{"id":640660,"date":"2026-08-11T02:24:44","date_gmt":"2026-08-11T02:24:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/640660\/"},"modified":"2026-08-11T02:24:44","modified_gmt":"2026-08-11T02:24:44","slug":"4-nhl-players-comparable-to-canucks-braeden-cootes-the-hockey-writers-vancouver-canucks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/640660\/","title":{"rendered":"4 NHL Players Comparable to Canucks’ Braeden Cootes – The Hockey Writers – Vancouver Canucks"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s a good chance that Canucks fans will be getting to see quite a bit of Braeden Cootes this season. The 2025 15th-overall pick had a brief stint with the team to start last season, but was re-assigned to the Western Hockey League, where he split the season between the Seattle Thunderbirds and Prince Albert Raiders. Because he\u2019s expected to have a major role with the team in the near future and says he feels ready to make the team<\/a>, many fans may be wondering what they\u2019re getting from Cootes.<\/p>\n

\"BraedenBraeden Cootes, Vancouver Canucks (Bob Frid-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

Cootes is known to be more of a defensively sound player than a pure offensive producer. With that said, he\u2019s been lauded for his high-energy game, making things happen all over the ice through hustle and a great ability to read the play. These kinds of players may not be franchise cornerstones, but they are often crucial to Stanley Cup-winning teams. Here are four players who gave their teams what Cootes may bring to the Canucks.<\/p>\n

Phillip Danault<\/p>\n

Perhaps the most fitting comparable for Cootes is Montreal\u2019s Phillip Danault<\/a>. Both players are known for having relentless motors and high hockey IQs, with strong fundamentals that help compensate for their lack of electric straight-line speed. Danault has largely made a career out of being a dependable middle-six center who, in his prime, was able to slot in on a top line if it was needed.<\/p>\n

If you look at how Danault was discussed as a prospect, you will see a lot of similarities with Cootes. His QMJHL coach described him as a \u201ctremendous worker,\u201d<\/a> saying that \u201che has the admiration of every single one of his teammates just on how hard he works.\u201d This mirrors the scouting reports of Cootes, as in The Hockey Writers\u2019<\/a> draft season report on him<\/a>, writer Dayton Reimer said, \u201cCootes\u2019 work ethic is infectious. He has an unrelenting motor and no matter the score, he never stops pursuing the puck and pushing the play.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Danault in 2026 isn\u2019t much of a scorer, he wasn\u2019t bad offensively at the peak of his powers at all. His best scoring marks were 25 goals and 54 points, with these being achieved in his first couple of seasons with the Los Angeles Kings.\u00a0You can argue that Cootes has a higher ceiling than Danault, as his offensive skillset could allow him to outscore the Canadiens centre. However, if the Canucks got a player of Danault\u2019s caliber out of the 15th overall pick in 2025, there certainly wouldn\u2019t be any complaints.<\/p>\n

Anthony Cirelli<\/p>\n

Another excellent defensive center Cootes could be on the road to becoming similar to is Anthony Cirelli<\/a> of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Cirelli was kind of an unsung hero for the Bolts for their back-to-back Stanley Cup championships at the beginning of the decade. He reached another gear following these wins, becoming a regular 20-goal scorer and a two-time Frank J. Selke Trophy finalist<\/a>. While not flashy, Cirelli is a coach\u2019s dream, as he excels in doing all the little things that lead to success on a nightly basis.<\/p>\n

Cirelli is a winning player who became a household name and member of Team Canada not because of an overwhelming offensive toolkit. Cootes has plenty of both the physical abilities and the intangibles to become a Cirelli-like player; it\u2019s up to the Canucks to put him in a position to show this.<\/p>\n

Zach Hyman<\/p>\n

In THW\u2019s draft season profile of Cootes, he was compared to Edmonton Oilers forward Zach Hyman<\/a>. While Hyman has played at the wing for his entire career and Cootes was drafted as a centre, they share plenty of similarities in what they bring to a team.<\/p>\n

Hyman is similar to Cootes, known for his work ethic<\/a>. He has a solid skill set, but lacks the impressive highlight reel or signature move that leads to scoring. Still, he put up a 50-goal season in 2023-24 and followed that up with 16 goals in that postseason. These are superstar numbers, ones that even the Oilers, who believed in him enough to give him a seven-year deal, probably never would\u2019ve imagined. He did this while also being a defensively responsible player, as he has earned a few down-ballot Selke Trophy votes over the years.<\/p>\n

Many might hand-wave Hyman as a fair comparison because he gets to play next to Connor McDavid<\/a>. Even if prospects like Caleb Malhotra become proper first-line players, they likely won\u2019t be able to elevate a player into 50-goal territory. Still, if Cootes can get to the net like Hyman and can showcase his ability to hustle around the ice, he could be capable of becoming one of the team\u2019s top goal scorers.<\/p>\n

Brayden Schenn\u00a0<\/p>\n

Brayden Schenn<\/a> of the New York Islanders was a player that NHL Central Scouting senior western scout John Williams compared Cootes to right before he was drafted<\/a> in an interview with NHL.com.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHe can play in the middle, he can play on the wing.\u201d Williams was quoted as saying. \u201cI saw him play both this year. Highly competitive. \u2026 High IQ, competitive two-way guy who can play anywhere up and down your lineup.\u201d<\/p>\n

Schenn has been a solid producer with every team he\u2019s played for (except for the Los Angeles Kings, as he only played a total of nine games there.) He has been very versatile throughout his career, moving between centre and wing and excelling for stretches at both. There were times when his teams called upon him to be a star, such as in his first season with the St. Louis Blues when he scored 70 points. He was at his most valuable when he became more of a supporting piece, like in the Blues\u2019 Stanley Cup-winning run in 2018-19.<\/p>\n

Schenn may not be the flashiest comparable player, but he\u2019s been a solid contributor in the NHL for a long time, which is what you want from a first-round pick.<\/p>\n

Becoming Braeden Cootes<\/p>\n

When Cootes begins to break out in the NHL, soon he won\u2019t be viewed as another version of successful players in the past. He will develop his own role and may soon be a benchmark comparable for young, up-and-coming two-way centres. For now, though, these players provide realistic outcomes for Cootes if he develops properly.<\/p>\n

Also of note, we previously published comparable player articles for the Canucks\u2019 2026 first-round draft picks, Caleb Malhotra<\/a> and Adam Novotny<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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