Former Vancouver Canucks prospect officially coming to North America earlier than expected

Former Vancouver Canucks prospect officially coming to North America earlier than expected

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A former Vancouver Canucks prospect is on his way to North America earlier than many expected due to a lack of playing time with his club team in Sweden.

With where the Vancouver Canucks currently sit in the National Hockey League’s overall standings, they have the best odds to land the first overall pick in June’s draft and climb the prospect pool rankings even further.

While things are on the come up for Vancouver’s prospect pool, there is one name that the club parted with in a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins in January of 2025 that General Manager Patrik Allvin is probably regretting right now and it looks like fans in North America are going to get a close eye on him very soon.

Former Vancouver Canucks prospect heading to North America earlier than expected

For the 2025-26 season, the Penguins sent Fernstrom back to Orebro HK of the Swedish Hockey League, however he’s had a tough time, registering just three goals and one assist in 36 games and after the club planned on loaning him to AIK of HockeyAllsvenskan – Sweden’s second tier – Pittsburgh has stepped in and reportedly made a big decision on where he’ll play next.

Note: the following has been translated from Swedish

“Melvin’s season has not been what neither we, Pittsburgh nor Melvin himself wanted. Now we have found ourselves in a situation where we cannot offer Melvin the playing time he needs. We have had a dialogue with Pittsburgh and Melvin’s advisors and together we have agreed that this will be the best solution for everyone. Melvin will join Pittsburgh’s organization shortly and until then he will continue to train in our operations.” Orebro HK Sports Manager Henrik Lowdahl said.

It’s unclear when exactly Melvin Fernstrom is expected to arrive in North America, but with Pittsburgh’s AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, sitting near the top of the Eastern Conference standings, they’re hoping he can play a key role down the stretch and into the Calder Cup Playoffs.

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Former Vancouver Canucks prospect officially coming to North America earlier than expected

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