Chapter 1: What are the Canucks' draft priorities for the upcoming NHL draft?
Back in on Canuck Central. Sat and Bic on Sportsnet 650. Coming to you live from the Kintec studio. Text them to the Dunbar Lumber text inbox 650-650. And this hour of Canuck Central is brought to you by your lower mainland Boston pizza. The playoffs are here and BP is ready to skip the couch, catch every hit, every goal, every save, every playoff beard. This is how you watch playoff hockey.
It's Satyar Shah and Biknazar. We are going to be joined by Sam Constantino coming up in a few moments to chat about the 2026 NHL entry draft. And we have a lot of reaction on the Dunbar Lumber text inbox. 650-650. Fans very passionate about who the Canucks should be taking with the third overall pick and whether they should be looking... The take, Caleb Malhotra, if he is available.
And Robin Tawasin, just go simple. Please take the best player available. Canucks have a plethora of bottom six players they do not need anymore. And ultimately, take the best player available. And I will say, we always say that. And generally, that's what teams do. Because the way they will justify it is, well, yeah, we took this player based on position, but he was the best player available.
So it just comes down to how you view that more than anything else.
Yeah, it's challenging that way just based on how people build boards. Yeah. And so in a scenario like that... And I do think positional value maybe defines the boards as well, but it is that scenario of like... Hey, like the... The center is a need. Yeah. And do you shift the board at all? So again, it's perspectives. Yeah.
I don't think there's like this consensus of like, oh, he's got the most talent. So it's just, it's always hard to find consensus because different people view the game differently. Yeah, absolutely.
And, you know, as much as we're focused on talking about Stenberg and we're talking about Kelo Malhotra, Brian says, Detroit Brian on the text inbox, the Canucks should draft a D-man and solidify their back end. If San Jose takes a D-man, hold auction and take the best deal for more picks and select one of the D-man five to nine, whichever package is best. And you know what?
We always talk about how trading down and up in the draft is something that seldom happens. If for whatever reason, one of Stenberg or McKenna finds himself there at number three, I could see, you know, a trade actually happening or the possibility of it being a lot greater.
Ultimately, I would be surprised, but that whole notion of taking a defenseman third overall, because the Canucks have so many, well, not so many, they have at least a nice group of young defensemen and some prospects on that, in that position group that you feel decent about what they have growing.
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Chapter 2: How do teams view Gavin McKenna as a draft prospect?
What's the break point you would trade down to? I wouldn't be against trading to eight and just taking whoever's available. You're more of trading to six and still taking your guy.
I've been thinking a lot about it. I can get down to seven. Yeah. I can get to seven.
But I'd rather be at like six. I do like this text here. 650, 650. Might take some moving around, but Canucks need to get four of these guys from the draft. And reminder, they're four of the top 41, so it isn't the top four guys here in this text here, but it's Stenberg, Bjork, Klepov, Suvanto, Cullen, Preston, Morozov, Shilov, Command, BL. Now, I'd be curious if...
You're going to have opportunities on all those guys, but to the texter's point, can you move around a little bit given the draft quantity they do have? Also finishing the text, Klepov will be the guy people regret taking earlier. You're a Klepov guy, right?
Yeah, I like Klepov. Very talented, very talented. It might be more of a power play score specialist as opposed to a pure five on five score. But if you're talking about getting a player like that later in the first round, that might be able to put up 60, 70 points and be a power play specialist. I'm not scoffing at that at all.
Very talented, a bomb of a one timer, nice playmaking skills, a really dynamic power play player. And I still like what he does five on five too.
And the benefit here is the Canucks, even just going back to the D-man conversation, it's like you shouldn't be in a position that's like, oh, we don't need that. The Canucks actually need everything. Yeah. If you dropped in a number one D-man and that player became a number one D-man, great. Like a little bit less pressure on Zeev Booyam and all these things.
A little bit less pressure on Tom Villander. It just slots everyone in better positions. Awesome to have an overqualified number two D man who can be an offensive dynamo. Like, awesome outcome. And also, I think the reason, like, I'm pro Stenberg if he happens to be there at three over the centers is they need high-end talent. They need high-end talent in the forward ranks.
