Mercifully, there’s just one game remaining in a Vancouver Canucks season that stands out as one of the most odd and disappointing in the mostly sordid history of the franchise.
Between injuries and dysfunction and raw bad luck, the Canucks underperformed their true talent level this season. They jettisoned a star centre who had emerged as both an emotional leader for the club and a cult hero locally.
After a miracle 2023-24 campaign in which it felt like this core had finally arrived as a contender-level team, or at least as an annual playoff-level team, they took a massive step back this season. Now it’s time for the Canucks — and for us — to spend a long offseason assessing what went wrong.
As they begin to pick up the pieces entering a crucial offseason, expect them to try and be aggressive. This is going to be an “all in” summer, as Canucks brass looks to steer this team back toward contention.
It’s going to require a lot of work and some big swings on high-upside forwards, and that effort could have significant ramifications on the composition of this roster for Vancouver’s current players.
So who stays, and who goes? Let’s set the stakes of this offseason by doing our best to project the 2025-26 roster.
Returning for sure
Quinn Hughes
The Canucks captain is also this club’s singular engine and most valuable player.
Hughes is still a full league year away from being extension-eligible. That organization’s top priority this summer will be to get back to contending, and that’s because Hughes wants nothing more than to win, and this club owes it to him (and to themselves, if they want to increase their odds of keeping their franchise player) to create an environment where that’s a realistic possibility.
Filip Hronek
Signed to a long-term extension less than 12 months ago, Hronek has a full no-move clause that will kick in on July 1.
There will be very little suspense in the months ahead. Hughes wants to play with Hronek and that duo gives Vancouver one of the most dominant defensive pairs in the sport.
Hronek has reached the point at which he should be considered a cornerstone piece.
Jake DeBrusk
Last summer’s high-profile free-agent acquisition, DeBrusk has largely delivered in his first season in Vancouver. The streaky goal-scoring winger set a new career high in goals this season and is two points away from matching his career high in points with one game left on the schedule. That’s pretty solid production given how little this team generated offensively.
Kevin Lankinen
Recently signed to a long-term contract extension carrying a $4.5 million cap hit, Lankinen went from being signed after training camp had already concluded back in September to carrying this team as their most frequently used starter this season.
Lankinen will be a fixture between the pipes for Vancouver going forward. The more interesting question is, who will he platoon with going forward?
Filip Chytil
It’s been good to see Chytil back around the rink and skating with his teammates in a non-contact jersey as he continues to progress through the concussion protocol. Vancouver is desperate for what Chytil’s combination of speed and size can bring to its lineup down the middle next season.
Marcus Pettersson
Vancouver acquired Pettersson with the first-round pick it received from the New York Rangers in the J.T. Miller trade, and subsequently signed him to a long-term contract extension, partly because of how the organization rates his character, competitiveness and leadership.
Dakota Joshua
Joshua’s season was waylaid by a testicular cancer diagnosis in the summer. Surgery to address the issue caused Joshua to miss the first several weeks of the season, and in some ways, he never really caught up in the first year of his new contract. Joshua has appeared to find his physically assertive, max effort form down the stretch and will likely be counted on to fill that role again in Vancouver next season.
Tyler Myers
In an otherwise down season for the franchise, the veteran defender probably put together one of the most impressive individual seasons of his Canucks tenure.
Drew O’Connor
Acquired alongside Marcus Pettersson as the second phase of the two-step Miller trade and signed to a two-year contract extension, O’Connor provides the size, speed and defensive reliability this team prizes.
Teddy Blueger
A penalty-killing ace and reliable bottom-six centre, Blueger will be back in Canucks colours doing his regular yeoman’s work next season.
Kiefer Sherwood
A massive value hit in unrestricted free agency last summer, Sherwood set the NHL hits record (384), reached 40 points and will flirt with 20 total goals in his first Canucks season. Sherwood has been a consistent ball of effort and energy on a team that hasn’t had nearly enough of either this season.
