We’ve yet to see any major cuts from the Vancouver Canucks following training camp one week ago.
However, they have trimmed one young defenceman from the NHL roster.
Sawyer Mynio was sent down to the Abbotsford Canucks on Friday afternoon. He played just one preseason game for the team, during Vancouver’s first game against the Seattle Kraken on Sunday, Sept. 21.
The 20-year-old has proven to be a solid draft pick, considering he was selected late in the third round (89th overall) in the 2023 NHL draft.
Since being drafted, Mynio has taken a major step forward offensively. He went from posting five goals and 31 points in 68 games in his draft year to registering 15 goals and 53 points in 63 games the following year for the Seattle Thunderbirds of the WHL.
The Kamloops, B.C. native was even better last season, finishing just shy of the point per game mark in the WHL. He was also named to Canada’s World Juniors team last winter, where he played three games and registered one assist.
Mynio certainly has potential, but he did get caught defensively a couple of times during the Canucks opening preseason contest. That night, he finished as the only Canucks player on the ice for two even strength goals against.
He’s slated to enter his first season as a full-time pro, where he’ll have a chance to fill the skates of departed left-shot defencemen in Abbotsford, such as Akito Hirose and Christian Wolanin.