Vancouver Canucks 2025 Draft Grades
- Kyle Welsford
- Jun 29
- 6 min read
Record Card
Grading Scheme:
A: Exceptional, Fantastic, Great
B: Good, Solid, Quality
C: Average, Ordinary, Meh
D: Bad, Poor, unsatisfactory
F: Terrible, Fail, Insignificant
N/A: Incomplete
In order of position drafted
Stats are taken from the highest level of competition played (min 10 games)
Braeden Cootes: 15th Overall/1st Round - C
(Grade A-)
GP: 60 G: 26 A: 37 TP: 63 (WHL)
Braeden Cootes was the 10th center selected in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft, with the Canucks taking him 15th overall. Cootes made a name for himself as the WHL’s youngest captain, leading the Seattle Thunderbirds both on and off the ice. He paced the team in scoring during both the regular season and playoffs, finishing with 63 points in 60 games and adding another 8 points in 6 postseason contests.
That leadership carried over to the international stage, where Cootes wore the “C” for Team Canada at the most recent U18 World Championship. He captained the team to a gold medal, leading the way with 12 points in seven games, outpacing fellow first-rounders: Brady Martin (5), Cole Reschny (18), Benjamin Kindel (11), and Jack Nesbitt (12). Cootes also dominated in the faceoff circle, finishing the tournament with a stellar 71.79% success rate, the highest among all players.
Cootes may not put up the flashy numbers some other first-rounders boast, but his impact stretches well beyond the scoresheet. He’s relentless on the forecheck, gets under opponents’ skin, dominates the faceoff circle, kills penalties, and leads by example in all facets of the game. The Canucks’ decision to draft him checks a lot of key boxes. His high-end motor, two-way maturity, and the added value of being a right-shot center address a critical need in the organization, one the Canucks had been missing.
Sure, the Canucks could have gone with the higher-ranked Victor Eklund, but landing a high-character, high-skill player at a position of need was just too good to pass up. This is a solid pick, a guy who’s almost guaranteed to play NHL games. Hard to go wrong with that!
Alexi Medvedev: 47th Overall/2nd Round - G
(Grade B)
GP: 34 GAA: 2.79 SAV: .912 (OHL)
Standing 6’2”, Alexei Medvedev put together an impressive rookie season with the OHL’s London Knights, posting a .912 save percentage and a stellar 22-8-2 record over 34 games. In his first year, Medvedev became a Memorial Cup champion, was named to the OHL First All-Rookie Team, and captured the Dinty Moore Trophy as the league’s top rookie goaltender in goals-against average (2.79), an outstanding debut by any measure. Selected 47th overall in the second round, Medvedev was the third goalie taken in the draft.
Medvedev is explosive, plays bigger than his frame, and is one of the youngest players in the draft, born just five days before the cutoff. Had he been born a week later, he would’ve been in next year’s draft class, where he likely would have been a first-round pick. Ian Clark, now working in a scouting role, played a major part in selecting Medvedev, especially when picking in the top 50. Given Clark’s proven track record, his strong influence on this pick is a reassuring stamp of approval.
Medvedev is set to return to the OHL next season as the undisputed starter for the London Knights. He also makes history as the first Russian goaltender ever drafted by the Canucks. While the team certainly had other positional needs, especially with six goalies already under contract for the 2025–26 season (Demko, Lankinen, Silovs, Petera, Koskenvuo, Young), Medvedev was clearly high on their draft board. It’s also worth noting the Canucks hadn’t drafted a goalie since Ty Young in 2022.
Kieren Dervin: 65th Overall/3rd Round - C
(Grade C+)
GP: 10 G: 1 A: 2 TP: 3 (OHL)
The Canucks used their first pick of the third round to select another center, Kieren Dervin. He began his season playing in the Canadian prep circuit with St. Andrew’s College, where he put up impressive numbers, scoring 46 goals and adding 78 assists for 124 points over 99 games at the U18 AAA level. After making the jump to the Prep Hockey Conference (PHC), Dervin continued to produce, finishing as a point-per-game player with 25 points in 23 games. When his season at St. Andrew’s wrapped up, Dervin joined the Kingston Frontenacs for the tail end of their OHL campaign. He appeared in 10 regular season games, picking up three points, and added another three points in 11 playoff games.
