Welcome to the first of probably a few articles written about Liam Kirk this season. Unlike last year, I’ve decided to collaborate with the wonderful Caitlin Berry (@caitlinsports) who keeps a closer eye on Canadian junior hockey than anyone else in the UK.

A huge personal thanks to Caitlin for agreeing to this joint venture.

It’s a hockey cliché but this current season is the most important in the career of Arizona prospect Liam Kirk.

The target now is to try and prove to the Coyotes that he’s worthy of an entry level contract which would be an incredible next step in this journey he’s undertaking.

The British prospect finished his rookie junior season with aplomb on an extended scoring streak which helped propel the Peterborough Petes into the post-season. Kirk ultimately finished the OHL season with 26 goals and 21 assists, for 47 points in 63 games. This kind of production is extremely encouraging for a rookie season in a notoriously difficult junior league.

After a strong showing in the 2019 World Championships with Great Britain and time to prepare in the off-season, Kirk has hit the ground running in the Petes two opening games of the 2019-20 campaign.

He netted two Even Strength goals and added a secondary power play assist as Peterborough split their pair of games this past weekend.

Kirk has been entrusted with essentially top line duties alongside Toronto Maple Leafs prospects Nick Robertson and Semyon DerArguchintsev.
This could have been a hindrance with extended responsibilities and the pressure that goes along with that but the British forward has flourished with greater talent on his line thus far.

Certainly SDA wasn’t held back as he was named OHL player of the week after recording seven assists and Robertson helped himself to three goals and five points.

Kirk registered seven shots, took no face-offs and was called for one minor penalty to round off the statistics during his first weekend.

His confidence appears to be noticeably higher this season. He’s comfortable moving the puck up ice through all three zones, aided by his smooth skating and nifty passing abilities. It was not uncommon in the first two games to see Kirk and linemate Nick Robertson lead the rush for the Petes, easily gaining entry into the offensive zone thanks to their combined speed and shiftiness. Also used on the first powerplay unit, Kirk has played an important part in facilitating offense for the Petes so far. Being handed this kind of responsibility so early on in the season is a good sign that the Petes will lean on Kirk as one of their main sources of offensive production this year.

His defensive play has perhaps improved the most over the summer. His anticipation in the defensive zone is better, he’s more tenacious on the forecheck and in using his stick to poke-check the puck away. This was especially noticeable in the game against London, where he forced a couple of turnovers and even stole the puck in the offensive zone while pressuring the defender on the breakout. While he’ll never be the most physical player, Kirk has shown more willingness to get involved along the boards and even hand out a hit or two when necessary.

While these are all encouraging signs for what is seemingly Kirk’s ‘make-or-break’ year in terms of earning an entry level contract, it will be down to him to prove that he can keep up this level of play for the rest of the season.

Petes Predictions:

The Peterborough Petes should be heading for an ‘up’ year. Junior hockey is largely cyclical- teams typically cycle through having a good season or two, to selling off and having a bad couple of years, to eventually regrouping and making a push for a championship again. For the Petes, it seems like the time is now to try and do some damage.

With notable returnees in forwards Nick Robertson and Semyon DerArguchintsev, as well as solid defenders such as Declan Chisholm and the recently-acquired Jacob Paquette, the Petes’ core looks strong heading into this season. Add to that a promising 2020 NHL Draft prospect, some extremely talented rookies, and one of the best goaltenders in the league, and there’s no reason the Petes can’t make a deep postseason run this year.

This is good news for Liam Kirk as it should enable him to really show off his skills on a productive team. Being an integral part of a team’s deep playoff run can only help in proving that he’s deserving on a contract.

But a lot can happen over 68 games, and chaos and uncertainty seem to be staple features of junior hockey. Only time will tell whether the Petes manage to live up to expectations this year.