Canucks’ Kirill Kudryavtsev aims for an NHL role after injury return, setting up a camp roster decision

The Story

Kirill Kudryavtsev is back on the ice after a difficult two-month injury absence, and the Vancouver Canucks now face a scenario they may not be able to treat as routine depth evaluation. The 22-year-old defenseman, acquired by Vancouver in the 2022 NHL Draft and now in his fourth pro season development path, has made his immediate objective clear: he wants a full-time NHL job.

Kudryavtsev said the “main goal is just to make the team,” adding that the timing does not matter to him so long as he secures a spot on Vancouver’s roster, whether that opportunity comes at the start of the season or later. In practical terms for camp, that stance frames the rest of his audition not as a test of whether he can play at a higher level, but as an argument that he already belongs there.

Vancouver drafted Kudryavtsev 208th overall in 2022. Since then, his development has included both AHL success and limited NHL experience that suggests he can adapt to different levels quickly. He has already won a Calder Cup, established himself as one of Abbotsford’s most trusted defensemen, and has appeared in five NHL games.

His most recent step up to the NHL has also provided tangible evidence of NHL readiness, albeit in a small sample. In the season in which he recorded an assist in each of his first two NHL games, he finished with three appearances for Vancouver. The organization’s coaching staff gave him meaningful minutes in those games, and he has been characterized as smart and coachable and capable of absorbing information quickly—traits that often matter most when roster openings are limited.

That roster context is important because Kudryavtsev’s competition is not with a single player group but with a full defensive depth chart that includes Filip Hronek, Tom Willander, Zeev Buium, Elias Pettersson, Jamie Oleksiak and Luke Schenn. The list underscores that, for Kudryavtsev, the most realistic early path is not a guaranteed top-four role, but a depth role where he can earn ice time through reliability and adaptability.

One of the reasons training camp for the Canucks may be more complicated than it looks is that Kudryavtsev’s waiver exemption gives Vancouver flexibility. If his performance does not land him in the NHL mix, the team can send him back to Abbotsford without the risk of losing him on waivers. However, that ease only holds if the club can justify the decision on development grounds; it becomes harder if his camp results push him into the category of players the Canucks believe they need on the roster immediately.

Last season’s AHL workload is part of the case for why Vancouver might feel that pressure. Kudryavtsev played 44 games for Abbotsford and recorded 20 points, including time on both the power play and the penalty kill. The prior season’s Calder Cup involvement also points to experience in high-leverage, playoff-style conditions that can translate into confidence and composure at the professional level.

The injury return itself adds another layer to the evaluation. Kudryavtsev’s ankle injury cost him roughly two months and included a stretch of 17 games missed. According to his account of the experience, it was extremely difficult not only because he was sidelined but because he had to watch teammates compete while he rehabilitated.

Instead of viewing that interruption purely as lost development time, Kudryavtsev used the downtime to identify specific areas of his game that needed improvement, including his shot and overall conditioning. That emphasis matters because it suggests he is arriving at camp with an intent to address elements that translate directly into NHL coaching decisions—off-ice readiness, game-shape durability, and the ability to contribute in ways coaches can see quickly on the ice.

Scouting notes included in the discussion around his game also point to a profile that fits modern NHL defensive responsibilities. Kudryavtsev is described as a strong skater who moves the puck well, with an active stick that can disrupt plays. Listed at 5-foot-11, he has also been noted for being able to play in different situations, a factor that can make a player more likely to earn trust in both even-strength and special-teams roles.

A potential advantage for Kudryavtsev in Vancouver’s camp setup is that he is not entirely new to the coaching staff’s expectations. Manny Malhotra, now the Canucks’ head coach, spent considerable time coaching Kudryavtsev in Abbotsford before taking over behind the Vancouver bench. Kudryavtsev has described Malhotra as someone who helped him develop both his defensive and offensive game, meaning Vancouver’s coaching staff may have a clearer view of what Kudryavtsev can be ready to do at the NHL pace when fully healthy.

That familiarity is paired with recent indications that he has been arriving in form. He is described as having come into camp in strong condition, and he led Vancouver in ice time during the team’s first preseason game. For a depth candidate, time on ice in early preseason action often becomes a proxy for how coaches view day-to-day readiness and how quickly a player is learning and executing their role.

For Vancouver, the significance of Kudryavtsev’s return is not only whether he can meet the performance threshold to stay in the NHL, but whether doing so changes the team’s broader defensive rotation. If the Canucks decide they want him at the NHL level, it creates a straightforward decision point: keep a player who has proven he can handle responsibility in the AHL and has already tasted NHL minutes—or return him to Abbotsford with the knowledge he may be ready for more. For a franchise that has multiple young players vying for roles, the appearance of an additional, ready-from-injury option at the blue line could make camp decisions unusually consequential for the organization’s season plans.

In the short term, Kudryavtsev’s camp opportunity is a chance to convert his goals into roster reality, using the limited opening created by training camp and early preseason evaluation. If he continues to look like a player who can earn trust quickly, Vancouver’s defensive depth chart could become a genuine roster “decision” rather than a straightforward case of sending a promising prospect to further AHL seasoning. The Canucks would then be dealing with an outcome they can control only through performance: whether they already have the depth they need at the NHL level or whether they can justify waiting while Kudryavtsev continues to develop elsewhere.