It's a busy time of the year for the hockey world.

The U18 World Juniors kicked off earlier today, the Stanley Cup Playoffs are well on their way, and the various junior leagues are deep into their runs. In Europe, most of the leagues are already in finals before everyone turns their attention to the World Championships.

If you are a hockey fan, there is plenty to keep your attention.

Within the Canucks organization, there are still a few storylines to keep an eye on over the next few weeks and we'll cover them in this weekly prospect update.

The Hockey News has been in publication since 1947 and has a variety of issues throughout the year that are must-reads.

One of which is the 'Future Watch' issue that looks at all the prospects within NHL organizations, profiles where they stand at that moment, and then provides a top-100 ranking for all the up-and-comers in the league.

The Vancouver Canucks made significant progress as a team in 2018-19, occupying a playoff spot in early-February and finishing with their best point total since 2014-15. Despite ultimately missing the postseason for a fourth straight year, the team provided plenty of reason to be optimistic about the future.

From Elias Pettersson's sensational rookie campaign, to Bo Horvat solidifying his leadership role, these are five positive storylines from the Canucks' 2018-19 season.

Familiar territory.

For the seventh time in franchise history, the Vancouver Canucks will select 10th overall at the NHL Draft.

Again? Really??

The Vancouver Canucks had a 30.7% chance of falling one spot and landing the 10th overall pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft and that's exactly what played out Tuesday night in Toronto at the NHL Draft Lottery.

Team USA defenceman Quinn Hughes already confirmed he's playing at the 2019 IIHF World Championship, and Monday news came out he'll be competing against at least one Canucks teammate.

Now what?

The Vancouver Canucks have missed the 2019 NHL Playoffs, falling nine points short of a wild card spot this season.

Unlike previous seasons when the NHL Playoffs began right away and Canucks fans were forced to watch what could have been, this year is different.

It's hard to keep track of all the happenings within an NHL organization in these last few weeks of the regular season. There are free agent signings, additions to the roster, and a plethora of storylines to follow.

Brogan Rafferty will make his NHL debut tonight when the Canucks face the Predators in Nashville. That means a lot of fans will Google his name to find out everything possible about the newcomer.

The organization was busy this week adding a couple of more prospects from the NCAA.