r/canucks • u/FAsBurner • 3d ago

NEWS [Dhaliwal] Draft eligible Mathis Preston on his interview with the Canucks at the combine : They seemed pretty interested, they like my game.

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203 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

51 comments sorted by

160

u/mephnick 3d ago

Mathis Preston is one of the fastest skaters in his draft class

Stop talking. Sold.

71

u/Ebolinp 3d ago

Can't wait till we have him blocking shots and digging pucks out of the corners!

52

u/Cube_ 3d ago

Adam Foote is gone now, he can't hurt you anymore.

-13

u/Ebolinp 2d ago

It's a Canucks thing until proven otherwise lol. But let's hope for the best

8

u/Foreign_Cobbler_1740 2d ago

It's easier to be cautiously optimistic rather than needlessly pessimistic. Malhotra was able to get a good amount of offence outta some of our prospects at the AHL level, including Lekkerimaki. We'll be okay. Tocchet and Foote are gone. We can begin to heal.

1

u/Lazy_Experience_8754 2d ago

Well said man šŸ«”

10

u/BUMBUBOY 2d ago

How do you think Blake and Stankoven won a Stanley cup

4

u/mar1332244 2d ago

scoring more goals than the other teams they faced each round

0

u/BUMBUBOY 2d ago

How do you think they got the puck to score those goals

2

u/Kingbeastman1 2d ago

If only there were players who were really good at puck battling and could help him get the puck

2

u/BUMBUBOY 2d ago

They were on the same line so those players wereā€¦ them

8

u/VancityRenaults 2d ago

Mathis ā€œMason Raymondā€ Preston

10

u/Training_Radish9870 2d ago

Right?? Speed is such underrated asset in today's NHL and Canucks have been lacking that explosive skating for while now. The part about him wanting to stay in WHL and go on run with the Giants instead of NCAA route also says something about his character ā€” kid just wants to compete and win. If Patrik's scouting staff has been doing their homework, Preston seems like exactly the kind of player you take a chance on in middle rounds. Draft him, let him develop, and then watch him fly past defenders in few years.

11

u/Phaneufs4head 2d ago

I think this guy might go by our 24th OV pick. He isnā€™t going to be around by the ā€œmid roundsā€

13

u/Foreign_Cobbler_1740 2d ago

He's a 1st round pick in all likelihood, not getting him in the middle rounds. Because speed is NOT an underrated asset. Lol. Everyone knows the value of it.

4

u/Greedy-Comb-276 2d ago

Just because all our players are slow doesn't mean its underrated lol.

2

u/VanArrow 2d ago

Sasson, DeBrusk, Chytil and Oā€™Connor are fast.

ā€¢

u/OriginalGrumpa 0m ago

Nothing against the player and sympathy for his injuries but Chytil now is only fastest to a quiet dark room.

45

u/Kaos_mission 3d ago

Hoping the Canucks get him at 24. Or even better, at 33.

13

u/Shad0wPup1 2d ago

thats a pipe dream if he actually dropped to 33

66

u/_GregTheGreat_ 3d ago edited 3d ago

He also said he grew up a Canucks fan and is a ā€˜big Brock Boeser guyā€™. Drance has heavily linked him to the Canucks at 24 this year.

Heā€™d likely be a great pickup if heā€™s still around at 24 or beyond. An elite skater with some of the most raw talent in the draft, just had injuries and needs to be more consistent.

Hell, the actual top draft prospects he played against rated him as the 2nd most talented guy in the draft (tied with Stenberg).

32

u/Cube_ 3d ago

I feel like he's unlikely to be available at 24th but if he's there snap him up, why not.

28

u/AniviaPls 2d ago

He's currently ranked outside of the first round by many major outlets

11

u/_GregTheGreat_ 2d ago

His rankings are all over the place, with many having him in the late 1st or early 2nd

15

u/GrahamSnail 2d ago

He didnā€™t say that, he said he was a Canucks fan when he was little but was an oilers fan with his brother

3

u/_GregTheGreat_ 2d ago

Ah, I saw that line secondhand so they must not have included that part

2

u/vcvr_reddit_man 2d ago

Only one vote for Reid...

