Claimed:Is Niklas Kurri the Favorite for the Yzerman Trophy? Final 6/6

[nikkurri17 109]

Niklas Kurri celebrates a goal.

 

3rd year VHLM player Niklas Kurri appears to have rounded out his game this season and looks to have found his place as a defensively responsible 2-way center. The Saskatoon Wild have been playing excellent this season and have been receiving huge contributions from defenseman Nicklas Karlsson and Borje Samuelsson, both of whom are favorites for the Bourque Trophy as the leagues top defenseman. Kurri has played consistent hockey throughout the season and is among the league leaders in various key categories. Kurri hasn't necessarily lit the league on fire with his offensive production, still the Finn is tied for the team lead with line-mate Joseph Roy III, scoring 32 goals and has registered 37 assists, for 69 points in Saskatoon's 45 games. It's when you start looking at the other statistics that you realize how valuable Kurri has been this season. Kurri is a +57, good for 10th in the league, Nik has won 62.6 % of his face-offs ranking 5th overall and leads all forwards with 184 hits.

 

 

Kurri is one of the strongest forwards in the VHLM and is nearly impossible to knock off of the puck. While The VHLM appears to be a league of one trick pony's, Kurri has worked on improving all aspects of his game and has slowly become one of the top forwards in the league. A VHL scout had this to say about Kurri.. "Niklas Kurri is a forward who's game translates very well to the VHL. Kurri is a good skater, is a bull on the ice at times and makes his teammates better. He's a reliable center, who can shut down opposing scorers and he can definitely shoot the puck. Nik needs to work on his hands when he's skating with the puck, it looks like bloodlines have won out, despite his slow progression."

 

 

Kurri was given the honor of wearing the C on his jersey this season and has been setting a good example for his teammates in Saskatoon, with his consistent two-way play and his willingness to do whatever is necessary to win hockey games. If the Finn can continue to play at the level he has been, it will be hard for the awards committee to overlook his statistics and all around play. Last season the Yzerman Trophy was given to Brady Stropko who put up an incredible 116 goals. You have to think that Stropko's offensive production was the main reason he was given the award, it's possible that the committee votes in a similar manner this season.

 

 

The Seattle Bears are a much improved team this season, with the previously mentioned Stropko and a host of rookies providing a big improvement to the roster and helping the club score goals. You have to think that the Seattle Brass is smiling ear to ear every time they watch a Saskatoon Wild game. Not only do the Bears have the draft rights to Kurri, they also drafted both of the Wild's premier defenseman Samuelsson and Karlsson and the group is already getting acclimated to playing with eachother. Kurri (Samuelsson, Karlsson), or any combination of the 3, is a very common sight when looking over a Saskatoon boxscore. 
 

Edited January 5, 2015 by nikkurri17

[eaglesfan036 4,603]

Content: 3/3 - Nice article on Mr. Kurri and the Wild. Two-way centers are needed on every team, as most forwards can play offense but the special ones play defense as well. Grats on your 62% faceoff wins!

 

Grammar: 2/2 - Some mistakes.

 

leagues top defenseman. = league's top defenseman.

While The VHLM = While the VHLM 

forward who's game translates = forward whose game translates 

eachother = each other

boxscore = box score

 

Appearance: 1/1 - Looks good

 

Overall: 6/6

[Frank 5,209]

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