NHL Prospect Watch: Vancouver Canucks
In the lead-up to the 2026-27 hockey season, we’re diving into the WHL prospect pool for every NHL team. To be included in this list, a player must be recently drafted, signed to an NHL contract, or meet the NHL’s criteria for rookie status.
After becoming one of the youngest players to ever debut for the Canucks, will 2025-2026 WHL Most Sportsmanlike Player award-winner Braeden Cootes stick with the NHL squad full-time this season?
Parker Alcos
Six-foot-4, 186-pound defenceman Parker Alcos is coming off a career-best season and unforgettable experience at the 2026 Memorial Cup. Alcos was scooped up by the Kelowna Rockets in a blockbuster trade at the 2026 WHL Trade Deadline in anticipation of hosting the CHL’s top tournament. The 20-year-old totalled 30 points (5G-25A) in 63 games with the Rockets and Edmonton Oil Kings, with whom he spent three previous seasons. The Port Moody, B.C. product tacked on four assists in nine playoff matches and suited up for three games at the Memorial Cup. The mobile blueliner owns 60 points (7G-53A) in 199 regular-season WHL contests. He was drafted by the Canucks with the 189th overall pick in the sixth round of the 2024 NHL Draft.
Yaroslav Bryzgalov
On a Medicine Hat Tigers club stacked with offensive talent, Belarusian winger Yaroslav Bryzgalov managed to carve out quite a niche for himself in his first spin in the Dub. Bryzgalov netted 55 points (13G-42A) and a +37 rating in 55 games, leading all Tigers rookies in points while finishing fourth on the Tabbies in assists. He found himself dishing the puck plenty in the postseason with 14 points (2G-12A) to help the team reach the Eastern Conference Championship. The 6-foot-4, 220-pound forward had a pair of assists for Team East at the 2026 WHL Prospects Game and heard his name called 97th overall in the fourth round of the 2026 NHL Draft.
Cole Clayton
Former Tigers alternate captain Cole Clayton is getting a fresh start in a new organization after clawing his way into the AHL ranks. After breaking into the AHL as an undrafted free agent with the Cleveland Monsters in 2021-22, Clayton split this season between the San Jose Barracuda and Abbotsford Canucks, putting up two goals and 11 assists in 65 games across both organizations. The 26-year-old inked a one-year, two-way deal with the Canucks on June 16, 2026. The 6-foot-2, 198-pound defender from Strathmore, Alta. suited up for 214 regular-season games over parts of five seasons in the Gas City, amassing 88 points (17G-71A) and earning the alternate captaincy in 2020-21.
Braeden Cootes
A rollercoaster season saw Sherwood Park, Alta.’s Braeden Cootes don four different jerseys. First, the Flying Skate crest as he debuted for the Canucks at just 18 years old. After three games in the show, he returned to Seattle to captain the Thunderbirds before pulling on the Maple Leafs en route to a bronze-medal effort for Canada at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship. Finally, Cootes joined the Prince Albert Raiders in a blockbuster trade-deadline deal to battle all the way to the 2026 WHL Championship Series. All told, Cootes enjoyed his most productive WHL season yet with 63 points (24G-39A) in 45 games with Seattle and Prince Albert. The 6-foot, 183-pound pivot tied for third in playoff scoring with 23 points (7G-16A) in 20 games, highlighted by 18 multipoint outings. Cootes was only held off the scoresheet once in the Championship Series (1G-4A), though the Raiders would fall to the Everett Silvertips. He was also named the WHL’s Most Sportsmanlike Player for 2025-26. The 2025 15th overall pick will now set his sights on becoming a full-time NHLer after establishing himself as a leader and impact presence at every level of junior hockey.
Sawyer Mynio
Cootes’ old T-Birds teammate Sawyer Mynio made a splash in his first season of professional hockey by being dubbed the Abbotsford Canucks Rookie of the Year. The 6-foot-1, 181-pound defender tallied 21 points (3G-18A) to lead all Abbotsford rookies in scoring and finish second among all team defencemen, while playing in all situations as the squad battled the injury bug in the early goings of the campaign. The 21-year-old will be on the hunt to make his NHL debut in 2026-27. Mynio, from Kamloops, B.C., played four seasons in the WHL, largely with Seattle before joining the Calgary Hitmen for a playoff push in his final year, racking up 140 points (39G-101A) in 227 games. He picked up four points (1G-3A) in 19 games to help the T-Birds hoist the Ed Chynoweth Cup in 2023 and represented Canada at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship.
Chase Wouters
2025-26 marked a major turning point for the longtime AHL captain. After five long seasons with the Abbotsford Canucks, including four wearing the ‘C’, the undrafted forward signed his first NHL deal- a one-year, two-way contract- on June 17. Wouters, 26, posted 26 points (11G-15A) in 2025-26, bringing his AHL career total to 120 (43G-77A). He’s won the team’s Man of the Year award four times, helped the team capture the Calder Cup in 2025, and ranks as the franchise leader in regular-season games played (338) as well as playoff matches (38). Hailing from North Battleford, Sask., Wouters logged 181 points (75G-106A) in 280 regular-season games over parts of six seasons with the Saskatoon Blades, where he served as captain for three seasons and set the mark as the longest-serving ‘C’ in the Blades’ storied history.
Ty Young
Twenty-one-year-old Ty Young’s second season of professional hockey saw him split time between the Abbotsford Canucks and the ECHL’s Kalamazoo Wings. At the AHL level, Young went 6-10-1 with a 3.36 goals-against average, an .884 save percentage and two shutouts, highlighted by a 24-save clean sheet against the Calgary Wranglers on April 11. With the K-Wings, Young owned a 7-5-1 record, a 3.26 GAA, and an .896 save percentage. The 6-foot-3, 181-pound puckstopper is entering the final year of his three-year, entry-level contract after originally being drafted in the fifth round (144th overall) of the 2022 NHL Draft. The Coaldale, Alta. product spent his entire WHL career with the Prince George Cougars, going 44-35-7-3 with a 3.36 GAA, an .896 save percentage and two shutouts.
