NHL Media Issues Big Message to a Trio Of Vancouver Canucks Prospects
A trio of the Vancouver Canucks' best prospects in their system have received a solid ranking in an article released by The Athletic on Monday morning.
Two weeks ago, the National Hockey League's 2025 Entry Draft took place in Los Angeles, California and the Vancouver Canucks did quite well, with this year's class headlined by their first round pick, Braeden Cootes, who they selected 15th overall out of the Western Hockey League.
Now that the dust has settled on the NHL Entry Draft, The Athletic's Scott Wheeler has released an updated version of 'Top 100 drafted NHL prospect rankings' and Vancouver Canucks fans are going to be quite pleased with who they're represented by.
Trio of Vancouver Canucks prospects receive solid rankings by The Athletic
In Scott Wheeler's article on Monday morning, the prospect analyst announced that three members of the Vancouver Canucks organization are included in the summer 2025 edition of his rankings.
The first Vancouver Canuck on Wheeler's list is top defensive prospect Tom Willander, who after weeks of negotiations finally signed his entry-level contract back in May.
Willander had a good season for Boston University in the NCAA and was solid for Sweden at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship and he comes in at 44th on Wheeler's list.
Wheeler believes that Tom Willander will most likely become a solid second pairing defenseman in the National Hockey League, who plays a strong two-way game.
"Willander doesn't have dynamic skill or creativity on the puck, and his offensive-zone instincts are still coming, but he projects safely as an NHL defenseman and could become a two-way transition monster in a second-pairing role.
Because of how high a level he defends and skates at, he rarely has bad games and play normally tilts in his team's favor. And even though the offense doesn't always pop inside the offensive zone, he's a comfortable puck mover and transporter. He's going to have a long career as a No. 3-4." Wheeler said.
Because of how high a level he defends and skates at, he rarely has bad games and play normally tilts in his team's favor. And even though the offense doesn't always pop inside the offensive zone, he's a comfortable puck mover and transporter. He's going to have a long career as a No. 3-4." Wheeler said.
Joining Tom Willander on Scott Wheeler's list is Jonathan Lekkerimaki, who comes in at 50th, while 2025 first round pick Braeden Cootes makes his debut on the list, being ranked at 73rd, ahead of some other well known prospects around the NHL including Conor Geekie, Brayden Yager, Maveric Lamoureux, among others.
Source: The Athletic/Scott Wheeler
Top 100 drafted NHL prospects ranking: Schaefer, Misa, Demidov lead Wheeler's summer 2025 list
Top 100 drafted NHL prospects ranking: Schaefer, Misa, Demidov lead Wheeler's summer 2025 list
Previously on Vancouver Hockey Daily
| POLL | ||
JUILLET 14 | 2287 ANSWERS NHL Media Issues Big Message to a Trio Of Vancouver Canucks Prospects Which Vancouver Canucks forward do you believe has the highest ceiling? | ||
| Tom Willander | 581 | 25.4 % |
| Jonathan Lekkerimaki | 747 | 32.7 % |
| Braeden Cootes | 959 | 41.9 % |
| List of polls | ||