June 2025 – CanucksBanter

Vancouver, B.C. – Vancouver Canucks General Manager Patrik Allvin announced on June 28th that the club acquired forward Ilya Safonov from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for future considerations.

Safonov, 24, appeared in 51 games for Ak Bars Kazan of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) in 2024.25, recording 22 points (7-15-22), 22 penalty minutes, and a +22 plus/minus rating. He also appeared in 13 postseason contests, registering five points (3-2-5), six penalty minutes, and a +2 plus/minus rating.

After a breakout season in 2022-23, 37 points in 64 games, his number dropped in 2023-24 to 20 points in 67 games.

In 263 career KHL games across parts of seven seasons, all with Ak Bars Kazan, the 6’4”, 205lbs forward has posted 95 points (49-46-95), 86 penalty minutes, and a +50 plus/minus rating. In 59 postseason games, he has scored 17 points (8-9-17), 23 penalty minutes, and a +10 plus/minus rating.

A native of Moscow, Russia, Safonov has represented his country on multiple occasions, including the 2017 Under-17 Hockey Challenge and the 2021 World Junior Hockey Championships.

Safonov was originally selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the sixth round, 172nd overall, in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft.

Source: Vancouver Canucks

Los Angeles, CA. – The Vancouver Canucks selected a total of six players at the 2025 NHL Entry Draft at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, California on June 27th and 28th, 2025, including Braeden Cootes 15th overall (round one), Aleksei Medvedev 47th overall (round two), Kieren Dervin 65th overall (round three), Wilson Björck 143rd overall (round five), Gabriel Chiarot 175th overall (round six), and Matthew Lansing 207th overall (round seven).

Cootes, 18, appeared in 60 games for the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League (WHL) this season, recording 63 points (26-37-63), 18 penalty minutes, and a +5 plus/minus rating. He also appeared in six playoff games, registering eight points (2-6-8) and four penalty minutes. Cootes led all Thunderbirds players in assists and points and was tied for second in goals. On November 22, 2024, he was named Seattle’s co-captain for the 2024.25 season. The 5’11”, 183lbs centre has played 131 career regular season games across three seasons with Seattle, scoring 99 points (40-59-99) and 34 penalty minutes.

Medvedev, 17, spent the 2024.25 season with the London Knights for the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), appearing in 34 games and posting a record of 22-8-2 with a 2.79 goals-against average, a .912 save percentage, and three shutouts. The 6’3”, 178lbs goaltender helped the Knights capture the J. Ross Robertson Cup as OHL Champions, as well as the Memorial Cup. A native of St. Petersburg, RUS, he was named to the OHL First All-Rookie team this past season, as well as awarded the Dave Pinkney Trophy for being on the team with the lowest goals-against average, and the Dinty Moore Trophy for having the best goals-against average amongst OHL rookies.

Dervin, 18, split the 2024.25 season between St. Andrew’s College (High School Prep) and the Kingston Frontenacs (OHL). A 6’1”, 183lbs forward, he posted 92 points (37-55-92) and 93 penalty minutes in 61 games with St. Andrew’s, and three points (1-2-3) in 10 games with the Frontenacs. The Ottawa, ON native also appeared in 11 postseason contests for Kingston, recording three points (1-2-3), two penalty minutes, and a +1 plus/minus rating, helping the Frontenacs advance to Game 7 of the Second Round.

Björck, 19, played most of the 2024.25 season with Djurgårdens IF J20 of the J20 Nationell, recording 67 points (28-39-67), 98 penalty minutes, and a +31 plus/minus rating. He also appeared in 10 games for Djurgårdens IF in the HockeyAllsvenskan, posting a +2 plus/minus rating. The 6’0”, 165lbs forward skated in nine playoff games for Djurgårdens IF J20, registering nine points (1-8-9) and a +7 plus/minus rating. A native of Stockholm, SWE, Björck has represented his country internationally on a number of occasions, including the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, where he had one assists in four games.

Chiarot, 18, appeared in 66 games with the Brampton Steelheads of the OHL in 2024.25, recording 35 points (21-14-35) 60 penalty minutes, and a +21 rating. The 5’11”, 191lbs forward also skated in six postseason contests for the Steelheads, scoring one goal. In 114 career OHL games across two seasons, the Hamilton, ON native has posted 45 points (26-19-45), 98 penalty minutes, and a +20 plus/minus rating.

Lansing, 18, appeared in 54 games in 2024.25, split between the Waterloo Black Hawks and the Fargo Force of the United States Hockey League (USHL), posting 27 points (12-15-27), 51 penalty minutes, and a +20 plus/minus rating. The 6’1”, 185lbs forward also skated in 13 games for the United States National Team Development Program (NTDP), recording one assist and eight penalty minutes. A native of Tonawanda, NY, Lansing has represented in the United States on numerous occasions, including the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, and the 2025 U18 World Championships, winning bronze.

Source: Vancouver Canucks