Dervin brings plenty of upside. He plays a reliable two-way game, has a solid frame at 6'1", 183 pounds, and isn’t shy about using his physicality. That said, he’s still quite raw. Many scouting reports had him projected as a fourth-round pick, so selecting him at the top of the third round feels like a bit of a reach. The Canucks didn’t have a fourth-round pick this year, which suggests Dervin was likely their "next best player".
Kieren Dervin is committed to Penn State University, though he won’t begin his collegiate career until the 2026–27 season. In the meantime, he’s expected to play for the Kingston Frontenacs in 2025–26, where the hope is he’ll take a significant step forward in his production.
Wilson Björck: 143rd Overall/5th Round - C
(Grade B)
GP: 43 G: 28 A: 39 TP: 67 (SWE-JR)
Wilson Björck was selected by the Canucks 143rd overall in the fifth round of the draft. A re-entry player, Björck broke out offensively this season, scoring an impressive 67 points in 43 games in the J20. Previously known as a two-way energy player, he took a major step forward offensively while maintaining his versatility and showing off his strong skating ability.
Björck played alongside his younger brother, Viggo Björck, a projected top-five pick, if not higher, in next year’s draft. The brothers lit up the J20, finishing first and second in league scoring. Viggo set a new all-time single-season points record, while Wilson’s total now ranks fifth all-time. Wilson is committed to Colorado College for the upcoming season, where he’ll continue his development in the NCAA.
It’s not a perfect profile, but in the fifth round, Björck is exactly the kind of high-upside swing that makes sense. He brings a meaningful scoring pedigree, and the fact that he plays a premium position down the middle only adds to his value.
Gabriel Chiarot: 175th Overall/6th Round - RW
(Grade B-)
GP: 66 G: 21 A: 14 TP: 35 (OHL) The Canucks selected right-winger Gabriel Chiarot with the 175th overall pick in the sixth round of the draft. Chiarot, a 5’11”, 191-pound winger from Ontario, played this past season with the Brampton Steelheads of the OHL. The 18-year-old scored 21 goals and added 14 assists for 35 points, while chipping in one goal in six playoff games during Brampton’s first-round series against the Oshawa Generals.
Chiarot is viewed as a hardworking, high-motor winger with limited offensive upside. Even at the OHL level, he’s carved out a role as an energy player and grinder, earning the respect of talent evaluators for his relentless work ethic. He may not project as a top-six scorer, but his pace, physicality, and effort level make him a valuable depth piece with potential to contribute in a bottom-six role.
Twenty-one goals are nothing to scoff at. Chiarot made a big leap from scoring just five goals in 2023–24 to 21 in 2024–25. He’s shown a knack for scoring in tight areas and plays a crafty off-puck game, finding soft spots in coverage to create chances. It’s a promising sign that there may be more offensive upside to his game than initially expected.
Matthew Lansing: 207th Overall/7th Round - C
(Grade C+)
GP: 54 G: 12 A: 15 TP: 27 (USHL)
The Canucks selected center Matthew Lansing with the 207th overall pick in the seventh round of the draft. Lansing is a projectable player with intriguing tools, showing flashes of playmaking in transition, solid skating, and consistent engagement. Scouts like his physicality and puck-handling, both of which could continue to develop as he matures.
Lansing spent the 2024–25 season split between the Waterloo Black Hawks and the Fargo Force in the USHL. He began the year in a limited role with Waterloo, where he posted 17 points (8 goals, 9 assists) in 40 games before being traded to Fargo. With more opportunity in the lineup, Lansing found his game, adding 10 points (4 goals, 6 assists) in just 14 games.
He finished the season with a combined 12 goals and 15 assists for 27 points in 54 games and was ranked 175th on NHL Central Scouting’s Final Rankings. Lansing is a late-round swing on a player who skates well, plays with energy, and could develop further with increased opportunity.
Final Draft Thoughts:
The Canucks clearly prioritized the center position in this draft, selecting four centers with just six total picks. It’s a class that includes a few genuinely intriguing swings, along with some clear long-term projects that Vancouver’s amateur scouting staff clearly targeted for their character and intangibles.
Braeden Cootes headlines the class, he’s a high-character, two-way center who fills a real organizational need. Alexei Medvedev stands out as the wild card. It wouldn’t be surprising if he ultimately becomes the best player from this group.
Overall, it was a solid draft for the Canucks. Sure, some might view Medvedev and Kieren Dervin as slight reaches, and Victor Eklund was still on the board when Cootes was selected, but there’s enough upside here to believe this class should be a fruitful one for the organization moving forward.
Final Draft Grade: B-
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