Canucks Reportedly Set to Sign 26-Year-Old Free Agent Who Spent a Year Off the Radar

For the most part, the Vancouver Canucks' offseason is complete as on Tuesday, General Manager Patrik Allvin re-signed the last two players without a contract for next season - goaltender Nikita Tolopilo and defenseman Jett Woo.

However, the team still have some holes they need to fill throughout the organization, including with their American Hockey League affiliate, the Abbotsford Canucks, who are coming off their first-ever Calder Cup and have lost a few players from their championship-winning roster.

Last night, a report came out on social media saying the Vancouver Canucks organization are close to signing a new centerman for their AHL affiliate in Abbotsford.

In a post on social media on Tuesday, Ben Lypka of Abbotsford News revealed that the Abbotsford Canucks are reportedly getting close to announcing a contract for 26-year-old forward Nolan Walker.

Walker, a native of Anchorage, Alaska, doesn't have a ton of experience at the AHL level in his professional hockey career, appearing in just four games for the Cleveland Monsters during the 2023-24 campaign.

Last summer, Walker decided to head overseas where he signed with IK Oskarshamn, a team in the Swedish second division, HockeyAllsvenskan and it ended up being a pretty good fit for both the team and player.

In 51 games, Walker registered 34 points (11 goals, 23 assists) - good for fourth on his team, along with ten penalty minutes and was a plus-seven.

Given what he's done in the ECHL during his first two seasons of professional hockey, along with the production in Sweden last year and the fact the Vancouver Canucks didn't issue qualifying offers to Ty Glover and Tristen Nielsen, there's a good chance we could see Nolan Walker in a bottom-six role with the Abbotsford Canucks to start the 2025-26 campaign.