Canucks choosing to walk away from former draft pick
Jim Rutherford has until June 1st to sign their 2018, 5th round pick Toni Utunen. According to Rick Dhaliwal, it sounds like the decision has been made to retain his NHL rights. Utunen's agent, Krok has been in contact with the organization and no action has been taken.
With Jim Benning gone, it sounds like this may be part of the new direction, with Allvin and Rutherford's front office leading the way.
Utunen has been noted as a small, 3rd pairing defenseman who lacks contribution offensively. The defenseman has been in Finland's Liiga and scored a notable goal in the Liiga playoffs in 2021.
«Utunen's game was never about him putting points on the board. He was drafted as he was viewed as a defence first specialist who is reliable in his own end and can make a good first pass. Still he probably needs to produce more offence than he has in Finland to play in the NHL.»
It sounds like his chance to earn an entry-level contract from the Canucks may have just timed out, unfortunately.
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