Filip Chytil is set to finally get into the Vancouver Canucks’ 2026-27 lineup Thursday, with the center expected to make his season debut after sitting out the first eight games while recovering from a shoulder injury.
Chytil, 27, worked on a line with Paul Cotter and Brock Boeser during the Canucks’ morning skate ahead of their meeting with the Florida Panthers. His return comes during Vancouver’s six-game road trip, which began with him rejoining the team for practice on Tuesday and will wrap up Saturday against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Canucks have been waiting since Sept. 24, when Chytil left a 2-1 preseason loss to the Edmonton Oilers after colliding with an official and falling awkwardly into the end boards in the offensive zone. That injury sent him to injured reserve to open the regular season.
To create room on the 23-man active roster, Vancouver waived center Aatu Raty on Wednesday.
Chytil’s availability is notable because injuries have repeatedly interrupted his time in Vancouver. Since the Canucks acquired him from the New York Rangers in January of 2025, he has played in just 27 of a possible 121 games over parts of three seasons.
The Czech center was a first-round pick, taken No. 21 overall by the Rangers in the 2017 NHL Draft, and began his NHL career with parts of eight seasons in New York before the Rangers sent him, Victor Mancini and a 2025 first-round pick to Vancouver in the J.T. Miller deal.
In 405 career NHL games with the Rangers and Canucks, Chytil has 80 goals and 173 points. He has also produced eight goals and 13 points in 36 playoff games.
The Canucks enter Thursday’s game at 2-6-0 and are coming off five straight regulation losses. They’ll face a Panthers team sitting at 3-2-2 at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Fla., with Leevi Merilainen and Akira Schmid expected to start in goal for the Canucks and Panthers, respectively.
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Canucks Just Sent A Troubling Message About Aatu Rty
Aatu Rtys season has taken an early detour, with the young Canucks forward moving out of Vancouvers NHL picture for now and heading to Abbotsford. Rty appeared in just four games this season and saw limited ice time before the organization decided to shift him to the AHL, where he will join a center group that already includes Ty Mueller, Braeden Cootes and Chase Wouters.
For Rty, it is a notable step back after spending the entire 2025-26 season in the NHL, and it underscores how crowded the middle of Vancouvers lineup has become. He has been productive in the minors before, piling up 119 points in 169 career AHL games, but this move suggests the Canucks need him to reset and stay ready for another opening when it comes. [Read more 🡒]
Canucks Face A Risky New Test With Chytil Back In The Mix
Filip Chytil is on track to rejoin the Canucks after working his way back from a preseason shoulder injury, and his return arrives at a time when Vancouver is still sorting out its lineup. The move gives the club another look at a player it expected to lean on, but it also comes with the kind of shuffling that tends to ripple beyond one spot in the forward group and into the defensive mix as well.
Aatu Rty being placed on waivers shows how quickly the roster picture can change when a key center is ready to come back, and the Canucks are making other tweaks as they prepare for Florida. The Panthers arrive without Aleksander Barkov and Jacob Markstrom because of injuries, with Akira Schmid expected to start in goal, which adds another layer to a matchup already shaped by Vancouvers latest personnel test. [Read more 🡒]
Canucks Just Made An Aatu Raty Move Fans Will Debate
The Canucks made a notable roster move shortly before facing the Florida Panthers, sending centreman Aatu Rty to the Toronto Maple Leafs in a swap announced by general manager Ryan Johnson. Vancouver is getting two young forwards with professional experience in Jacob Quillan and Brandon Buhr, adding another layer to a deal that shifts a promising depth piece out of the organization.
Rtys move also sends him into a Toronto mix that already includes several former Canucks, which gives the trade a familiar cast for both sides. For Vancouver, the timing alone makes it a conversation starter, with the front office choosing to act at a moment when the lineup was already headed into game-night mode. [Read more 🡒]