Canucks 2026-27 Roster Projection 1.0: Gallagher, Cotter, Oleksiak & Schenn Added – The Hockey Writers – Vancouver Canucks

The Vancouver Canucks were busy on July 1, not only in the free agent market, but in the trade market, too. In total, they signed five players: Paul Cotter, Jamie Oleksiak, Luke Schenn, Trey Fix-Wolansky, and Akil Thomas. They also traded Marcus Pettersson to their favourite trade partner, the New York Rangers, for a 2030 conditional first-round pick.

Ryan Johnson’s first trades as Canucks general manager weren’t done on July 1, however, as he dealt Nils Hoglander to the Nashville Predators and acquired Brendan Gallagher from the Montreal Canadiens on June 29. His latest signing came on July 2 in the form of 25-year-old Matthew Stienburg, who spent last season in the Colorado Avalanche organization.

So, after a week of activity through the NHL Draft, trades and signings, the Canucks have added 16 players to their pipeline. Let’s take a look at how the NHL players could fit into the lineup with our first roster projection of the offseason.

Forwards

The Canucks haven’t added a lot to their forward group that will make the opening night roster, with Gallagher and Cotter being the only ones written in pen. They have had a lot of subtractions, though, with Hoglander getting traded, and Teddy Blueger and Curtis Douglas signing with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Seattle Kraken, respectively. That means they should have quite a few openings for young players like Jonathan Lekkerimaki, Aatu Raty, Braeden Cootes, Linus Karlsson, Max Sasson, and Ty Mueller to make their mark on the lineup.

There will likely be more changes to this current iteration, as one or more of Jake DeBrusk, Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser, Drew O’Connor, and Filip Chytil could (and probably should) be on the move before we drop the puck at the end of September. But, having said that, let’s take a look at how the forward group shakes out as it looks right now.

• Jake DeBrusk – Elias Pettersson – Brendan Gallagher
• Liam Ohgren – Marco Rossi – Brock Boeser
• Filip Chytil – Aatu Räty – Jonathan Lekkerimäki
• Drew O’Connor – Paul Cotter – Linus Karlsson
• Braeden Cootes/Max Sasson

The top line has the familiar duo of DeBrusk and Pettersson, but this time they are joined by the worker bee of Gallagher, who should be able to drag them into the fight. With his work ethic, passion, and intensity every shift, there is no excuse for DeBrusk and Pettersson not to work hard. If I were new head coach Manny Malhotra, I would try Gallagher with at least Pettersson to see if he can rub off on him.

The second line is also familiar, and is one I would like to see right away, considering how they looked at the end of the season. Ohgren, Rossi, and Boeser, nicknamed the “Bro Line,” were dangerous almost every shift they were out there together, leading Boeser to return to the elite finisher he was when he scored 40 goals in 2023-24. They will have to get better defensively if they want to stay together, though. According to Natural Stat Trick, they were horrible in that department, outchanced 71-47 (31-14 high-danger) and outscored 10-6 at five-on-five.

In my projection, I have Chytil, Raty and Lekkerimaki on the third line. Chytil moves to the wing because Raty obviously has to play centre, considering his faceoff prowess (60.5 percent last season). I also want to see Raty get more of an opportunity in the lineup this season and be groomed as a potential shutdown centre in the vein of his head coach. His confidence should also be at an all-time high after a stellar performance in the World Championship, where he scored four goals and seven points in 10 games en route to a gold medal.

As for Lekkerimaki, I am hoping he can stay healthy and elevate himself into the top six at some point. Having said that, this third-line alignment has the potential to be a very effective 2B line. Lekkerimaki has played with Raty in the American Hockey League (AHL) in the past, and Chytil has shown – when healthy – that he can drive a line with his speed and transition game.

In this iteration, the fourth line is centred by Cotter, who is coming off a nine-goal season with the New Jersey Devils. He essentially replaces Blueger; he’s just not as good defensively. He’s a career minus-53 in the plus/minus column, and his Corsi for percentage is only 46.4 over 296 games. He hasn’t taken a lot of faceoffs in his career, but he’s a decent 50.7 percent. The one thing he will bring is speed and physicality, logging 192 hits last season and 855 in his career. He was also in the 92nd percentile when it came to 22-plus mph bursts and the 88th percentile for max skating speed at 23.12 mph.

O’Connor and Karlsson join Cotter, with O’Connor also bringing the speed (94th percentile with 14 22-plus mph bursts) and Karlsson adding exceptional board play and net-front presence. O’Connor and Karlsson also scored 17 and 15 goals, respectively, last season, so this line could be a sneaky source of offence as well.

This lineup is notably missing Cootes and Sasson. Barring more trades, Cootes will have to force Malhotra’s hand to land on the opening night roster. He will get every opportunity to do so in training camp and the abbreviated preseason, but I think he ultimately ends up in Abbotsford. With the new rule allowing one 19-year-old first-round pick to play in the AHL this season, it’s better for him to get 20-plus minutes in all situations rather than limited ice time in the bottom six.

