In this edition of Vancouver Canucks News & Rumours, Vitali Kravtsov has returned to North America on a one-year deal after spending the last two seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Meanwhile, Elias Pettersson wants “revenge” on his career-worst 2024-25 season. Finally, 2025 draft pick Wilson Bjorck had a strong showing at the World Junior Summer Showcase in Minnesota as he tries to impress the Team Sweden brass and make the roster in December.
Vitali Kravtsov Returns to the Canucks After a 2-Year Hiatus
After two productive seasons in the KHL with Traktor Chelyabinsk, where he scored 45 goals and 92 points in 121 games, Kravtsov has decided to try his luck at the NHL again. The Canucks acquired the 2018 ninth-overall pick on Feb. 23, 2023, from the New York Rangers for William Lockwood and a seventh-round pick in the 2026 Draft, and he only appeared in 16 games with the Canucks before jetting off to Russia for the 2023-24 season. He had a career-high 27 goals and 58 points last season and another six goals in the playoffs as his team made it to the Gagarin Cup Final, but lost to Lokomotiv Yaroslavl in five games.
Now 25 years old with another two seasons of professional hockey under his belt, the Canucks are hoping Kravtsov has refined his game enough to become an impact player in the NHL. He has shown flashes of it in his 64 games with the Rangers and Canucks, but has never really hit his stride. He has also already tried the “reset” of moving back to Russia and returning to the NHL when he held out as a restricted free agent (RFA) with the Rangers in 2021-22 and returned in 2022-23. But that resulted in only three goals and six points in 28 games and a subsequent trade to the Canucks.
Related: What Are the Canucks Really Doing with the Vitali Kravtsov Signing?
The one-year, two-way contract shows Kravtsov is willing to play in the American Hockey League (AHL), so that’s already a shift from his time with the Rangers. Back then, it was either the NHL or back to Russia. He will be subject to waivers if he doesn’t make the opening night roster, but would probably clear and bolster an Abbotsford Canucks team that has lost a lot of key components from their Calder Cup run over the offseason. All in all, the signing is a low-risk and potentially high-reward move. Who knows, the Canucks might have another Andrei Kuzmenko on their hands.
Elias Pettersson Wants “Revenge” On His Career-Worst Season
Canucks fans have been anxiously awaiting updates on Pettersson’s offseason training and preparation ahead of the 2025-26 season. They haven’t gotten much since his exit interview at Rogers Arena, but on Wednesday (Aug. 6), they got what they wanted in the form of an interview posted to NHL.com by Peter Ekholm. The biggest takeaway was his passion to return to the player he was before his career-worst season (not just in the NHL, but anywhere), where he put up only 15 goals and 45 points.
“I know what I’m capable of…Actually, I haven’t thought about it, but for myself it’s revenge. I’m not happy with last season.”
Pettersson also said he has put on some muscle and has been able to train properly this offseason without having to rehab an injury. “I’ve been healthy and have been able to practice at full speed,” Pettersson said. “Right now I don’t have any injuries that kept me off workouts. But obviously last season was tough. With that said, the lessons are learned. I’m just really hungry to have a good season.”
Judging by the press conference video and promo images from Sweden’s Olympic training camp this week, Pettersson has done just that, looking broader in the shoulders and bigger overall. It seems like he’s done a lot of work on his fitness and conditioning in the offseason to bounce back and prove to the naysayers that the Pettersson of 2018-19 to February 2024 isn’t a thing of the past.
The Canucks and their fans hope that’s the case, because right now, Pettersson is their de facto number-one centre and will be counted on to provide the bulk of the offence. We all know what he can do with his shiftiness, accurate wrist shot and lethal one-timer on the power play. Now the question will be if his work in the offseason will pay off with all three coming together more often this season. If it does, and fans see more of the 102-point Pettersson from 2022-23 and not the disappearing act of 2024-25, it will be a game-changer for not just Pettersson but the entire Canucks roster.
Wilson Bjorck Shines at 2025 World Junior Summer Showcase
The 2025 World Junior Summer Showcase wrapped up last weekend, and two Canucks prospects took part in the festivities. While Braeden Cootes wasn’t a big factor due to an injury, fifth-round pick Wilson Bjorck stood out for Team Sweden throughout the tournament. He finished with a goal and five assists for six points, showcasing his playmaking and strong two-way game. With that performance, he certainly made a case to be on Sweden’s final roster for the 2026 World Juniors in December.
Bjorck will be trying to impress the brass even more at the beginning of the season as a freshman at Colorado College, competing against more intense competition than he faced in Sweden’s junior leagues. Catching their eyes at the Summer Showcase was just the beginning; now the real work begins.
Canucks’ Training Camp Is Just Around the Corner
Don’t look now, but we are only a few short weeks away from Canucks training camp, which will be held in Penticton Sept. 18-21. The prospects will also be in action against the Seattle Kraken on Sept. 13 for their inaugural Prospects Showcase. This year, it will be at the Angel of Winds Arena, home of the Everett Silvertips, while next year it will shift to Abbotsford Centre, the home of the Abbotsford Canucks. This will be in place of the Young Stars Classic, which is usually held at the South Okanagan Events Centre around this time. Rosters have yet to be announced, but I would expect names like Cootes, Tom Willander, Jonathan Lekkerimaki, and Alexei Medvedev to be part of it.
