The NHL’s worst team last season, the Vancouver Canucks enter the 2026-27 campaign hoping to get back on the path to contention.
After finishing with a 25-49-8 record, Vancouver underwent a full restructure of their management when the team let go of general manager Patrik Allvin and first-year head coach Adam Foote.
President of hockey operations Jim Rutherford also stepped down in May, leading the team to eventually promote Ryan Johnson to GM and name franchise legends and Hockey Hall of Famers Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin as co-presidents to succeed Rutherford.
One of Johnson’s first moves was hiring Manny Malhotra as the team’s 23rd head coach in franchise history. Malhotra had previously coached the team’s AHL affiliate, Abbotsford Canucks, for two seasons and led them to a Calder Cup championship in 2024. As a player, Maholtra spent three of his 16 NHL seasons as a Canuck.
On the ice, the Canucks’ core has gone through significant changes since they won the Pacific Division in 2023-24. The team was forced to trade forward J.T. Miller after a rift publicly surfaced with Elias Pettersson during the 2024-25 season. Last year major alterations continued with the Canucks electing to trade superstar defenceman and team captain Quinn Hughes to the Minnesota Wild after he told management that he didn’t intend to re-sign when his contract was set to expire after the 2026-27 campaign.
In return, Vancouver added to their young core by acquiring defenceman Zeev Buium, forwards Liam Ohgren and Marco Rossi, and the Wild’s first-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.
Vancouver entered the draft with the third and 24th overall picks in the first round and selected forwards Caleb Malhotra and Adam Novotny, both out of the Ontario Hockey League.
Caleb played with Brantford Bulldogs last season and finished 12th in league scoring with 29 goals and 84 points in 67 games as a rookie. He helped lead Brantford to the OHL’s best record and captained Team CHL at the CHL USA Prospects Challenge. The 6-foot-2 centre is also the son of new-coach Manny and has committed to play for Boston University in the NCAA next season.
“We didn’t draft Manny’s kid. We drafted Caleb Malhotra, and you can tell how excited I am to have the opportunity to do that,” Johnson told Chris Faber of NHL.com after the draft. “He brings a bit of everything, obviously his progression over the last two years of playing in Chilliwack and playing against older, mature men, and going into the OHL, and the progression from day one to where he is now was watching that the ceiling is extremely high.
“He still has ways to grow and to evolve as a player, but [he’s] a good player, great human being, [and brings] leadership qualities.”
Novotny played in North America for the first time last season, joining the Peterborough Petes out of the CHL Import Draft.
The Czechia native finished second on the Petes in scoring with 34 goals and 65 points in 58 games and signed his entry-level deal with the Canucks on Tuesday.
“Character, compete and a winning mentality, those are three of the things we really appreciate about Adam’s DNA,” said Johnson in a release on Tuesday. “It was a small sample size, but he showed us a lot at our development camp last month in Abbotsford. Besides his strong skating, puck control, and quick release, Adam was relentless in his pursuit of the puck and battled very hard in each drill.
“A coachable and honest player, his leadership qualities were also noticeable, and you could tell right away how committed he is to try to do thigs the right way.”
Outside of the draft, the Canucks focused on bringing in veteran pieces that complement Pettersson, winger Brock Boeser, defenceman Filip Hronek and other young talent the team is trying to develop.
In the days leading up to July 1, the Canucks acquired veteran forward and Vancouver native Brendan Gallagher from the Montreal Canadiens for future considerations. When the free-agent market opened, Vancouver shored up their blueline by signing Jamie Oleksiak to a two-year, $10-million contract and Luke Schenn, who previously spent parts of two seasons with the team, to a one-year, $2.25 million deal.
They also added depth at the wing by signing forward Paul Cotter to a one-year, $2.25 million contract.
In the trade market, the Canucks added draft capital by trading forward Nils Hoglander to the Nashville Predators for a third-round pick in 2029 and defenceman Marcus Pettersson to the New York Rangers for a conditional first-round pick in 2030.
“It was a good day, like I’ve said, I wanted to be really strategic through this whole process,” Johnson told team reporter Lindsey Horsting on July 1. “I felt with the people we’ve added in various ways are player profiles that I was looking at, but also the people and the character that I’ve made a priority, and I think people that at the end of the day want to be here in Vancouver, which was extremely important to me.”
Vancouver Canucks Off-Season Signings
- Jamie Oleksiak: Two Years, $10M - $5M AAV
- Luke Schenn: One Year, $2.25M
- Paul Cotter: One Year, $2.15M
- Adam Novotny: Three Years, $3.225M - $1.075AAV (Entry-Level)
- Trey Fix-Wolansky: One Year, $900K
- Akil Thomas: One Year, $900K
- Matt Stienburg: One Year, $850K
Vancouver Canucks Off-Season Trades
- Traded Nils Hoglander to Nashville Predators for 2029 third-round draft pick
- Acquired Brendan Gallagher from Montreal Canadiens for future considerations
- Traded Marcus Pettersson to New York Rangers for conditional 2030 first-round pick
