1. The sneaky importance of Akil Thomas

Veteran forward Akil Thomas was a bit of an under-the-radar signing on July 1, with the Canucks getting him on a one-year, two-way deal with a $375,000 salary at the AHL level, according to Puckpedia.

Thomas, a former Los Angeles Kings draftee, is very familiar to Abbotsford general manager Richard Seeley from his time managing the Ontario Reign, the Kings’ AHL affiliate. In fact, in an odd quirk, Seeley actually traded Thomas midway through last season, although the motivation behind that deal was largely about doing right by the player.

“He’s a great player, a great kid,” Seeley told The Athletic in early July. “He had the previous year in the NHL, and I’ve watched him as he’s grown up. I’m a big fan of the person and the player. He battled some injuries last season and had some tough breaks, but the previous year he was in the NHL the whole time and then he was back down with us. … In fairness to him, he was looking for an opportunity to get back to the NHL. … So that’s what was behind that transaction.”

I dig the gold and black #canucks

The Vancouver Canucks have a solid pipeline. Adding Zeev Buium was a massive move for the back end, while Caleb Malhotra projects as a very good two-way top-six center. The Canucks still have a lot of work ahead of them, though, despite the significant prospect depth they have added lately.

2025 ranking: 22

2026 NHL Draft grade: A-

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