So if there's a situation where McKenna or Stenberg slip there, Take a dynamic wing, and to your point about Akhlepov, if he falls to 24 or something like that, seems unlikely, but if he falls there... The Canucks need everything. Yeah, absolutely. So, again, traditionally, I would still build through the middle, of course, but...
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Chapter 3: What skills does Caleb Malhotra bring to the Canucks?
And for me, the B game is, well, I'll be a checker and I can be a third line guy and give you a tertiary scoring. But for me, the ceiling is a top line guy, but more likely Caleb fits to me as a, as a second guy, as a, as a two hole guy who can, who should be able to produce at the next level and who should be able to check and to match up as well.
I do want to talk about what might happen before Vancouver. Is the high-end skill just too tantalizing for Toronto to pass on Gavin McKenna?
I think my theory is this. There's not a general manager in the NHL who has the stones to pass up on Gavin McKenna. Right. And you can take John Chayka, you can take, you know, Ryan Johnson, get Kevin Shevelday off, you can take Chris Drury, whoever that is. I just don't think they have the stones to do it.
I think Stenberg's going to be a better all-around player, but I also caution people in saying, well, yeah, well, this guy's not quite what he's made up to be in McKenna, in that it might take him a couple of years, but he's going to have no choice but to figure it out. So it's going to really rely on the coaching staff around him.
It's going to rely on the mentorship he has, the leaders in the team, to help bring him along. And I use Conor Bedard as a perfect example. He was a guy who put up 60-some-odd points in each of his first two years, looked to me like a bit of an island guy, and then he comes back in year number three and he's a completely different player altogether.
So now he's been able to maintain his ability to produce points and score goals, but now you're seeing him start to get engaged in off-puck play and tracking and defensive detail, that sort of thing. So I think that's probably the lineage here for Gavin McKenna.
And if he does take that path and he is like Bedard and he doesn't lose that ability to produce, then you're going to be looking at a hell of a player three years down the road.
Yeah, and I think, you know, obviously when looking at the top two, I think McKenna, I'm with you, I think he ends up going first overall. I know we all kind of wonder if John Shaka may do something obscene with the first overall selection given in some of his decision making in the past.
But sitting there at number two with what San Jose might do, it does seem like at least one of those wings will be there at three unless San Jose just doubles down on their forwards because there seems to be a lot of buzz that they will be taking the best D-man available, at least on their board.
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Chapter 4: What type of coach does the Canucks need moving forward?
I think he's the type of guy that you're going to feel really comfortable with if you have to protect the lead, if you need a big stop on the PK. And potentially if you, if you need to get one in the final couple of minutes, like I just, he's got so much confidence, but it's not like in an arrogant or a swaggy type of way. It's just, he knows what the job is.
He knows he's competent at doing whatever the job is and he can execute. So I'm like, I'm a huge, huge fan of this guy. And, you know, grows up on the farm. First thing he says is like, oh yeah, We haven't heard that in a while. So I really like that element behind him. I really, I think the world of him.
Like, listen, in my opinion, guys, like you could take Verhoff, Carls, Rudolph, Smiths, and you're going to be happy with any one of those guys. And you can throw Chase Reed into that group if you're unlike me and you believe that he's, you know, Verhoff is the top guy. I would be happy with any of those 5Ds.
I think we glossed over Stenberg here a little bit in this conversation because I think, you know, to your point, like he does have the complete all-around game. And, you know, one of the discussions becomes, okay, positional value. And obviously, Malhotra and Bjork, right, they're going to play down the middle. And so they got the edge, obviously, over Stenberg in that regard.
But I just wonder, does like his total package game, like should that not elevate him beyond those guys?
Yeah, I mean, I think so. To me, I think he's the best player available in this draft. But I'm not going to mock draft it that way because I don't believe there's anyone who's going to pass over McKenna. And that is even if the Leafs trade out of that position, I still think whoever's picking first is taking Gavin McKenna. But I think Stenberg is the more complete player.
I think he projects as the better all-around player down the road. Now, is he going to have that elite offensive touch? He's going to be able to produce top six points, I believe. But McKenna has the potential to produce top line points. And that's where you find the difference. Do you want the guy who's more responsible, who's more competitive, who's more the all-around player?
