We are back with the 2025 summer edition of our CanucksArmy top 20 Vancouver Canucks prospect rankings.

With our Honourable Mentions off the board, we bring you our first-ranked (20th) prospect of the season. If you are curious about our ranking criteria, be sure to check them out in our HM installment.

Just when fans thought the Canucks’ brass were done with their 2025 entry draft weekend, they made one last surprise transaction.

With an unforeseen post-draft deal, they sent the Chicago Blackhawks future considerations for 6-foot-4 Russian forward Ilya Safonov.

Drafted by the Hawks in his third year of eligibility (2021), Safonov is already 24 years old (born in May) and has yet to make the transition to North America.

So what’s the intrigue here?

Well, it’s simple. Safonov is a heavy-set, two-way responsible player who carries a 53.3% faceoff percentage through 322 KHL games (regular season and playoffs), who came at the reasonable price of future considerations. Suiting up within Ak Bars’ middle-six, he’s had seasons as high as 58.6%, which happened to be his longest season at 67 games played.

He’s known to be a relatively smart player and is a huge contributor to his team’s penalty kill. Despite his towering size, he still manages to move the ice with relative ease and shows dependable hands in tight situations.

And judging by the 13 goals he scored in the KHL this past season, the game plan feels as easy as “put him in front of the net, and he’ll do the rest.”

With just 112 points (57 goals, 55 assists) through 322 KHL games (regular season and playoffs), his offensive contributions leave much to be desired. With that in mind, his intrigue falls within his frame and defensive efforts.

Reports indicated that Safonov was on his way to sign his first deal with the Blackhawks earlier this spring. With his contract expiring in Russia in May, many anticipated an agreement to be made. However, when things didn’t quite pan out, he elected to sign a one-year deal to remain with Ak Bars, where he has played his entire career, dating back to his VHL days in 2018-19.

In addition to his KHL professional history, he’s also been a large contributor to the international stage. When Russia was able to take part in the festivities, that is. Most notably in 2020-21, he participated in the World Juniors, scoring two goals and accumulating 14 penalty minutes to help Team Russia to a fourth-place finish. He played alongside Vasily Podkolzin in that tournament.

Despite carrying a sliver of intrigue, the reality is that he’s now teetering toward “non-prospect” territory; he does not carry an offensive pedigree, and was dealt away for pennies on the dollar for assumptions that he wouldn’t cross the pond.

Although there is undoubtedly some promise as a towering, bottom-six worthy centre, his potential lies strictly in his potential to play in North America, which is still very much in question.

Ceiling: The real meat of Ilya Safonov’s ceiling relies on his willingness to cross over to North America. If he does make that journey, there is undoubtedly a bottom-six, special-teams player in there. His game has never been about the numbers, so we’d like to think his transition would be a little more “meat-and-potatoes” than those who come bearing high point totals. With him, it’s hits, it’s penalty kill, and it’s a heavy net front presence.

Floor: His floor is precisely where he is, the KHL. He’s already established himself as a versatile centre with Ak Bars. If he’s faced with another extension beyond his current one-year, he could simply be a lifelong KHL player who came at the cost of Future Considerations.

ETA: As mentioned, many thought his time in the KHL was over this summer. But with a one-year extension in hand, his timeline is very much in the air. That said, if he does come over in the next year, you could imagine he’s not coming over to see you in Abbotsford.

That’s our #20 spot. Stay tuned for another installment tomorrow here at CanucksArmy

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