The Canucks used the start of the second round to add size, skill and a little bit of intrigue to their future down the middle, and Brooks Rogowski is the kind of prospect who makes that bet interesting.
Ranked No. 6 in CanucksArmy’s summer prospect list, Rogowski arrives as a 6’7″, 235-pound right-shot centre drafted 33rd overall in 2026 out of the Oshawa Generals. He’s 18, and while the raw numbers won’t make anyone gasp, the profile is hard to ignore.
Last season in Oshawa, Rogowski put up 15 goals and 27 assists for 42 points in 46 games. He also missed 22 games, yet still finished fourth on a Generals team that struggled badly, going 19-45-4 and ending the year second last in goals for. Put in that context, the production looks a lot sturdier than it does on the surface.
What jumps out first is obvious: the frame. But Rogowski is more than just a giant body at centre.
He’s already a fluid skater for a player his size, even if the first step still needs work and a little more explosion. Once he gets moving, though, he can cover ice fast with that long stride.
He’s also got real puck skill. Rogowski isn’t a high-wire, highlight-reel stickhandler, but he can make plays in traffic and beat defenders one-on-one. Offensively, he handled a larger role for Oshawa this season than he did the year before, and he showed he can generate offense with his hockey sense, skill and a heavy shot.
There’s responsibility on the other side of the puck, too. Rogowski uses his reach well to disrupt plays and can land heavy hits, though the next step is becoming more consistently physical and learning to use his body with more purpose. That part of his game still needs polish before he gets anywhere near the pro level.
That’s the theme with Rogowski: a lot to like, but plenty still unfinished. He’s a very raw prospect, and that’s partly because hockey wasn’t always his only focus.
Growing up, he wanted to play baseball and competed in both sports seriously until he was drafted by the Generals in the OHL draft. With more attention now on hockey, there’s reason to think the runway for growth is real.
He’ll get another big chance to keep building next season back in Oshawa, where his role should expand again in all areas. After that, he’s committed to Michigan State University for the 2027-28 season.
As for the long view, the ceiling here is a middle-six NHL centre. He’s not being projected as the next Tage Thompson, and the current game just doesn’t support that kind of leap. But there’s enough offense in the package to imagine a strong third-line two-way centre who can chip in scoring.
The floor is more modest: an average fourth-line centre or 13th forward. Even so, the size and skating give him a strong chance to play NHL games. The question is how much the rest of his game grows from here.
A realistic ETA for Rogowski sits in the three-to-four-year range. He’s headed back to Oshawa, then on to Michigan State, and likely needs a couple of seasons there before making the jump to pro hockey.
In Other News...
Shane Wright Could Be Caught In Vancouvers Biggest Roster Decision
The Canucks are still staring at one of their bigger roster questions, and it has now spilled into the rumor mill around Seattle Kraken centre Shane Wright. Vancouvers interest has added another layer to an offseason conversation that already centers on whether the club should keep leaning on its established core or make a harder pivot toward younger talent.
Elias Pettersson remains the name that gives the discussion its weight, but there is no sign a Pettersson-for-Wright move is close. For now, the Canucks are still sorting through the risk and reward on both sides of the equation, with any deal of that size carrying major implications for how the roster is built and how quickly the next wave of players is expected to matter. [Read more 🡒]
Canucks Lineup Puzzle Puts Manny Malhotra Under Early Pressure
The Canucks are already facing an intriguing preseason puzzle as the 2026-27 opener comes into view, with new arrivals Paul Cotter, Brendan Gallagher, Jamie Oleksiak and Luke Schenn all in the mix for roles that could reshape the lineup. Under head coach Manny Malhotra, the early question is less about talent than fit, because Vancouver will have to sort out how the pieces work together after spending the offseason retooling around a roster that still leans on familiar core names.
Elias Pettersson, Marco Rossi and Aatu Rty all figure into the conversation, and their previous-season showings only sharpen the debate over how the forward groups should be arranged. The blue line has its own decisions to make as well, with Oleksiak and Schenn adding size and experience to a defense corps that will need the right pairings to stabilize things from the start. For Malhotra, the challenge is clear: settle the combinations early enough that the Canucks can open the season with some clarity instead of spending October searching for chemistry. [Read more 🡒]
Canucks July Moves Show How This Rebuild Is Really Taking Shape
July has given a clearer picture of how the Canucks want this next phase to look, and it has not been built around splashy one-off headlines so much as a steady string of moves that touch nearly every layer of the organization. Vancouver brought in Luke Schenn, Jamie Oleksiak and Paul Cotter, sent Marcus Pettersson to the New York Rangers for a 2030 first-round draft pick, and finished filling out both its NHL and AHL coaching staffs.
The month also showed how much the club is trying to tighten the links between the rink, the front office and the future. Alex Edler has been added as a player development coach, Cammi Granato has been reassigned within hockey operations, the 2026-27 schedule is already out, training camp is headed back to Penticton and the team has signed a memorandum of understanding with the City of Vancouver to explore a practice facility at Britannia Community Centre. Put together, those pieces suggest a rebuild that is being shaped as much by structure and planning as by the next roster decision still to come. [Read more 🡒]