In the end, Jake Virtanen forced the Vancouver Canucks to keep him.
The 21-year-old winger, after scoring four goals in six pre-season games, is expected to be on the roster when the Canucks open the regular season Saturday against the Oilers. And considering there's no point in parking him in the press box as a healthy scratch, you can probably expect him in the lineup.
Virtanen, the sixth overall pick in the 2014 draft, gave everything he had during the exhibition schedule to avoid being sent back to Utica. Not only did he put the puck in the net, he piled up hits and back-checked hard.
Now that Jake Virtanen has made the Canucks, here comes the hard part
