Canucks cut 15 players Wednesday; deadline Monday 2 p.m. leaves four more cuts likely

The Story

The Vancouver Canucks have made 15 roster cuts as their training-camp roster is reduced ahead of the Monday deadline to reach the 23-man limit, leaving the team with four additional moves to make and several key position battles still unresolved.

According to the current camp situation, the club’s latest cuts—made on Wednesday and including top prospect Adam Novotný—brought the organization to a total of 30 players on the roster, comprised of 17 forwards, nine defencemen and four goaltenders. However, three of those players are injured, which reduces the active training-camp roster to 27.

The Canucks’ deadline to get down to the 23-man roster limit is Monday at 2 p.m. PCT, giving the team a short four-day window to reduce the number of players on hand. With the club already at 27 active players, the arithmetic points to four further cuts needed if Vancouver makes no selections off waivers during that period.

Forwards are currently the most fluid part of the group, with the Canucks’ most recent practice line combinations featuring Jake DeBrusk with Elias Pettersson and Linus Karlsson, Liam Öhgren alongside Marco Rossi and Brock Boeser, and Drew O’Connor playing with Filip Chytil and Jonathan Lekkerimäki. Other combinations seen in practice include Paul Cotter with Braeden Cootes and Brendan Gallagher, and Arshdeep Bains lined up with Aatu Räty and Matthew Stienburg.

Injuries and absences add another layer to Vancouver’s forward decisions. Max Sasson is listed as absent for family reasons but expected back soon, which would increase the healthy-forward count to 16. At the same time, Akil Thomas is injured, and the team’s forward planning appears to be driven by what the opening-night roster might ultimately carry—likely 13 or 14 forwards depending on the final breakdown among other positions.

One of the central questions is whether Jonathan Lekkerimäki, listed as exempt from waivers, will remain with the NHL group through opening night. Because he is not subject to waivers, the Canucks could send him down without needing to clear other teams, which means his spot can be judged largely on camp performance rather than on waiver leverage. The evaluation in the available information notes that Lekkerimäki’s recent offensive contribution—two assists in Vancouver’s first preseason game—was described as being significantly driven by his linemates, Braeden Cootes and Arshdeep Bains. It also cites struggles in puck battles and instances of mishandling the puck, including a turnover that led to Seattle’s final Kraken goal.

Matthew Stienburg is another forward who could be in the mix for an additional cut. He is 25 and has played only eight NHL games, and the organization’s current assessment frames his signing as serving primarily as AHL depth. Even so, the available account points out that he stood out in the preseason opener, which has likely helped him avoid being among the earliest removed players. Carrying 14 forwards—if the Canucks decide to do so—could also give Stienburg a pathway to stay, though it would require a decision-making step if he ever needs to move: the information notes he would have to clear waivers.

Braeden Cootes is also identified as a plausible option for reassignment to the AHL, even with flashes of strong play in the preseason. The reasoning given is that there is no need to start him in the NHL and that general manager Ryan Johnson has indicated a preference against “yo-yo” movement. That perspective matters most in a season’s early weeks when the Canucks are trying to establish stability while still evaluating fringe players.

Arshdeep Bains is described as having made a strong case to remain on the NHL roster to start the season. The scenario outlined in the available information suggests that even if he doesn’t make the active lineup immediately, he could still be kept as the 13th forward and potentially work from the press box. The roster-management consideration here is that the team may be reluctant to expose him to the waiver process if they believe he could attract interest.

Defence decisions are comparatively straightforward in the current picture, with the most recent pairings featuring Zeev Buium with Filip Hronek, Jamie Oleksiak with Luke Schenn, Elias Pettersson with Tom Willander, and Guillaume Brisebois with Victor Mancini. The only listed injured defenceman is Jack Thompson, meaning most of the group’s availability appears intact.

The available information suggests that the Canucks could avoid further cuts from the defence corps depending on their opening-night plan for how many defencemen they want to dress and how they want to cover injuries. One possibility described is starting the season with eight defencemen, carrying both a left-side and right-side option in the press box. Under that scenario, Vancouver would already be set and would not necessarily need to use additional roster changes to fix the numbers.

If the Canucks instead target seven defencemen, the information raises Victor Mancini as the most likely candidate to be dealt with. It cites struggles in preseason play, particularly around reading the forecheck and breaking the puck out of the defensive zone. Mancini is also noted as exempt from waivers, which would allow the Canucks to send him to the AHL without risking a waiver claim.

Another alternative would be to use the waiver process indirectly rather than moving Mancini first. The available account notes that the Canucks could claim a defenceman off waivers and then send Mancini to Abbotsford. It also mentions a separate possibility—putting Guillaume Brisebois on waivers and moving him to the AHL—but indicates the current lean is to keep the veteran Brisebois.

Goaltending is the other major area where late decisions can still reshape the roster. Four goalies remain at camp: Kevin Lankinen, Nikita Tolopilo, and Chris Driedger (PTO), with Thatcher Demko listed as injured.

With Demko expected to be unavailable to start the season, the available information outlines two main paths. One is signing Driedger as Lankinen’s backup and placing Tolopilo on waivers to send him to Abbotsford. Another path depends on the club’s belief about Tolopilo’s readiness, with the information saying Tolopilo has looked good in training camp and in one preseason game, and that he arguably outplayed Lankinen last season.

Waivers could still affect the goaltender decision beyond the internal options. The available information says the Canucks could also claim another goalie off waivers, noting examples including Leevi Meriläinen of the Ottawa Senators and Dylan Garand of the New York Rangers. If Vancouver views a waiver-wire acquisition as an upgrade over Tolopilo, the club could pursue a claim—though it would also risk losing Tolopilo on waivers in the process.

With Monday’s 2 p.m. PCT deadline for reaching the 23-man roster limit looming, the Canucks’ next steps will likely be defined by whether they choose to lock in fringe players at forward and defence or use waivers and roster reassignment to reshape the opening-night group.

For Vancouver fans, the practical significance is that the team’s regular-season readiness may hinge less on the size of the most recent cuts and more on the final selection of who stays at the margins—particularly at forward, where waiver exemption status and current camp evaluation could determine the last NHL spots. With just four additional cuts potentially required, those decisions can arrive quickly in the final days of camp.

If the Canucks preserve enough flexibility to address injuries and roster fit, their opening lineup may end up reflecting the same mix of performance, waiver risk, and positional coverage that has guided the most recent decisions—especially as the organization narrows from 27 active players down to 23 before the start of the season.