Or do you prefer to be really excited about the skill and what that skill can do at a level above everybody else? That's going to be the internal discussions everybody's going to be having about those two players.
One thing we oftentimes see is players that don't have the size generally get moved down the draft. The player who I think is going to be the most polarizing in terms of how people view him on the outside versus ultimately where he gets drafted is Viggo Bjork. We see him at the World Championships. He looks dynamite. I know he's 5'9", but he plays bigger. He's good defensively.
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Chapter 5: How does positional value affect the Canucks' draft strategy?
I think the world of Viggo Bjork, he's really intelligent, super competitive. You know, super, like, he's got creativity. He's got the ability to shoot the puck. He's a trustworthy guy. He's super reliable. Like, again, I think the world of him. But you guys know how the NHL works. The size piece is going to knock him down a bit.
And people are going to say, you know, in the Western Conference at 5'9", 177, is he going to be able to play center? And that's the question you have to ask yourself. Is it going to be Braden Point-like? Or is he going to be a guy who's like, you know, maybe like a Tyler Ennis? if you go back, you know, a considerable amount in the draft.
But I, you know, I'd have no problem taking him, but I know how the NHL works too. And a lot of people are going to be afraid of the size.
The guy, no one's going to ask about size. And this is like also like traits projections a little bit. And I think the guy I've enjoyed watching the most is Oscar Hemming, even though, okay, he's probably not going in the top five, but it is hard not to look at it and be like, yeah, that looks like a, like a ball of fun.
And if it's shaped the right way, boy, there could be a big reward for somebody there.
Yeah, a nice power forward type guy. And he probably begins that conversation of some bigger power forwards. You're going to look at Brooks Rogowski. You're going to look at Ethan Belchez and Oscar Hemming. And I probably have Hemming at the top of that list. Maddox Dajne is another guy who I think has really started to come along in that regard.
So there's going to be some choices for teams to make on that power forward type player. But yeah, Novotny I think could play that sort of game. He's a little bit smaller, however. But yeah, I'm a Hamming fan. No question about it. I like the fact that he was able to, you know, like that was a lot to go through. You know, he's expected to go and play for Kitchener.
You see Kitchener now in the Memorial Cup. His Finnish team doesn't release him. Hockey Canada, the IIHF, and the Finnish team that he had played for can't come to an agreement, so he sits out half the year. But he can't stop the guy from going to school. So then he goes to school, and he starts to show that he can be a pretty good player as a younger player at the collegiate level.
I, guys, like, it sucks for him. I would have loved to have seen him play the whole year in Kitchener just to see what he would have done there.
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Chapter 6: What are the implications of trading down in the draft?
So he's a fascinating guy for me. How high does he get? And I know, you know, I was on it kind of early and then Book's Brooks started to talk about it and Rose started to rise him up a little bit in his ranking. He's a fascinating guy for me. I just don't know, guys, if he's going to be available at 24. What does it look like for Rozov? I don't think he's there either. I don't know.
Savanto, he's probably gone. you know, then what are you looking at? Is it, is it Colin? He's probably gone. So it's going to be, it's going to be difficult. And again, like you have to consider what does it, what does it look like? Is it a trade back scenario? Is it, you know, is it a JP Hurlburt? Is it a Klepov?
Like now you start to consider best player as opposed to just the centerpiece and you broaden your horizons a little bit, but that, yeah, that's, that's a really interesting spot in the draft for me, that 24. And again, you know, It might be a situation where a tradeback presents itself for the Vancouver Canucks there as well.
But I guess the one last guy I would think about is, like, would Nordmark be a guy? He's a really polarizing figure. The skill is definitely top 10. But is he Leckermacky? Is he, you know, LaSalle from Boston? Like, what is he?
or is he going to be an elite like, like a Marcus Johansson or, or, you know, one of those guys that plays a thousand games, you don't really realize he's there and you realize he puts up 50 or 60 points a year, you know?
Yeah, absolutely. And before we let you go, like, I do agree. I think at number 24, there will be a nice player available and somebody that, you know, someone is going to say, I had this guy a lot higher. The team will obviously feel the same way. Usually that's how it goes. But, you know, Ryan Lynn's a player that plays for the Vancouver Giants, right-handed defenseman. Mm-hmm.
