The last-place Vancouver Canucks are reportedly getting a head start on their draft research.
It appears the Canucks have thrown in the towel on the 2025-26 season. GM Patrik Allvin has already shipped off the face of the franchise in Quinn Hughes, and just recently traded leading goal-scorer Kiefer Sherwood. That is expected to be only the start of Vancouver’s fire sale, and attention is quickly shifting toward the upcoming draft.
The Canucks seem to have cemented their spot as the NHL’s worst team with 31 games left on the schedule. They currently have a dismal 17-29-5 record and just 39 points, far behind the pack, with the St. Louis Blues, Calgary Flames, and Winnipeg Jets tied for second-last with 47 points.
That will set them up to have the best chance at the first-overall pick this June, and management is already talking to potential draft picks.
Elite Prospects’ Cam Robinson reported on Sunday that the Canucks have already had conversations with top prospect Keaton Verhoeff.
“I’m told the Vancouver Canucks, currently sitting 32nd in the league, had a very positive meeting with Verhoeff this week,” Robinson wrote. “Expect [Verhoeff’s] stock to keep trending as teams get more face time.”
On that note, I’m told the Vancouver Canucks, currently sitting 32nd in the league, had a very positive meeting with Verhoeff this week.
Expect his stock to keep trending as teams get more face time. https://t.co/QfgyXdu747
— Cam Robinson (@Hockey_Robinson) January 25, 2026
It feels a bit early for the Canucks to be meeting with draft prospects with the regular season still having three more months left on its schedule, but it can’t hurt. Vancouver is almost certainly going to miss the playoffs, and the upcoming draft represents the most important next step for the franchise as it embarks on a rebuild.
The 17-year-old Verhoeff is among the top-ranked defencemen in the 2026 draft class. He has been tearing up the NCAA this season with the University of North Dakota, notching six goals and 17 points in just 22 games.
Sportsnet’s Sam Consentino has him ranked as the second-best prospect in the draft class, while TSN’s Craig Button has him ranked sixth. He will certainly be on the the Canucks’ radar no matter where they draft within the top-five.
Verhoeff, however, is not the only prospect that Vancouver will keep tabs on. Much has been said about Gavin McKenna, a dynamic Canadian winger, as well as Swedish forward Ivar Stenberg, whose stock has been skyrocketing since an impressive World Juniors showing.
The season is far from over, and there is still plenty of hockey for all these prospects to play before they hear their names called at the draft. Changes to the draft ranking are all but guaranteed between now and then, but it’s never a bad idea to get a jump on the rest of the league.