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Canucks Central

The Open: What Is the Best Way to Utilize Third Overall Pick?

28 May 2026

Transcription

Chapter 1: What should the Canucks consider with the third overall pick?

3.44 - 31.862 Sat Shah

It's a Thursday edition of Canuck Central coming to you live from the Kintec studio. Step strong with orthotics and footwear from Kintec. It's Satyar Shah and Bik Nizar. Producers today, Lina and Arash. Josh on the men. Hopefully we'll be back again soon. And as always, we want to hear from you on the show. So get your thoughts in to our Dunbar Lumber text inbox at 650-650.

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32.864 - 49.954 Sat Shah

Trusted by contractors and DIY champions across Metro Vancouver, four generations. Find them at three convenient locations or visit Dunbar Lumber online today. Big show coming up for you. A lot to get to. We're going to chat with our Thursday regular. who is Landon Ferraro. He'll be joining us.

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49.974 - 65.716 Sat Shah

We're going to chat a little bit about the Vegas Golden Knights as they've punched their ticket to the Stanley Cup final. Ken Bullicki is going to be joining us from Sinbin, Vegas. And also a bit later in the show, we're going to talk to one of the top prospects in this year's draft, slated to be a first-round pick, J.P.

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Hurlburt, the talented forward who played for the Kamloops Blazers this season. And as always, Canuck Central is brought to you by... your lower mainland Boston pizza. The playoffs are here and BP is ready. So skip the couch, catch every hit, every goal, every save, every playoff beard. This is how you watch playoff hockey. What's happening, Beck?

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87.499 - 95.758 Bik Nizar

Fired up, man. Another one of these prospect interviews. I think we are starting to get more excited. No, sorry, I didn't say more excited. Our excitement is increasing about 24.

96.439 - 115.406 Sat Shah

Yes, very much. That's what happens when you go through this process and you start compiling your list and you realize there's so much variance and that somebody you may have in that top 10, 12 range or 15 range is likely to be there at 24 because every team has a different list. So I'm really curious to see who's going to fall.

115.766 - 134.612 Sat Shah

And also when we get a chance to talk to these players, get to know them a little better, we start, you know, building a slight relationship. And also you start putting names to faces and also know the personalities a little bit. And that makes you a bit more intrigued about the possibilities because we chatted with Wyatt Cullen the other day, very impressed with a young kid, very confident that,

134.592 - 162.793 Sat Shah

where we're building our biases like why i call him like number two on my board now he's he's moved up that much so we talk about the interview we always joke about like the central bump it's like we talk to a guy and the guy scores what about the inverse like hey they talk to us and it's like hey you like you're bumming on my draft portals yeah they yeah no no doubt i mean we talk about how you can't get fooled by small sample sizes and here we are after 10 minute combo gotta take this guy yeah no it's it's we're fickle on the best of days very enjoyable

163.313 - 180.512 Sat Shah

So we're chatting with JP Herbert coming up a bit later in the show. A very talented player as well. So I'm really looking forward to having a chat with him. And I think the Canucks are going to get a really nice player at 24. Who that's going to be? Well, that very much remains to be seen as the draft is still just a month away. Well, let's get to the open.

Chapter 2: Who is Viggo Bjork and is he a viable option for the Canucks?

352.896 - 376.347 Bik Nizar

Yeah, yeah, of course. But when we talk about different draft classes, oh, this isn't as exciting as 2015. This isn't as exciting as, you know, Bedard, Carlson, Fantilli off the top, right? If you're sitting there at three, unless San Jose, quote-unquote, makes a mistake and allows a situation where Stenberg drops and you are running to the podium, as we talked about on Monday...

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Unless that situation develops, as much as we're talking about who are they going to pick at three, more importantly is, okay, what are they going to do at three? Are there options? And look, I know there's challenges and difficulties in trading up and trading down at the top end of the draft, of course. But it is using... The third overall pick, if you do the draft value chart, right?

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398.658 - 424.02 Bik Nizar

The third overall pick has a value to it. Yes. Is the player meeting that value? that you select at three? Or is there a way to maximize the entirety of the value to say, hey, we might not get the player that's as good as the traditional returns of third overall, but with this idea... Can you go about the process and say, what is actually the best way to maximize third overall?

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424.701 - 443.273 Sat Shah

I mean, personally, this is something that I've maintained now for a few months that if Stenberg or McKenna are not there at number three, then I would prefer to move down a few spots because I feel more comfortable getting an extra asset or two and then still taking a player, whether it's Malhotra, Bjork, Reid, Carls,

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Verhoff even I know you're a big Verhoff fan like let's take say those four or five players that I'd be comfortable going from three down to five or six and then still getting one of those players and then getting another pick out of it and I feel more comfortable because then I feel better about drafting those guys at five or six or seven as opposed to taking that player third overall

462.592 - 483.79 Sat Shah

Because of, to your point, I'm not sure there's somebody that I'm so sold on a third. And the player that I love a lot, and we talked about him quite a bit in Michael Texton, is Viggo Bjork. I just don't think that if the Canucks, I just don't think he's being taken with the third or fourth overall pick. So if that's the guy you want, I feel like you can get him at five or six. Right.

