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stuff99 · 07-08-2009, 11:28 AM

Time will tell if Rodin is real deal
Second-round draft pick has high praise from Gradin

Tony Gallagher
The Province

Wednesday, July 08, 2009

The Vancouver Canucks had Anton Rodin rated so highly they were considering taking him in the first round of the 2009 NHL draft.

When Jordan Schroeder came available the way he did, they passed on the young Swedish centre and held their breath -- the most difficult moments coming when Detroit took their pick, which turned out to be Landon Ferraro, another player not expected to fall that far.

Needless to say, when Rodin was still there when the Canucks' pick in the second round came, there was considerable excitement because everyone in the organization -- as well as the other set of advisors on young players Mike Gillis developed when he was an agent -- were all wildly excited about this kid.

At 5-foot-11 and just 176 pounds, he has a lot of filling out to do but he's got three or four years to get the job done. He's expected to move up to the Swedish Elite League this year and play on Sweden's world junior team, and if you heard some of the names he's being compared to at the moment you would say, "Hold it right there, get a grip on yourself."

And that's exactly what we'll do right now -- get a grip.

He's just a prospect, but Canucks director of player development Dave Gagner did admit they had an avalanche of outstanding recommendations for him, not the least of which was Swedish scout Thomas Gradin, who found Alex Edler. And when Rodin is asked to describe the player he most feels like he can be like in the NHL today, he quickly and without hesitation responds: "Zach Parise."

"I'm trying to improve on everything right now," says Rodin, who comes from a small town about two hours drive north of Stockholm. "I have to gain some weight and improve on all parts of my game. But I've just come off a very good year when things went very well for me, lots of ice time and some success and now I just have to get better. I'd say I'm a good skater, good stickhandler with a pretty good shot."

"We've got him at just the right time, before he puts on the weight, so that we can make sure he puts it on in the right way," says Stan Smyl, who is the former director of player development and now the man responsible for the all-important college free-agent market.

The Canucks spoke to Rodin at length at the draft combine and whatever he said certainly didn't cool any of their ardour. Rodin certainly wasn't off-put by anything he heard from Vancouver either because when he was finally taken by the Canucks, with their long tradition of Swedish stars, the kid said, "It was a dream come true."

Given the Canucks less-than-brilliant drafting history, enthusiasm at this point doesn't mean much. Remember Swedish defenceman Daniel Rahimi and how good he was supposed to be?

The number of mistakes made by this team over the years is utterly discouraging, particularly given most of the same scouts who were around under the Brian Burke and Dave Nonis regimes still have their jobs. But they've been given a new set of instructions with much more specific things to look for and identify in the players, and the results of this new approach are starting to come in with this year's draft.

Gillis must be pretty confident the people around him can do the job because he's betting the future of the franchise on these people, rather than bring in his own scouts. Given he's asked the Aquilini family to more than triple the budget for the scouting and development of young players, a further dimension of pressure to produce talent is applied -- although without it in this era of the salary cap your team is hooped anyway.

For the record, Rodin had 29 goals and 55 points in 37 games for Brynas IF in the Swedish junior league last season, which are glorious numbers in any league, although it was the word-of-mouth recommendation from some very big-name people that helped Gradin's attempt to sell the kid to the point where the Canucks had him rated.

Now we begin to find out whether Cody Hodgson was a one-off or things are really going to change around here.
© The Vancouver Province 2009

07-08-2009, 11:28 AM	#1087
stuff99 I subscribe to the Fight Club ONLY Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Vancouver Posts: 7,316 Thanked 212 Times in 79 Posts Failed 35 Times in 23 Posts	Time will tell if Rodin is real deal Second-round draft pick has high praise from Gradin Tony Gallagher The Province Wednesday, July 08, 2009 The Vancouver Canucks had Anton Rodin rated so highly they were considering taking him in the first round of the 2009 NHL draft. When Jordan Schroeder came available the way he did, they passed on the young Swedish centre and held their breath -- the most difficult moments coming when Detroit took their pick, which turned out to be Landon Ferraro, another player not expected to fall that far. Needless to say, when Rodin was still there when the Canucks' pick in the second round came, there was considerable excitement because everyone in the organization -- as well as the other set of advisors on young players Mike Gillis developed when he was an agent -- were all wildly excited about this kid. At 5-foot-11 and just 176 pounds, he has a lot of filling out to do but he's got three or four years to get the job done. He's expected to move up to the Swedish Elite League this year and play on Sweden's world junior team, and if you heard some of the names he's being compared to at the moment you would say, "Hold it right there, get a grip on yourself." And that's exactly what we'll do right now -- get a grip. He's just a prospect, but Canucks director of player development Dave Gagner did admit they had an avalanche of outstanding recommendations for him, not the least of which was Swedish scout Thomas Gradin, who found Alex Edler. And when Rodin is asked to describe the player he most feels like he can be like in the NHL today, he quickly and without hesitation responds: "Zach Parise." "I'm trying to improve on everything right now," says Rodin, who comes from a small town about two hours drive north of Stockholm. "I have to gain some weight and improve on all parts of my game. But I've just come off a very good year when things went very well for me, lots of ice time and some success and now I just have to get better. I'd say I'm a good skater, good stickhandler with a pretty good shot." "We've got him at just the right time, before he puts on the weight, so that we can make sure he puts it on in the right way," says Stan Smyl, who is the former director of player development and now the man responsible for the all-important college free-agent market. The Canucks spoke to Rodin at length at the draft combine and whatever he said certainly didn't cool any of their ardour. Rodin certainly wasn't off-put by anything he heard from Vancouver either because when he was finally taken by the Canucks, with their long tradition of Swedish stars, the kid said, "It was a dream come true." Given the Canucks less-than-brilliant drafting history, enthusiasm at this point doesn't mean much. Remember Swedish defenceman Daniel Rahimi and how good he was supposed to be? The number of mistakes made by this team over the years is utterly discouraging, particularly given most of the same scouts who were around under the Brian Burke and Dave Nonis regimes still have their jobs. But they've been given a new set of instructions with much more specific things to look for and identify in the players, and the results of this new approach are starting to come in with this year's draft. Gillis must be pretty confident the people around him can do the job because he's betting the future of the franchise on these people, rather than bring in his own scouts. Given he's asked the Aquilini family to more than triple the budget for the scouting and development of young players, a further dimension of pressure to produce talent is applied -- although without it in this era of the salary cap your team is hooped anyway. For the record, Rodin had 29 goals and 55 points in 37 games for Brynas IF in the Swedish junior league last season, which are glorious numbers in any league, although it was the word-of-mouth recommendation from some very big-name people that helped Gradin's attempt to sell the kid to the point where the Canucks had him rated. Now we begin to find out whether Cody Hodgson was a one-off or things are really going to change around here. © The Vancouver Province 2009 __________________ ....