It’s rebuild time in Vancouver Canucks-land. The big club is in the midst of a nine-game losing streak, and many fans have shifted their focus to the prospects.

The 2026 NHL Draft class for the Canucks is off to a decent start.

Third overall pick Caleb Malhotra has one empty-net goal in his first five NCAA games, but he is playing heavy minutes in all situations and making plays that help his Boston University Terriers generate offence. So point production is coming for him. Their second first-round pick, Adam Novotný, is dominating the OHL with the Peterborough Petes, scoring seven goals and 18 points through 12 games.

Thirty-third overall pick Brooks Rogowski netted his first of the season on Thursday, bringing his totals to one goal and nine points in 12 games with the Oshawa Generals. The Canucks’ second second-round pick, Niklas Aaram-Olsen, is off to a slower start in the NCAA, scoring his first collegiate point two days ago while playing his most ice time of the year.

So, all good seems to be coming from the Canucks’ 2026 class. But their 2025 first-round pick, Braeden Cootes, may be doing the best of them all. And sure, he’s a year older, so he has an extra year of development under his belt. That’s to be expected. But he’s doing so as a professional, now playing in the American Hockey League with the Abbotsford Canucks.

Cootes can play in the American Hockey League after a new rule passed for this season allows teams to carry one 19-year-old forward on the farm team. This benefits player development, as some 19-year-olds are ready to graduate from junior but have to play out the year if they are signed and don’t make the NHL roster. Cootes found himself in this situation this season, and is off to a fantastic start as a professional.

But Cootes isn’t the only 2025 first-round pick playing in the American League. Ten others have begun their professional journeys in the AHL: Caleb Desnoyers (UTA), Brady Martin (NSH), Radim Mrtka (BUF), Roger McQueen (ANA), Carter Bear (DET), Kashawn Aitcheson (NYI), Justin Carbonneau (STL), Bill Zonnon (PIT), Lynden Lakovic (WSH), and Henry Brzustewicz (LAK).

With that in mind, let’s check out how Cootes is doing in comparison to his fellow 2025 first-round pick in their first few games in the AHL:

As you can see, Cootes is the only 2025 first-round AHLer to be at a point-per-game, having scored three goals and three assists for six points in six games this season. That’s right. Cootes is outproducing all the forwards selected ahead of him who are playing in the AHL: Desnoyers, Martin, McQueen, and Bear.

Now, McQueen’s production is probably lower than it would be, considering he is now enjoying time in the NHL. Regardless, Cootes is outperforming the players drafted around him at this level.

Cootes has been deployed as Abbotsford’s top centreman. He is playing on the top power play, earning penalty kill time, and is trusted when the game is on the line in overtime. And from our viewings, we’re really encouraged by his offensive game. We didn’t anticipate seeing Cootes’ creativity and playmaking this early in his professional career, but he’s looked confident carrying the puck against tougher competition.

Typically when discussing Cootes’ NHL outlook, pundits project him as a reliable two-way centre. While that’s true, oftentimes people will downgrade a player’s offensive capabilities because he is also defensively responsible. But we believe Cootes has more offence to his game than he’s been given credit for, and his early-season production proves it.

Before fans get too excited about his start, don’t expect him to be called up to the NHL anytime soon. Since Ryan Johnson became general manager of the Vancouver Canucks, he has preached his anti-yo-yo strategy with his young players. He isn’t going to get too trigger-happy with elevating Cootes, even if he’s impressed with his start this season:

“I sat with Braeden at training camp; I mapped this out with the two of us, not me telling him, but us having a discussion about it, is that I want him to experience anything and everything he can at the American League level before he comes here,” GM Johnson said on his Friday hit on Donnie & Dhali. “There’s no question he’s going to be a part of this organization for a long time and a big part of the turnaround here. I just want to be very strategic of when that is.

“It’s the puck touches. He’s playing on a first-unit power play; he’s killing penalties; he’s playing 20-22 minutes per night, which is outstanding for a 19-year-old to also be able to have the success he’s having very early on. I say this all the time: people don’t truly understand how difficult the American Hockey League is. It is an erratic game; it’s not as predictable as the NHL game. So if a young player learns to navigate the chaotic way that sometimes the American Hockey League is, when they come to the National Hockey League, their ability to take a big step because it’s more predictable – with maybe better players around them – you get to what the true ceiling is for a player when they’re able to navigate something like the American Hockey League.

“So, I am in no hurry. By no means will I make decisions based on losses [in Vancouver]. This is doing what’s best for Braeden and the future of the Vancouver Canucks.”

Cootes has had a great start at the AHL level this season. He’s not only passing the eye test, but he’s also outproducing his fellow draftees selected around him. That’s an encouraging sign as he develops into the NHL centre the organization will need in the future. Canucks fans will get to watch him in action again tonight, when they take on the Calgary Wranglers at 5 PM PT at Rogers Forum.