Jonathan Lekkerimäki
Lekkerimäki had an excellent first season in North American professional hockey. He was a dominant goal scorer in the AHL, and while there are some elements of his game that he’ll need to fine-tune to do the same at the NHL level, he had moments in which you could see his potential clear as day.
To really play a big role in the NHL next season, Lekkerimäki is going to need to add functional core strength over the summer. He’s a dynamic skater, but he’s not really NHL-level fast just yet. He’s also going to need to get stronger and better at protecting the puck below the hashmarks to log big minutes at the NHL level.
Lekkerimäki isn’t likely to project as a one-for-one Brock Boeser replacement in his second North American professional season, but that’s an unreasonable bar anyway. Can he emerge next season as Vancouver’s answer to what Calgary Flames forward Matthew Coronato brought as a sparkplug middle-six offensive producer? That seems like a more realistic expectation.
Elias Pettersson (the defender)
A brick house of a rookie defender, Elias “Junior” Pettersson has far more upside than anyone expected as he was progressing through the Canucks system. While his defensive authority and physicality have earned him his shot at the NHL level, Pettersson has the offensive instincts and foot speed to develop into far more than a depth defender, especially given the exponential development curve he seems to be tracking on.
Conor Garland, a favourite of Rick Tocchet’s, has emerged as a leader and will likely stick around. (Bob Frid / Imagn Images)
Returning … we think
Conor Garland
While Garland has been effective throughout his Canucks tenure, he’s also emerged as a leader for this team. A clear favourite of head coach Rick Tocchet, Garland will likely return next season. He appears in this less certain section of our list, however, because he’s extension eligible on July 1, which gives him some element of pre-agency control over his future.
Nils Åman
Åman cleared waivers this past season and only appeared in 19 Canucks games, but is signed to a one-way contract for next season. He appears on this list because while the Canucks will want the additional centre depth that Åman provides in the organization, they also tend to try and avoid burying one-way contracts in the minors as much as possible. If he doesn’t project to make next season’s NHL roster, the Canucks could look to manage their costs this summer.
Aatu Räty
A pending restricted free agent, Räty impressed enormously down the stretch when asked to fill in for Chytil and Elias Pettersson following key injuries down the middle. Räty’s restricted status introduces some uncertainty into his Canucks future, but the club will likely be mindful of its centre depth and look to get him signed. We can expect the Canucks to push to sign Räty to the usual two-year, one-way deal they prefer when signing young players they believe in who have yet to establish themselves as everyday NHL players to their second contracts.
The 50/50 Club
Pius Suter
Ahead of the NHL trade deadline, the Canucks were balking at the notion of doubling Suter’s salary on a multi-year contract. Now, given his career-best production and how well he performed when deployed up the lineup as injuries mounted down the stretch, the price of the brick has presumably gone up even further.
Finding common ground on a price for Suter is likely to be a difficult lift, although the player is fond of living in Vancouver and the team rates his hockey intelligence highly. There’s a path to getting a deal done, albeit a somewhat narrow one.
Derek Forbort
Derek Forbort was a solid, professional defensive defenseman in his first Canucks season. Although the Canucks have a fair bit of depth on the blue line, they should be expected to try and retain Forbort on an affordable short-term deal.
Artūrs Šilovs
Depending on what other dominoes fall for the Canucks in the blue paint, Šilovs’ future will be a fascinating story to track this summer. Signed through next season to a one-way contract, Šilovs won’t be waiver-exempt next season. After a difficult campaign for Šilovs, could Vancouver seek to upgrade its goaltending depth?
A franchise-altering decision, one way or another
Elias Pettersson (the centre)
How the Canucks decide to proceed with Pettersson this summer is the biggest question surrounding the club.