As for Sasson, after his breakout 13-goal season and, of course, familiarity with Malhotra, he could make his way into the bottom-six and force Lekkerimaki back to the AHL. But I don’t expect this to be the final roster heading into September. As I said earlier, more trades are likely coming involving a couple veterans, thus clearing a bit of the logjam up front.

Defencemen

Moving to the defence, this is where most of the changes have happened so far. Pettersson is now with the Rangers, Pierre-Olivier Joseph and Derek Forbort are free agents, and Oleksiak and Schenn were signed on July 1.

• Zeev Buium – Filip Hronek
• Jamie Oleksiak – Tom Willander
• Elias Pettersson – Luke Schenn
• Victor Mancini

The first pairing with Buium and Hronek is likely in pen; Buium saw most of his ice time alongside Hronek, with the duo logging 373:44 at five-on-five last season.

The changes happen when we get down to the final two pairings. Oleksiak, given his history of playing 18-20 minutes a night, will probably replace Pettersson as Willander’s wingman. Pettersson played a lot with the rookie defenceman last season, logging a gaudy 612:43 at five-on-five. Oleksiak, clocking in at 6-foot-7, 252 pounds, will cast a much longer shadow and might even give Willander a bit more freedom offensively.

The final pairing of Pettersson and Schenn could be an underrated shutdown unit. Pettersson took major strides in his first full season in the NHL and showed the potential of becoming a defender a lot like Schenn. He hits, blocks shots, and has a lot of snarl in his game. He finished last season with 85 blocked shots and 136 hits, numbers very similar to Schenn’s, who had 57 and 140, respectively. In many ways, he will be the perfect mentor for him this season.

Mancini rounds out the defence as the seventh defender, who will most likely sub in for Schenn throughout the season. Of course, injuries are inevitable, so he might get a lot more games than you think. He is a big part of the future, so I hope they find a way to get him in the lineup regularly.

Goaltenders

The goaltending won’t change from last season with Thatcher Demko and Kevin Lankinen signed to long-term contracts and Demko’s extension having kicked in on July 1.

• Thatcher Demko
• Kevin Lankinen
• Nikita Tolopilo

The biggest question, similar to last season and the season before, is Demko’s health. He is also now signed to a three-year, $8.5 million average annual value (AAV) contract, with a full no-move clause. The timeline of the rebuild is at least five years, which means he will likely be part of the roster for the entirety of the deal, unless the Canucks ask him to waive his no-move clause.

With Demko’s comments about wanting to stay in Vancouver, the answer will likely be a firm “no”, placing Ryan Johnson in a very precarious position. He won’t want to buy him out, and given his feelings about veterans wanting to be part of the process, he probably won’t ask him to waive it anyway. So, barring Demko (or Johnson) changing his tune, I expect him to be part of the crease for the foreseeable future.

Lankinen is also signed for the next four years, but his no-move changes to a 15-team no-trade list on July 1, 2027. The Canucks might be able to convince him to waive around the trade deadline, but unless he has a better season, the $4.5 million AAV and remaining term will likely prevent a deal from happening.

Finally, there’s Tolopilo, who is now in the same situation as Arturs Silovs, needing to clear waivers to be sent to the AHL. He started a career-high 18 games last season and was decent for a team that continuously bled scoring chances. He finished with a 3.61 goals-against average (GAA) and .881 save percentage (SV%), alongside a 6-11-2 record. He’s only 26 years old, so I would expect him not to clear waivers. Unless the Canucks are okay with holding three goaltenders on their roster, he will likely be traded for a draft pick or another goalie who is still waiver-exempt.

Offseason Is Young, a Lot Can Still Happen

So far, Johnson and the Sedins have gotten the rebuild off to a good start. They have shown they aren’t afraid to trade veterans (Pettersson and Hoglander) for draft picks, and they have used free agency like a rebuilding team should – signing veterans to short-term contracts that can be flipped for assets at the deadline. But there’s a lot that can (and should) be done in the coming months.

While we probably won’t see any more major signings in free agency, I expect DeBrusk or Pettersson to be traded sometime in the next few weeks. Boeser’s name has been out there too, but he’s the least likely of the three. DeBrusk’s name has quieted down a bit lately, but Pettersson continues to drive the rumour mill. Farhan Lalji reported on Thursday (July 2) that the Los Angeles Kings kicked tires on the possibility of acquiring him, but apparently weren’t offering enough in return. They only have $1.8 million in cap space, though, which makes a deal much more difficult to do.

In any case, Pettersson’s name is out there, along with several other veterans. If any of those trades happen, the next roster projection will look a lot different. Until then, enjoy the summer!