Team

Betting

CanucksArmy has no direct affiliation to the Vancouver Canucks, Canucks Sports & Entertainment, NHL, or NHLPA

Two years in the making, Canucks’ Chytil eagerly anticipating first game against the Rangers

Photo credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images

By Jeff Paterson

Nov 11, 2026, 13:00 ESTUpdated: Nov 11, 2026, 12:06 EST

Comments

Filip Chytil badly wants to return to the Vancouver Canucks lineup. After spending the past two weeks recovering from his latest injury, the hard-luck centre just wants to play National Hockey League games again. And Chytil doesn’t really care who the opponent is. But it just so happens that the club’s next game is against the New York Rangers – the franchise that drafted him and the only other team the 27-year-old has played for in his 10-year NHL career.

Since being acquired as part of the JT Miller deal in January 2025, Chytil has played a grand total of 34 games in a Vancouver uniform across parts of three seasons. And with that much time on the shelf due to injury, he has missed all four matchups between the Canucks and Rangers.

As Chytil returned to practice with his team on Tuesday and skated on a line with Paul Cotter and Jonathan Lekkerimaki, all indications are that he will get back in the lineup on Friday to face his former team. Chytil has missed five games with a reaggravation of a shoulder injury originally suffered in a freak preseason collision with referee Riley Brace.

Nearly two years have passed since Chytil was traded to the Canucks (along with Victor Mancini and a first-round draft pick that was subsequently flipped to Pittsburgh), but the significance of a game against the organization that made him a first-round draft pick in 2017 was evident when he addressed the media on Tuesday.

“It means a lot to me, actually,” he explained on Tuesday. “It’s been almost two years now since the trade, and I didn’t play a game against them. I don’t know most of the team now because it’s changed as well. I know just a couple of players from there, but it was still eight years in the organization. And it was an organization that gave me an opportunity to play in the league, and I have great memories from those seasons. It’s going to be a nice game, but the most important thing if I will play is that I will be happy that I am back.”

Chytil has played just seven games this season after being limited to only a dozen games last season. Between head and shoulder injuries, Chytil has had more than his share of bad luck. The timing of the injuries is never good, but twice he’s been hurt just days from facing his former team.

Weeks after the trade, he was checked from behind by Chicago’s Jason Dickenson in a March 15th game and suffered a season-ending head injury. Exactly one week later, the Canucks faced the Rangers at Madison Square Garden without him. And earlier this season, the Canucks made their lone visit to MSG on October 11th, and Chytil made his season debut in Florida four nights later. So he’s been close, but the stars have never quite aligned for him the way they appear to be this time around.

In his last game on October 29th in San Jose, Chytil logged a career-high 22:13. Late in the game, he absorbed a heavy hit from Sharks defenceman Darnell Nurse. Chytil finished the game, but the following day was placed on injured reserve. To this point in the season, he has yet to score and has just two assists. In 101 minutes at 5-on-5 this season, Chytil has been on the ice for just one goal for. But he’s also only been on the ice for three goals against. However, in those minutes, the Canucks have been outshot 51-23.

Still, head coach Manny Malhotra has played Chytil a lot and in all situations because he brings an element of speed that is sorely lacking among the Canucks centremen.

“He’s obviously a very dynamic player that changes our lineup when he’s in,” Malhotra, himself a former first-round pick of the Rangers, said. “Points aside, he was doing a lot of really good things in terms of transporting pucks and creating looks for us. And obviously with his speed, his ability to apply pressure up ice is a major asset. So not looking at the point totals right now, we do have to give him some grace for the amount of time he missed, especially early in the season, now getting his game legs going and feeling a part of it again.”

The Canucks will practice again on Thursday, and that should provide a much better indication of whether Chytil will get the green light to get back in the lineup. But it’s clear he’s had Friday night circled on his calendar for a while. It will give him the chance to return to game action for the first time in a couple of weeks and, at the same time, provide some closure that he’s been denied up to this point in his career.

Sponsored by bet365