The Vancouver Canucks placed six prospects on The Athletic’s annual top 100 drafted NHL prospects list, with 2026 third-overall pick Caleb Malhotra leading the way at No. 8.
Scott Wheeler’s summer ranking, published Tuesday, put Malhotra in Tier 2 and singled out the young center’s all-around game. Wheeler described him as “a BU commit and the son of Vancouver Canucks head coach and former NHLer Manny Malhotra,” and praised the immediate impact he made with a deep Bulldogs team last season.
Wheeler’s evaluation leaned heavily on Malhotra’s maturity and detail. He wrote that Malhotra is “already a very mature player,” noting his pace, skating, poise and ability to work his way out of trouble with the puck.
Wheeler also pointed to his hands, his growing individual skill, his willingness to get to the front of the net and the physical development still ahead of him. The one area that still needs work, according to Wheeler, is his frame and shot strength, but he still projects him as “a winning top-six center.”
The next Canuck on the list is Liam Öhgren, who checks in at No. 58 in Tier 4. The 22-year-old Swedish winger was originally taken 19th overall by the Minnesota Wild in 2022 before Vancouver acquired him as part of the Quinn Hughes trade last December. He finished last season with eight goals and 10 assists in 51 games for the Canucks.
Vancouver’s cluster in Tier 4 continues with three more first-round picks: Adam Novotný at No. 63, Jonathan Lekkerimäki at No. 71 and Tom Willander at No.
- Novotný was selected 24th overall by the Canucks this year.
Lekkerimäki went 15th overall in 2022, while Willander was taken 11th in 2023.
Willander played 70 games in Vancouver this past season and wrapped up his rookie year with five goals and 16 assists. Lekkerimäki appeared in 13 games for the Canucks and posted two goals and one assist.
Braeden Cootes rounds out Vancouver’s group at No. 95 in Tier 6. The 19-year-old centreman, selected 15th overall in 2025, scored 24 goals and finished with 63 points in 45 WHL games this season.
Wheeler’s writeup on Cootes emphasized the same themes that have followed him through his draft year: work, structure and reliability. He called him “a well-liked, well-rounded, all situations center and leader,” praised his skating and detail, and noted that he has earned coaches’ trust as a penalty killer and five-on-five driver. Wheeler also highlighted Cootes’ ability to get to the slot, his bumper-play work on the power play and his NHL wrister and release.
At the same time, Wheeler said he has questions about whether Cootes has enough skill to become a top-six player, though he still sees him as a top-nine NHLer. He added that Cootes’ U18s “sold me a little more on his skill,” while also noting that the World Juniors showed he can have trouble making an offensive impact against top competition. Even so, Wheeler concluded that Cootes’ mix of work ethic, smarts, competitiveness and reliability should lead to “a long career in the league.”
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