In the first season of an eight-year, $11.6 million annual average value mega contract, Pettersson underwhelmed significantly. He came into camp unprepared, drawing the ire of the organization and his teammates; struggled enormously on the ice; was frequently dismissive when serving as an organizational spokesperson; and couldn’t get along well enough with a star teammate for the Canucks to feel comfortable moving forward with both players on the roster. That latter situation caused the Canucks to explore trading Pettersson at the deadline, before ultimately dealing Miller instead (and pulling Pettersson off the trade block).
While that graph is an evisceration, Pettersson remains a very special talent. A player who, at his best, is capable of performing to the level of a top-10, and even a fringe top-five NHL pivot.
On the one hand, gambling on Pettersson — and it’s a risky gamble given the size of his contract — to find his form is probably Vancouver’s best and most straightforward path back to contention. On the other, sometimes a business relationship has simply run its course, and a change of scenery is best for all involved.
Pettersson has a full no-move clause set to kick in on July 1, which is another complicating factor. The Canucks don’t view that as a drop-dead date to make a decision one way or another on Pettersson’s future, but it will surely inform their thinking this summer.
However they decide to proceed with Pettersson, the decision will shape the next decade of Canucks history.
Thatcher Demko could have high value on the trade market. (Jerome Miron / Imagn Images)
Trade-chip and cap-reallocation watch
Thatcher Demko
Limited by three extended injury-related absences (and a fourth illness-related absence to end the season) to just 23 starts, Demko endured a difficult campaign but still showed flashes of the dominant puck-stopper he’s often been when healthy.
Demko will become extension-eligible on July 1 but has little incentive to consider signing a new contract given how this season has gone. The Canucks could keep Demko in the fold, but in the wake of the Lankinen extension, perhaps they’ll be tempted to gauge his trade value this summer, especially given their significant needs up front.
Despite the spate of injuries Demko has dealt with this season, there are zero high-end goaltending options available in free agency and only one year remaining on his contract. As part of a package, Demko would have value for teams looking to take a high-upside shot on a goaltender with the ability to be one of the most dominant in the sport.
Nils Höglander
Höglander finished strong but largely struggled to build on his breakout 24-goal season from a year ago. His $3 million-per-season extension will kick in on July 1, and his play-driving profile is largely coveted by teams around the league.
As the Canucks consider their trade options and go hunting for multiple top-six (or top-line) forwards this summer, Höglander could emerge as one of their best bargaining chips to spend.
Victor Mancini
For the first time in over a decade, the Canucks have a genuine surplus of talent on the back end, which is in stark contrast with their significant needs up front.
A tall, swift-skating right-handed defenseman, Mancini has shown some potential since being acquired from the Rangers as part of the Miller trade. If the Canucks are going to address their shortcomings up front, however, they may need to consider dealing from their back-end surplus. Could that include dangling a player like Mancini as part of a larger package to land the scoring winger or top-two-line centre they are desperate for?
Honestly, it’s unlikely at this point
Brock Boeser
In Boeser’s own words, it’s “unlikely at this point” that the long-tenured scoring winger and fan favourite returns to Vancouver next season.
A consistent 25-to-30-goal scorer who has overcome a ton in his life and has a penchant for big, dramatic goals in clutch situations; Boeser is a pending unrestricted free agent. There’s been a material gap between how the Canucks have viewed Boeser’s market price and what the market is likely to demand for Boeser if he makes it to market on July 1.
All of this can change with one contract offer or even one phone call, but at this point, it seems likely Boeser will play NHL games with a franchise other than the Canucks for the first time in his career next fall.
Noah Juulsen
A local product, Juulsen was originally acquired by the Canucks as a salary throw-in to the Olli Juolevi trade and emerged as a penalty-killing specialist, third-pair defender who appeared in over 100 games for the Canucks across parts of four seasons. He was, it must be said, an effective — if limited — role player.
Juulsen hasn’t appeared in a game since February due to injury, and given the overall composition of the blue line going into the offseason, it seems most likely he’ll look to continue his NHL career elsewhere.
(Top photo: Derek Cain / Getty Images)