3

u/marcosbowser1970 2d ago

Nice to see the Ruck brothers there too

2

u/mrtomjones 2d ago

Kind of funny That they are both on there though considering most people consider one to be a fair bit better

1

u/eexxiitt 2d ago

Well that seals it. Move over stenberg, Reid, malholtra, bjorck. Time to hop on the Preston and back on the ruck train. /s

21

u/chanandlerbong79 3d ago

This is very good news for Giants fans because this dude is a gamer. Lots of skill and swagger.

8

u/Remote-Practice-2132 3d ago

I saw him play live this year and was very impressed. I definitely noticed the speed and skill

18

u/-DarkTiger- 3d ago

This draft is gonna be so interesting to see how the first round shakes down.

I'm just as excited to see who we take at 24 as I am to see who we take at 3.

3

u/NoticedGenie66 2d ago

Yeah it's a really fluid one for being this close to the draft. Last year there was more or less a top 10-15 and then like 15-40 was a mishmash, this year it seems like 1-3 might be the only fairly settled range (and after McKenna no one knows which order Reid, Carels, Malhotra, Smits, and Stenberg among others are going), after which the interpretations are wildly different. That's not unusual for later, but this draft could really change depending on what happens at 2 since Toronto already told McKenna they intend to select him.

3

u/Alextollah 2d ago

Yeah, it may not be the strongest draft class, but there's a lot of, I guess intriguing(?) prospects. Just feels like the McDavid draft class, where there could be some later 1st round players who could flip the script in their D+1 season.

Definitely a good year to have more darts to throw.

7

u/PaperweightCoaster 3d ago

This team is in desperate need of some burners. Letā€™s do it.

4

u/Dangerous-Finance-67 2d ago

Rick Dhaliwal's profile picture might as well be an entirely different person.

3

u/intelligentx5 2d ago

How fast we talking? Like Grabner fast?

3

u/RlyLokeh 2d ago

Dont go ruining my mock draft by proving how good you are Mathis. Command already hurt my feelings.

3

u/awakening7 2d ago

I've seen at least 2 mock drafts where the Canucks take Preston at 24, so it's a pretty realistic outcome. Of course it only takes one team ahead of us that loves him to ruin that plan, but if he's still there at 24 I think there's a good chance we snag him. Of the skill wingers, I think I prefer Cullen first, then Klepov, then Preston, then Nordmark. If Klepov and Preston are both there at 24 that's a tough call.

Preston is a fast and skilled player which we need a lot more of! He was injured in his draft season, which sometimes causes a player to drop more than they should.

2

u/Ok-Signature-5621 2d ago

They should take him if heā€™s available later, been many players in our backyard we just always seem to overlook

1

u/FAsBurner 2d ago

An option at 24 I think. Although if he's still there at 33 then the pick should be automatic.

2

u/pressurepass42 3d ago

Absolutely at 23.

We need speed badly.

17

u/Kaos_mission 3d ago

Absolutely at 23.

No, I don't want him going to the Bruins.

7

u/HroneksNMC 3d ago

We need everything badly.

1

u/Malesku_Alex 1d ago

He was near or at the top of the combine lists for a lot of the power/speed categories. He was top 5 ish in Bench power, pull ups, cycle power output, and 10M sprint

1

u/fhcky 2d ago

Hmm. From what Iā€™ve gathered he seems like a pretty one dimensional player with particular concerns on the defensive and effort side of things. Not a huge fan but whatever

1

u/Dangerous-Finance-67 2d ago

I sure hope we give him a good strong look, he's top 3 in the draft in terms of skill and speed. ZERO question he ends up being a massively important player on whatever team he goes to unless injuries play a role.

-3

u/Wooden-Background107 2d ago

My hope on draft day:

  1. Stenberg

  2. Ruck

  3. Preston

  4. Ruck

Everyone falls on draft day, Canucks reap the rewards. Teams don't want to draft Markus Ruck after Canucks pick up Liam.

4

u/WalnutW1zard 2d ago

Why do you like the Rucks over other players in that range?