Former Vancouver Canucks Prospect Proves Why the Team Made A Major Mistake Trading Him
Photo credit: Hockeysverige
A former Vancouver Canucks prospect has won a major award over in Sweden and proved that the team may have made a pretty big mistake in trading him earlier this year.
The Vancouver Canucks needed to add a top-four defenseman to this roster desperately and it was something Patrik Allvin had been looking to do for months leading up to the Marcus Pettersson trade with Pittsburgh at the end of January.
As with any trade in this league, you need to give to get and sometimes, you have to part with assets that you might not otherwise want to and for the Vancouver Canucks, in order to land Marcus Pettersson, they had to part with prospect Melvin Fernstrom.
Melvin Fernstrom wins Swedish Hockey League Rookie of the Year
Fernstrom, who was drafted in the third round last year by the Vancouver Canucks, took a big step forward in his development this season and spent the majority of the year in the Swedish Hockey League with Orebro HK, where he averaged just over 11 minutes of ice time per night.
The 19-year-old finished the 2024-25 season with 17 points (eight goals, nine assists), four penalty minutes and was a minus-ten in 48 regular season games and his strong play as a rookie earned him a major award from the Swedish Hockey League.
On Sunday, the Swedish Hockey League announced that Melvin Fernstrom has been named the 2024-25 recipient of the 'Rookie of the Year' award, which was which was won last year by Jonathan Lekkerimaki, who also played for Orebro HK."
Note: the following is translated from Swedish
Rookie of the Year is an annual award that the SHL hands out together with main sponsor Svenska Spel - and in 2024/25 the award will go to Orebro's Melvin Fernstrom!
Melvin Fernstrom was promoted to Orebro's A-squad last summer and has grown throughout the season, with the forward taking a place in one of the team's top formations during the second half of the winter. The 19-year-old accounted for a total of 17 points in 48 games, with eleven of the points coming in the final 19 games." the Swedish Hockey League said in a press release.
Rookie of the Year is an annual award that the SHL hands out together with main sponsor Svenska Spel - and in 2024/25 the award will go to Orebro's Melvin Fernstrom!
Melvin Fernstrom was promoted to Orebro's A-squad last summer and has grown throughout the season, with the forward taking a place in one of the team's top formations during the second half of the winter. The 19-year-old accounted for a total of 17 points in 48 games, with eleven of the points coming in the final 19 games." the Swedish Hockey League said in a press release.
Fernstrom is set to return to Orebro HK for the 2025-26 season, where he'll likely have an even bigger role and will also probably be on Sweden's roster for the 2026 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship.
Following the 2025-26 campaign, it's going to be interesting to see what the future holds for the Balsta, Sweden native and whether or not the Pittsburgh Penguins decide to sign him to an entry-level contract and bring him to North America or if they want him to continue his development in the SHL for an additional season.
From an outside perspective, the latter option might be the best move for Melvin Fernstrom's career, but it's too early to say what the Pittsburgh Penguins are thinking.
Source: Swedish Hockey League
Melvin Fernstrom is Rookie of the Year 2024/25
Melvin Fernstrom is Rookie of the Year 2024/25
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