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Canucks 2025 training camp flashback: Who’s gone and who has replaced them?
Photo credit: © Bob Frid-Imagn Images
Sep 3, 2026, 12:00 EDTUpdated: Sep 3, 2026, 01:30 EDT
Change is constant in professional sport, and when you’re the 32nd-place team in the 32-team National Hockey League like the Vancouver Canucks, it only stands to reason that there would be significant roster reconstruction year over year.
With the Canucks returning to the ice at Rogers Arena this week, it seemed like a good time to reflect on who was at training camp just 12 months ago and which new faces have joined the mix for the 2026-27 season.
Quite remarkably, 24 of the 59 players (40.7%) on last year’s training camp roster are no longer with the organization. Of course, no mention of organizational churn is complete without noting that the president, general manager, head coach and bench staff that were all in place at training camp one short year ago are also out of the picture. But this article focuses on players only.
Which players have departed the Vancouver Canucks since 2025 training camp?
1) Quinn Hughes: with his December trade to Minnesota, the rebuild was kicked into high gear
2) Conor Garland: dealt to Columbus ahead of the trade deadline for a pair of draft picks
3) Tyler Myers: agreed to waive his no-trade clause to go to Dallas at the deadline
4) Marcus Pettersson: was moved to the New York Rangers for a 2030 first-round draft pick in early July
5) Kiefer Sherwood: was peddled to San Jose for a pair of second-round picks
6) Nils Hoglander: got a much-needed change of scenery this offseason when he was sent to Nashville
7) Evander Kane: got to play in NHL games 1,000 and 1,001, and that was the last anyone has seen of him. He remains a free agent looking for work
8) Teddy Blueger: signed a new two-year deal in Toronto carrying a $2.5M AAV
9) Derek Forbort: played the first two games of last season and then spent the rest of the schedule on IR with a hip injury. Still looking for a place to play
10) Pierre-Olivier Joseph: nice guy, decent depth defender. But was not qualified and remains an unrestricted free agent
10) Jett Woo: sent to San Jose in a minor mid-season trade. Still looking to make his NHL debut
11) Nils Aman: didn’t see an NHL future, signed a three-year contract with Djurgardens of the Swedish Hockey League
12) Josh Bloom: was shipped to Edmonton in a swap of minor leaguers. Canucks acquired Jayden Grubbe
13) Dino Kambeitz: part of the Abbotsford Canucks Calder Cup Championship team. Played 64 games in Abbotsford last season. Was not re-signed
14) Danila Klimovich: 2021 second-rounder never got the big league call. Signed with Philadelphia in the offseason
15) Vitali Kravtsov: two failed stints with Canucks. Asked for and was granted his release early last season. Returned to Russia to play in the KHL. Had a decent season with Chelyabinsk Traktor
16) Jackson Kunz: now a member of the Toronto Marlies organization
17) Joe LaBate: got into an early-season NHL game, but spent the rest of the season in Abbotsford. Still an unrestricted free agent
18) Chase Stillman: after an injury-plagued season in Abbotsford, signed a one-year deal with Detroit this summer
19) Cooper Walker: appeared in 37 games in Abbotsford last season. Was not re-signed
20) Joe Arntsen: logged 64 games on Abbotsford blueline, but was never a realistic call-up option
21) Nikolai Knyzhov: played 60 games in Abbotsford last season. Now 28, has signed with SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL
22) Jayden Lee: North Vancouver native appeared in 64 games with Kalamazoo in the ECHL last season and three in Abbotsford
23) Zack Sandhu: returned to Oshawa of the OHL and was traded to Brantford, where he became a teammate of Caleb Malhotra
24) Jiri Patera: allowed eight goals in his lone NHL appearance last season. Signed with Boston in the offseason
Which new players have joined the Vancouver Canucks since the team’s 2025 training camp?
1) Zeev Buium: acquired as the centrepiece of the Quinn Hughes deal
2) Marco Rossi: added from Minnesota to boost centre ice depth
3) Liam Öhgren: promising power forward included in Hughes deal
4) Brendan Gallagher: veteran winger acquired from Montreal as a culture carrier
5) Luke Schenn: back for a third tour of duty in Canucks colours
6) Jamie Oleksiak: hulking blueliner signed from Seattle on July 1st
7) Paul Cotter: low-risk one-year free agent deal has plenty to prove
8) Chris Driedger: offered a PTO in late August after a season in the KHL, will need to impress at camp to earn a contract
9) Akil Thomas: likely AHL depth, but has 32 games of NHL experience to lean on if recalled from farm
10) Trey Fix-Wolansky: four straight 26+ goal seasons in AHL, will likely earn a call-up at some point this season
11) Matthew Stienburg: injuries have limited him to just 21 games over the past two seasons (eight in the NHL and 13 in the AHL), might be something there
12) Cole Clayton: depth defender thrown in by San Jose in Kiefer Sherwood
13) Jack Thompson: blueliner who was acquired from Sharks for Jett Woo
The Canucks have not yet released their 2026 training camp roster. It’s likely to feature fewer players than last year. However, it will be rounded out with a handful of players destined for AHL Abbotsford along with some of this year’s draft picks like Adam Novotný and Brooks Rogowski.
Of course, all of the players that are still on the roster from this time last year will also return for another season. Training camp opens September 17th in Penticton. Daily Faceoff Vancouver will have comprehensive coverage from the South Okanagan Events Centre.
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Vancouver CanucksTeam Cap Summary
Cap Summary
2026-27
2027-28
Projected Cap Hit
$86,185,833
$62,923,333
Projected Cap Space
$17,814,167
$50,576,666
Current Cap Space
$17,814,167
$50,576,666
Active Players
23/23
13/23
Draft Picks
Round
'26
'27
1
2
1
2
2
2
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1
1