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Blackfish: NCAA opening weekend, CHL in full force, and youngsters impress in Vancouver
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Dave Hall
Oct 7, 2025, 13:21 EDTUpdated: Oct 7, 2025, 13:33 EDT
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Welcome back to Blackfish: our weekly Vancouver Canucks Prospect Report.
It’s here, and it’s beautiful.
After months of speculation, development camps, and preseason glimpses, the 2025-26 hockey season has officially arrived. As of this week, every league will be in motion, every lineup spot will have meaning, and the storylines we’ve been tracking all summer will begin to take shape on the ice.
And what a start it’s shaping up to be.
An 18-year-old has forced his way onto the Canucks’ opening night roster — the first to do so in over three decades — while familiar names in Abbotsford prepare to defend their Calder Cup title. Across the CHL, fresh faces are off to hot starts, and a new class of NCAA prospects made their collegiate debuts south of the border.
Let’s dive in.

NHL/AHL

You heard that right.
After an exceptional training camp and an equally strong preseason, Braeden Cootes has officially earned a spot on the Vancouver Canucks’ opening night roster.
It’s not always ideal to have your youngsters fast-track their way into the NHL, but in the Canucks’ defence, he didn’t just earn a role; he forced their hands.
By showcasing poise, intelligence, and a reliable 200-foot game, Cootes outperformed the majority of his competition to force the role. His connection with Jonathan Lekkerimäki helped generate consistent offensive pressure, but it was his maturity and low-mistake play that truly set him apart over the last few weeks.
Whether it lasts beyond a nine-game trial remains to be seen, but for now, Cootes becomes the first 18-year-old to make Vancouver’s roster since Petr Nedved in 1990. Wow.
Lekkerimäki deserves his flowers as well.
Just two weeks ago, there was a strong and justified argument that he needed more seasoning in Abbotsford. Instead, he’s earned his spot through solid two-way efforts and detailed refinement. Size will always be a concern, but his defensive detail and two-way game have been impressive.
Of course, his incredible ability to score on a dime helped his cause. On a team where offence could be scarce, it’s a tremendous addition if he could keep that scoring touch alive.
Now comes the hard part: doing it every night. Performing in an exhibition is one thing, but sustaining that pace on a nightly basis when the NHL intensity rises is another.
He’ll likely begin on the third line alongside Cootes and Evander Kane, but offers the potential to slide into a top-six role and run the power play unit from the half-wall when the Canucks need an offensive spark.
He joins Arshdeep Bains, Aatu Räty, Elias Pettersson and Victor Mancini (called up after initially being sent down) as fellow prospects who have earned roster spots to open the year.
Down in Abbotsford, the Canucks are wrapping up their own preseason ahead of their season opener on Friday, October 10, when they’ll visit the Henderson Silver Knights for a two-game set.
Things are not finalized yet, but here are the players remaining after a few cuts and reassignments to Kalamazoo.

CHL

After suffering a loss in his season debut, Aleksei Medvedev bounced back with a terrific performance for a 27-save victory (his first of the season). Despite allowing a late third period goal that bounced off a London defender, he made several key stops to secure the 5-4 win.
Here are a few of his best saves from the performance:
Elsewhere, Riley Patterson continues to prove why he pushed for a trade to Niagara. Now skating as a key top-six centre and power play fixture, Patterson added two goals and three points to bring his total to seven points in his first five games.
He’s averaging over 23 minutes per night — tops on the team — and has yet to see a game under the 20-minute mark. A disappointing weekend in the faceoff circle dropped his season rate to 47% in the dot.
He kicked the week off with a cheeky primary assist, setting up his linemate with a backhand no-looker for the perfect connection.
Later in the game, he found his first goal of the season thanks to a clean faceoff win and quick net-front retrieval. He drifted toward the net front before he surprised his opponent with a quick stick lift, spinning and depositing the goal.
In his next game, he chased down the loose puck in the slot before he spun to fire home his second of the weekend (and season).
In Kingston, rookie Kieren Dervin has wasted no time making an impression. The third-round NHL pick has now scored two clutch game-winners this season and sits at a point-per-game pace through four games.
Patterson and Dervin’s team currently share the top of the Eastern Conference standings.
As a tall, smooth-skating right-shot defender, we’ve always been intrigued by the profile of Parker Alcos. Now in his third season with the Edmonton Oilers, it appears that he’s going to give us the looks we’ve been waiting for.
Now back with his team, Alocs has skated in three games and has taken over a second-pairing spot. He’s off to an early two-assist, plus-4 start through just four games.

NCAA

It was opening weekend for the NCAA, which featured all Canucks prospects in some capacity (regular season or exhibition).
At Colorado College, Wilson Björck made his NCAA debut in a top-six role.
While he failed to register a point, he handled power play duties on the half-wall and showed the same creativity and quick decision-making that made him a standout in Sweden’s J20 circuit.
He should have no issues getting his puck touches this season.
Our biggest question looming from his transition from the Swedish junior league to the NCAA was whether size would play a factor and limit his creative brand. And while there were moments in which he appeared to be out-muscled, we thought he fared quite well within his new environment.
There were several moments which caught our eye, some more subtle than others.
Here, we appreciate the quick scan above his shoulder to map out the transition, kicking the puck up to initiate a scoring opportunity for his team.
Here, he shows off his creativity by using a cut-in to push the defender inside the slot before cutting back with a nifty spin-o-rama. He failed to get all of his backhand, but stuck with the puck and provided a quick glance before finding a linemate alone in the slot.
Here, while manning the power play, we liked to see the patience with the puck and the willingness to hold on to search for the best lane.
Speaking of the 2025 draftees, Matthew Lansing made the most of his limited ice time in his NCAA debut, potting the first goal of his career en route to an upset over the Boston College Eagles.
Breaking in the zone, Lansing was the recipient of a slick pass before he shovelled the puck and rifled a laser to the short side.
That goal was his lone shot of the game, but he went on to notch a plus-3 and a goal as the second least utilized forward on the team (skating roughly 10 minutes in the game).
It doesn’t appear that he will be heavily used, at least at the beginning, but it was a terrific way to kick off an NCAA tenure.
Matthew Perkins has struggled to find consistent ice time over the past two years of NCAA hockey. Thanks to a recent transfer to Northeastern, he may have seen his home.
Perkins, a 2023 fourth-round pick, skated as a top line centre and played minutes in all situations. He finished north of 18 minutes in the game. It took him just one period to match his 2024-25 season goal totals, jumping on a loose puck to deposit his first of the season en route to a 6-4 victory for the Huskies.
Over in St. Cloud, Daimon Gardner racked up 15 penalty minutes after receiving a major penalty in the late stages of a tied game. After getting hit into the boards, he took revenge on an unsuspecting opponent with a dangerous hit up high.
He began the year on the Huskies’ third line wing.
Anthony Romani and the Michigan State Trojans began the year with an Exhibition game against Windsor (Canada). Although he started the game on the third pairing, he finished with the fifth-highest minutes among forwards and was the second most utilized at even strength.
We will have more on his game when he opens the season on Thursday.
Finally, Aiden Celebrini began the year on Boston University’s second pairing, skating alongside Sacha Boumedienne (Tom Willander’s partner last season).

Around the World

Ilya Safonov scored his second goal of the season, collecting the garbage off a juicy rebound.
That wraps up this week’s report. Stay tuned to CanucksArmy later this week, as the Vancouver and Abbotsford Canucks both open up their 2025-26 campaign with games.

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