Welcome to the latest edition of the Vancouver Canucks Stock Market, a series dedicated to analyzing the recent performance of all things related to the Canucks, including players, coaches, management, prospects, and more.
The Canucks will have some tough decisions to make over the next few days as they try to whittle down their training camp roster to something more manageable. The young guns haven’t made it easy on them, with their last three first-round picks performing admirably throughout the preseason. While it’s a good problem to have, it doesn’t make the decisions any easier, especially when other prospects like Elias Pettersson, Victor Mancini, Arshdeep Bains, Linus Karlsson, Max Sasson, and Aatu Raty have not played themselves out of the mix.
Related: Canucks’ Preseason Blueprint for Success Includes Depth and Demk
With that, let’s focus this stock market report on some bubble players who are hoping to see their name on the opening night roster before the Canucks’ first game on Oct. 9.
Up – Braeden Cootes
What more can you say about Braeden Cootes at this point? He’s done nothing but impress since the preseason began, looking more like 25 years old rather than the youthful 18 that is on his driver’s license. While we should pump the brakes on his stardom, he hasn’t looked overwhelmed on NHL ice and has even made an impact on the scoreboard with two goals and three points so far. Yes, those two goals went in off him and Mattias Ekholm’s skate, respectively, but they all count in the end. He’s garnered praise from his NHL teammates and coaching staff at every turn, as they’ve pointed out his high-end hockey IQ, grit and work ethic. Veteran Kiefer Sherwood even went as far as predicting he will become a stud when he’s in his prime.
“I mean, 18. . . the kid’s going to be a stud…He’s already composed and playing the right way, and he’s got some grit to his game, so it’s going to be exciting to see him continue putting in the work.”
The debate will rage on whether it’s the right move for the organization – and for Cootes – to make the team at 18. But you can’t deny that he deserves it with his performance in the preseason so far. Whether he’s playing with veterans like Sherwood and Evander Kane or other first-rounders like Jonathan Lekkerimaki, he’s not looked out of place. What’s the harm in giving him nine games to start the season? It definitely doesn’t look like he would be a detriment to the lineup. In fact, he might make the Canucks a better team.
Up – Jonathan Lekkerimaki
Lekkerimaki has really stepped up over the last two preseason games and looks capable of anchoring a winger spot in the top-nine, possibly even the top-six. Over the last two games, he has a goal and an assist, including a surprising team-high six hits against the Seattle Kraken on Friday. That’s significant, considering Sherwood, the runaway leader for hits last season, was in the lineup.
Related: Braeden Cootes Is Forcing His Way Into the Canucks’ Future
But in the last game against the Edmonton Oilers, Lekkerimaki showcased more of what he’s known for, his shot, particularly his one-timer. With the Canucks down 3-1 and the goaltender pulled, he took a brilliant cross-ice pass from Filip Chytil and whipped a perfect one-timer past Stuart Skinner to pull his team within one. It was on and off his stick in a hurry, and was a tantalizing reminder of why he was selected so high in the 2022 Draft – and why he will score 30 goals in the NHL one day.
Now that Nils Hoglander is out 8-10 weeks and won’t be returning until late November at the earliest, Lekkerimaki has a massive opportunity in front of him. He has shown some chemistry with Chytil, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see him start on the second line with him and Kane. His elite shot and one-timer could make a huge difference with that duo, and push the versatile Conor Garland – assuming he’s healthy to start the season – down to the third line, making the Canucks’ lineup that much more dangerous.
Down – Vitali Kravtsov
Maybe it was wishful thinking, but I honestly thought Vitali Kravtsov would stand out a bit more than he has so far. After two solid seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), the hope was that he would come into training camp and rise above the prospects and bubble players. Unfortunately, to this point, he has been outplayed by the likes of the aforementioned Cootes and Lekkerimaki, and is legitimately in danger of being placed on waivers in a few days. I would even say Sasson, Karlsson and Bains have been more impactful than him, and that’s not a good sign for a player that likely needs to be in the top-nine to be effective.
Related: Canucks 2025-26 Player Previews: Vitali Kravtsov
The good thing is, with his average performance, Kravtsov will probably clear waivers and get sent to Abbotsford, where he should get prime minutes in the top-six. Hopefully, he will use that time wisely and prove to the coaching staff that he should be the first call-up when injuries inevitably strike in Vancouver.
Up – Elias Pettersson
We might actually see more youth on the blue line than we think this season. There has been talk that head coach Adam Foote will be managing Tyler Myers and Derek Forbort’s minutes this season, which could mean more opportunities for Pettersson to get into the lineup. He hasn’t done anything to deserve to be sent to the minors, as he’s looked just as poised as last season, playing his offside no less. He’s been physical, mobile and most of all, quiet back there, proving more and more that he has the future of a Mattias Ohlund when he hits his prime. Right now, I’m not sure that you can keep him off this team, considering his versatility and the fact that he can kill penalties.
Up – Victor Mancini
Mancini has been the most impressive of the young defencemen so far. With two goals in the preseason already, he has made his presence felt with not only his mobility and offensive instincts, but his physicality as well. As I said in his player preview, he is probably the frontrunner in the battle for a spot on the opening night roster. He might even enter the top four alongside Marcus Pettersson at some point, given the aforementioned load management the coaching staff might employ this season.
Final Tuneups This Week
The Canucks’ preseason wraps up this week with games against the Calgary Flames tonight (Oct. 1) and the Oilers on Friday (Oct. 3). Both will feature near-opening-night lineups with line combinations we will likely see on Oct. 9 when they face the Flames for keeps. We will see how the stock market fluctuates over the next few days as the final cuts get made, and the puck gets closer and closer to being dropped at Rogers Arena for the first game of the season.
