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The NHL draft is one week away, and for the Vancouver Canucks, it represents the most important night the franchise has had in some time.
After finishing the 2025-26 season with a league-worst 25-49-8 record, the Canucks entered the draft lottery with the best odds of securing the top pick, only to see the balls fall out of their favor and drop to third in the order. It was a gut punch, but not a fatal one. This draft class runs deep with talent, and picking third still gives Vancouver a chance to land a genuinely impactful player.
The Canucks tied the Chicago Blackhawks for the league’s second-worst offense at 2.56 goals per game while also posting the worst goals-against average in the entire NHL at 3.83, a number that was not particularly close to the next team on the list.
With forwards like Elias Pettersson, Marco Rossi and Jake DeBrusk already in the fold up front, defense appears to be a slightly more pressing priority, and fortunately for Vancouver, this draft class is loaded on the blue line. Here is a look at the three best fits for the Canucks at third overall.
3. Keaton Verhoeff, D, North Dakota (NCAA)
For much of the past year, the towering 6-foot-4 defenseman out of Fort Saskatchewan, Alta., was widely regarded as a consensus top-three pick, and the reasons why are not hard to find. Verhoeff’s game has drawn comparisons to Canadian hockey legend Drew Doughty, a player he has cited as an influence. However, more recently he has found a new model in Dallas Stars defenseman Thomas Harley.
After making the jump from Canadian junior hockey to the NCAA with North Dakota, Verhoeff held his own against older competition as a 17-year-old, finishing with six goals and 16 assists for 22 points in 36 games. His massive frame and the buzz surrounding him for over a year make him an intriguing option who could step into Vancouver’s backend and make an immediate impact.
MORE: 3 best 2026 NHL draft options for the Maple Leafs at first overall
2. Chase Reid, D, Sault Ste. Marie (OHL)
The 6-foot-2, 192-pound blueliner out of the OHL’s Soo Greyhounds has been one of the most talked-about players in the entire draft, with the 18-year-old Chesterfield, Michigan native seeing his stock climb as high as second overall in some mock drafts.
Reid is coming off back-to-back strong seasons with the Greyhounds. After posting seven goals and 33 assists for 40 points in 39 games the year prior, he took a significant leap forward this past season with 18 goals and 30 assists for 48 points in 45 games, establishing himself as one of the most offensively dynamic defensemen in the OHL.
He carried that momentum onto the international stage as well, earning a spot on Team USA’s world juniors roster and contributing two goals and two assists in five games. Reid is a slightly smaller but more offensively gifted option who could make his presence felt at the NHL level sooner rather than later.
MORE: 2026 NHL draft: Do the Sharks give Macklin Celebrini another star winger or a No. 1 defenseman?
1. Ivar Stenberg, LW, Frolunda (Swe.)
There is virtually no scenario in which Gavin McKenna slides from the first overall spot, but Canucks fans can dare to dream about the Swedish sensation falling one spot to third.
Heading into draft season, some evaluators viewed Stenberg as the best player in the entire class, McKenna included, and the comparisons being thrown around are not modest ones. His game has drawn parallels to Detroit Red Wings star Lucas Raymond, and nobody in the hockey world views him as anything less than a top-three talent.
What makes Stenberg’s case so compelling is where he was playing and how he was performing. While many of his Swedish peers in this draft class were competing at the junior level, Stenberg was holding his own against professional men in the SHL with Frölunda, one of the most respected clubs in European hockey.
At just 18 years old, he recorded 33 points in 43 games in a league known for its defensive structure, numbers that speak to a player operating well beyond his age in terms of hockey maturity and skill.
If Stenberg is somehow available when Vancouver is on the clock, the decision should not take long.
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