And, you know, we saw last year, defensemen under six feet tall barely got taken. And then this year, I know you mentioned this before, Denta Matejchuk had a really nice season with Columbus. You know, he went 12th overall a few years ago, and he's showing to be a player who is worth taking 12th overall.
And despite being just under six feet tall, but if Ryan Lynn's available at 24, like you can end up getting a real nice D prospect if the league is still somewhat cool on drafting D men who are under six feet tall.
Well, the league is going to have no choice this year because when I look at Tommy Blyle out of Moncton, what a rise to prominence this guy's had, basically coming out of prep school and becoming one of the top-ranked defensemen in the class. But he's a smaller guy. He's a puck mover. Xavier Villeneuve is another guy who might be available in that area.
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Chapter 7: How do the Canucks compare to other teams in drafting defensemen?
There is no strong consensus this year on who the third best prospect is. Even if you assume that it's Stenberg and McKenna, the third player, there is no consensus on who that player is. You can choose one of four to five D-men. You can choose one of two centers. You can even pick another wing. Like, if you love Oscar, I don't think he's going to go.
No, I would be floored. I mean, we saw Beckett Seneca go third overall. I thought the way Sammy brought it up and illustrated it, a little bit different. And also, I would say, like, totally different players.
Absolutely. Absolutely. But it's one of those things. Size and all usually does kind of push players off the draft. But the point I'm illustrating is there's so little consensus.
He looks like a ball of clay. Yeah. If you molded it right, you'd be a fantastic player. But, yeah, you could make the case for... You know, I know we do the third wheel of, you know, seven guys, but I think you could, and we get a lot of texts for Dax Rudolph as well. Yeah. Like, I think you could make the case for eight, nine players. Yeah.
It's really fascinating this year with what may happen with the third overall selection. Let's go to the Able Auctions hotline and welcome in our next guest. It is our friend Landon Ferraro, former NHL and current Sportsnet analyst. What's happening, Landon? Enjoying the weather? I am.
It's been unbelievable. Yeah, no, it's fantastic. It really reminds you why you live here.
Yeah, it's always what we say as soon as it doesn't rain. This is why we live here. It's like we try to cope with all the rain that we deal with. But yeah, dynamite weather and a lot of talking points around the Vancouver Canucks. We'll get to the playoffs as well because the Habs are about to take on the Hurricanes for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final.
The lone Canadian team standing, the Habs. But the Canucks have been making moves. Henrik and Daniel Sedin, they're now the co-presidents. We talked about that and Ryan Johnson last week being the GM. And the news came down on Monday that Adam Foote is no longer the head coach of the Vancouver Canucks. And the question just kind of comes down to, is it going to be Manny Malhotra? And you had...
the opportunity to call or work on a lot of Abby Canuck games last year. And even this year, you know, Manny well from talking to him, watching him do his work. If Manny is the guy, how good a selection would he be as the Canucks head coach?
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Chapter 8: What lessons can be learned from the current NHL playoffs?
These are the standards. We expect this out of you. But past that, it's almost open season. Find yourself in the league. And then we'll just keep working as we find things that you need to continue to develop.
Was there a standard that was ever echoed to you that you're like, oh man, that's challenging?
I mean, yeah. From the very first development camp that I got to Detroit, the very first video that we watched was, I want to say it was like Hosa, Zetterberg, and someone else back-checking.
And so it was like a clip of going over the blue line in the offensive zone, a turnover, and especially Hosa, like stopping on a dime and getting on his horse and chasing that guy down to the red line and him causing another turnover and grabbing the puck back or whatever it may be.
But it was, like, it was from the first time we were going on the ice, the first time I put a crest on myself, essentially. And that was the standard. Like, I knew right from the beginning, like, okay, if we do any type of tracking or backtracking drills, I better be there. Right? Like, it's something that simple, though. But it sets a standard.
Yeah.
Yeah.
We also have a question from the inbox for you from Tyler, because we're talking about the pre-draft process and everything like that. Who was the most shocking team to interview you, or what was the strangest question you were asked by teams?
I would say I don't have an answer for the first one, because there was 30 teams at the time, and I interviewed with 28 of them. And to be honest, I don't even remember who the two were. I was...
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