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Vancouver Canucks of Tomorrow: Karel Plasek

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Vancouver Canucks, Karel Plasek
Vancouver Canucks prospect Karel Plasek twice represented Czechia at World Juniors.

Canucks of Tomorrow is assessing every prospect in the Vancouver Canucks system and what they are projecting to be in the future. We’ll be looking at the strengths and weaknesses of their game, as well as what the future holds for them if and when they advance through the Vancouver organization. Today, we feature Karel Plasek.



KAREL PLASEK

Position: Left-shot winger

How Acquired: 2019 6th-round draft pick, 175th overall.

2021-22 Stats: (GP-G-A-PTS) 8-0-0-0, 2 PIM (AHL Abbotsford)

Contract Status: Two seasons remaining on a three year, two-way, entry-level contract.

Anticipated 2022-23 Team: Abbotsford Canucks

Prospect Synopsis

A 22-year-old with sneaky skills off the wing, Karel Plasek will try to bounce back from a season mostly lost to a knee injury. Six games into his first season with the Abbotsford Canucks, Plasek went down, returning in late March with just a couple of games left on the calendar.

It’s a do-over, or more accurately a ‘start-over’ for the native of Prerov, Czech Republic, who twice represented his country at World Juniors.

He was far too talented for the Czech junior leagues and as a 17-year-old going on 18 he bumped up to HC Kometa Brno in the nation’s top pro league where he played three full seasons. He fared relatively well against bigger, more mature men, with physicality being one of his key missing characteristics. Part of it was just natural growth. Plasek needed to bulk up somewhat, now listed at 5-foot-11, 185 pounds.

He’ll need to begin turning things up offensively if he’s to make a lasting impression and create legitimate professional opportunities for himself. The concept of Plasek with the Vancouver Canucks is a bit of a pipe dream at this point, but he’ll be given a serious look. Scouts have described the agile puckhandler as ‘slippery’.

Future

There is no magic formula for the crafty left-shot winger who prefers the right side. He needs to impress at training camp, win a spot in Abbotsford, preferably in the top-6, and get his career cranking. His two-way contract would pay him almost $860,000 at the NHL level, that’s hypothetical at this point, $70,000 at the American Hockey League level. That’s what he’s looking at for now.

Simply put, after a lost season, let’s see what strides Plasek has taken in recovery.

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