484.47 - 504.175 Sat Shah

So that's why like, and even Caleb, like between Caleb and Bjork, it's very even to me. But the more I watch Bjork at the world championships and he's a guy that I've had a real soft spot before for quite some time. I'm just so enamored with how he plays and you see the potential and how it can really skyrocket with him as well. I just don't think he's going to go third overall.

504.155 - 519.68 Sat Shah

So if that's your guy, I would feel most comfortable going down a few spots and then taking him at five, six, or perhaps even seven. But that's also an academic ideal world versus what's the reality of somebody actually giving you something of significance to move up to three from five or six or seven.

519.78 - 544.489 Bik Nizar

So I think the way we wanted to talk about this today is also like... Building out like the priority, I think for both of us and for a lot of people, it is McKenna or Stenberg at three. If one of them slides there, you stick and pick. But what is the best way to utilize third overall as a whole? And, you know, we've chatted just in passing.

Chapter 3: What are the implications of trading the third overall pick?

866.668 - 893.548 Bik Nizar

So just again, you can use different draft pick value charts. You can build your own. I'm trying to do that myself, actually. But I'm just using the Puckpedia pick value calculator. 3, sorry, 6, 36, and 51 does not equal 3. No. So that's 2 extra. It's close, but it's only 2 extra 2s.

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893.528 - 899.294 Sat Shah

Yeah, two extra twos does not make up the value from six to three. And that just tells you how valuable the third overall pick is.

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899.474 - 925.703 Bik Nizar

Yes. So now do you say, hey, we'll also take 55. And is that enough? Or do you say, hey, you've got a pick in next year's draft class. That's actually the one we actually want. And you can throw all the protections on it that you want. But going into next year's draft class... For a 2027 first, that's the one we want. The Vegas pick that they own in 2027.

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925.743 - 949.995 Bik Nizar

We'll bypass three twos this year for one one next year. And so if you're talking, you're guaranteed in that spot then. Two first round picks next season. Yeah, two first round picks next year and then one of Verhoff, Reid, Malhotra, Bjork. Yeah. Because one of those guys is going to be available at six. We can throw in Carl's. Yeah, Carl's too. So that would go down to seven. But like,

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that is worth more than the hoping you're right versus Malhotra versus Bjork. Because you've insulated your incorrectness, basically.

964.168 - 978.503 Sat Shah

Yeah, you're getting assets for not taking the guy or essentially you're removing the risk and you're getting a price for it. Like it's an insurance, like you're getting paid insurance essentially.

978.583 - 978.683

Yeah.

979.76 - 983.005 Sat Shah

That's what you're getting for it. Now, when you say it that way, I feel like the insurance company right now.

983.025 - 986.911 Bik Nizar

It's like, no wonder they're psyched all the time when people pay.

Chapter 4: How do the Canucks prioritize their draft choices?

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That option... Because of the variance in this draft, does one team actually look at one of these guys ahead of McKenna or Stenberg? And they want to leapfrog to say, hey, this guy's not going to be available for much longer. It's a lot harder for them to trade up to two than it is to three because that's what the price is.

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1292.404 - 1314.097 Bik Nizar

If a scenario develops where it is, again, McKenna and Stenberg, first winger-winger draft since 07, and now the variance comes into play, Same with the lottery balls coming to play. All the ideas are just bouncing off. Are there competing lists to say, hey, that guy isn't going to make it to us to six, but we value him as high as the other guys, as McKenna and Stenberg.

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1314.117 - 1332.089 Sat Shah

Yeah, and I think, honestly, I think this is one of those drafts where I think we're going to see somebody get taken sixth or seventh, and that team's going to say they had them top three in their draft. Now, sometimes it's lip service, but I think in this year, I actually do believe that this could be the case. Absolutely. So you're picking 51, GM. What do you think?

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1332.129 - 1342.767 Sat Shah

Oh, this guy was number one on our list. Yeah. Well, it's always kind of funny how that works, right? Like, for instance, San Jose may have Chase Reed as number one on their list, but then they may have Caleb Malhotra, too.

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1343.228 - 1343.368 Unknown

Mm-hmm.

1344.85 - 1362.108 Sat Shah

You know what I mean? So it's one of those things like you don't know 100% yet. And I think in this year's draft, there is so much variance that I feel comfortable if you have to trade down if Stenberg and McKenna aren't there, that you're still getting a really nice player plus an extra asset. Now, how likely is that to happen? Probably unlikely, I'd still say in terms of it.

1362.128 - 1377.885 Sat Shah

But if you're looking, if you're putting together, like we said, the ideal outcomes, the first ideal outcome is take your pick, McKenna or Stenberg. The second one is whoever's left the McKenna or Stenberg. And then three, it's, well, you still get the player you want going down a couple spots and getting an extra first for it. Like, that's the most ideal outcome.

1377.945 - 1397.431 Sat Shah

Now, how likely are those outcomes? I'd say all three are unlikely to some extent, but we'll see how that all goes. Now, for all this talk, let's find out who the Canucks are getting with the third overall pick with the third wheel. Is there a draft simulator? Vic has a weighted wheel. Let's see if it lands on Kaelo Malhotra.

1397.471 - 1402.077 Sat Shah

He has not been selected yet, despite having the biggest share of the pie. Let's roll the lottery.

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