75,000 signing bonus each year.
The Canucks now have six goaltenders signed for next season: Thatcher Demko, Kevin Lankinen, Arturs Silovs, Ty Young, Jiri Patera, and now Koskenvuo. In addition, Nikita Tolopilo is a pending restricted free agent who will presumably be re-signed, giving the Canucks seven goaltenders. That raises the question of where Koskenvuo will play in the coming season.
Will he and Ty Young both play in the ECHL? Will the Canucks move Demko and have one of Silovs or Tolopilo back up Lankinen in the NHL, leaving Koskenvuo or Young to back up the remaining goaltender in the AHL? It's entirely likely that the team moves Patera, who played in .