In the penultimate game of the 2024-25 season, two more Vancouver Canucks prospects will be making their NHL debuts.
That's what the end of the season is for when you miss the playoffs. Get the kids into the lineup, give them a taste of the NHL, and send them into the offseason with that taste lingering in their mouths to make them hungrier for next season.
With Derek Forbort out for the season with a broken orbital bone and Tyler Myers not yet ready to return, the Canucks needed another defenceman for Monday night's game against the San Jose Sharks. Accordingly, they called up Kirill Kudryavtsev from the Abbotsford Canucks in the AHL to play his first NHL game.
When he does, the 21-year-old Kudryavtsev will become the first player drafted from the 2022 seventh round to play in the NHL. It's been quite the rise for the late pick. He broke out in the OHL the season after he was drafted with 50 points in 67 games, then focused on his defensive game the following year and became one of the top shutdown defencemen in the OHL.
In his rookie season in the AHL, Kudryavtsev has become an all-situations defenceman, eating up big minutes against tough competition, while also chipping in 26 points in 63 games, good for tenth among rookie defencemen in the AHL.
But Kudryavtsev won't be the only prospect making his NHL debut. After backing up Kevin Lankinen on Saturday, Nikita Tolopilo will get the start against the Sharks.
The 25-year-old Tolopilo is in just his second season in North America after signing with the Canucks as an undrafted free agent in 2023. At 6'6", Tolopilo certainly has NHL size, and he's shown improvement in closing up the gaps in his stance, something that can often plague taller, lankier goaltenders.
Facing Macklin Celebrini and the Sharks will be a good test for Tolopilo to see how he can handle NHL shots without being too tough a task, given the Sharks are last place in the NHL.
"It means a lot," said Kudryavstev. "I'm really excited for my first game. I know it probably doesn't really mean much in the standings for the NHL team, but it means a lot for me and for Tolo."
There's a certain comfort level for Kudryavtsev and Tolopilo, as the Canucks' roster is full of Abbotsford players at this point, such as Elias "Junior" Pettersson, Aatu Räty, and Ty Mueller.
"I love Petey, he's one of my best friends, honestly," said Kudryavtsev. "I just love him, he's always helping me."
Kudryavtsev and Tolopilo will be the fifth and sixth players to make their NHL debut after being called up from Abbotsford.
Vancouver Canucks projected lines
There is a little bit of uncertainty in the lines for Monday night. The Canucks' morning skate was an optional one, so it's unclear where Kudryavtsev will slot in on the defence pairings. We'll have to wait and see how that shakes out when the Canucks take the ice for warm-up.
Here are the Canucks' projected lines:
The Canucks' starting goaltender will be Nikita Tolopilo, making his NHL debut. He has a .901 save percentage in the AHL this season. In his last start against the San Jose Barracuda, he had a .974 save percentage, stopping 38 of 39 shots. He'll be facing many of the same players on Monday night.
San Jose Sharks projected lines
The Sharks' lines and defence pairings are all jumbled up, as they've been dealt a slew of injuries as they come to the end of the season. Like the Canucks, the Sharks have had to dig into their AHL roster for call-ups, bringing up Danil Gushchin, Luca Cagnoni, and Jimmy Schuldt on Monday.
Here are the Sharks' projected lines:
Nikolai Kovalenko - Macklin Celebrini - Will Smith
William Eklund - Alexander Wennberg - Tyler Toffoli
Danil Guschin - Ty Dellandrea - Cam Lund
Noah Gregor - Barclay Goodrow - Carl Grundström
Henry Thrun - Timothy Liljegren
Luca Cagnoni - Lucas Carlsson
Marc-Edouard Vlasic - Jimmy Schuldt
Alexandar Georgiev
Georgi Romanov
The Sharks' starting goaltender is expected to be Alexandar Georgiev, who has an .872 save percentage this season. He has yet to play against the Canucks this season.
