The Vancouver Canucks are leaning hard into youth, and that shift shows up in the roster math as much as anywhere else. After a busy offseason, the team projects to ice the sixth-youngest roster in the league. That raises the obvious question: which of those young players can be moved freely, and which ones are getting close to waiver territory?
Right now, the Canucks don’t really have a classic waiver trap waiting to spring. Nikita Tolopilo is the clearest name in that discussion, though the market for him would likely be thin.
Still, it only takes one club to make a claim. Beyond that, Vancouver has 16 waiver-eligible players who are essentially locked in to start the season with the team.
The more interesting story is the group that remains exempt for now, and how quickly that can change.
Victor Mancini is the first name to watch. At 6-foot-5, he’s the most likely Canuck to lose his waiver protection first.
He has 15 games left before that status disappears, so if he makes the roster out of camp, he could become waiver-eligible early in the season. He’s expected to battle Luke Schenn for a right-side spot on the third pair, and if he struggles, Vancouver could send him to Abbotsford and keep him there a little longer to hold off that clock.
Mancini also signed a one-way deal, so he’ll earn his full $950,000 base salary whether he’s in Vancouver or Abbotsford.
Elias Pettersson is another player nearing that line. The Swedish defenseman has already appeared in 98 games for the Canucks, and once he reaches 62 more, he’ll need waivers. Last season, D-Petey played 70 games and is projected to land back on the third pair.
Liam Ohgren is in a similar spot, even if his path to this point came in a different way. After arriving from the Minnesota Wild, he ended up playing more NHL games than he may have expected.
The 22-year-old has 97 career games under his belt, including 51 with Vancouver. He becomes waiver-eligible after 63 more NHL games.
Zeev Buium is the one young defender Vancouver would happily see force the issue. The 20-year-old would have to play 80 games next season before he loses his exemption, which would mean a good problem for the Canucks.
A few other young players will stay waiver-exempt regardless of what happens in 2026-27. Tom Willander played 70 games last season and still has 90 more to go before he reaches the 160-game mark.
Jonathan Lekkerimaki is entering his draft-plus-five season, but he has only played 37 NHL games. Even so, this is his final year of exemption.
There are also four more Canucks who have one season left before they need waivers: Kirill Kudryavtsev, Ty Mueller, Ilya Safonov and Chase Wouters.
Kudryavtsev is the name that stands out. He’s been viewed as a seventh-round steal, and the 5-foot-11 defenseman has a steady game that could make him a real roster dark horse. Since he’ll need waivers next season, he’s one to keep a close eye on in 2026-27.
Safonov is another player worth tracking through camp. He was Ryan Johnson’s first official signing after a strong KHL season, and if Filip Chytil isn’t ready, there’s a clear opening for him on the Canucks roster.
Braeden Cootes is the last player in this conversation. If he turns heads again at camp and makes the team, he could inch closer to waiver eligibility. If not, he’s a strong candidate to start the season in Abbotsford, helped by the new NHL CBA rule that allows each team to designate one 19-year-old CHL player to the AHL.
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