Canucks Sign 2012 2nd Round Pick Alexandre Mallet

Hooray! A center! Hooray!

Via mommy bear:

Vancouver Canucks President & General Manager Mike Gillis announced today that the Canucks have signed forward Alexandre Mallet. In keeping with club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Mallet, 20, recorded 81 points (34-47-81) and added 132 penalty minutes in 68 games with the QMJHL Rimouski Oceanic in the 2011.12 season. He led the Oceanic in goals scored and penalty minutes. In three seasons with the Oceanic, Mallet has registered 110 points (49-61-110) and collected 272 penalty minutes in 154 games played.

In the 2012 QMJHL playoffs, he registered 25 points (10-15-25) in 21 games to help the seventh seeded Oceanic to the President Cup Final.

The Amqui, QC, native was originally selected in the second round, 57th overall by the Vancouver Canucks in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.

If you remember this was one of potentially two "controversial" picks because EVERYTHING VANCOUVER DOES IS CONTROVERSIAL Mallet was a bit older, had passed through the draft a few times and Gillis went off the board to land the bulkier Q center when he was projected to be selected in the later rounds (note: Vancouver had third or fourth picks).

Regardless Mallet will bring to the Wolves a good pair of fists and the ever sexy yet almost undefinable "power forward" label, especially after he exploded last season for 34 goals and 81 points. While he sounds like a top nine guy in the AHL (and a fourth liner for now at the NHL level) the Red Line Report called him a poor man's Alex Burrows while THW mentioned he models his game after Tomas Holmstrom. Aim high.

Excited to see if the kid is worth the hype when (if?) training camp rolls around.