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Vancouver Canucks have 16 forwards left on roster after latest cut

Trevor Beggs
Trevor Beggs
|
Oct 2 2025, 7:07 pm
Vancouver Canucks have 16 forwards left on roster after latest cut
Bob Frid/Imagn Images

The Vancouver Canucks are one step closer to cementing their final roster for opening night.

On Thursday, the team announced that forward Vitali Kravtsov has been placed on waivers.

The team also announced that forward Joe LaBate, who played in Wednesday’s 8-1 preseason win for the Canucks over the Calgary Flames, has officially cleared waivers and was sent to the AHL. He was not at Canucks practice on Thursday at UBC.

For Kravtsov, he played in two of the five Canucks preseason games, and he failed to get a point. During his last game against the Seattle Kraken, he was on the ice for both goals against.

He was clearly outplayed by some of the other bubble guys on the roster, like Arshdeep Bains, Max Sasson, and Linus Karlsson.

Kravtsov signed with the Canucks in August after a two-year stint in the KHL. The former ninth-overall pick in 2018 was originally acquired by the Canucks on Feb. 23, 2023, in exchange for William Lockwood and a 2026 seventh-round draft pick.

There are 16 forwards now that remain on the Canucks’ roster. Here are the bubble guys who are still fighting for a spot.

  • Braeden Cootes
  • Jonathan Lekkerimäki
  • Aatu Räty
  • Linus Karlsson
  • Arshdeep Bains
  • Max Sasson
  • Nils Ă…man

At practice on Thursday, Nils Ă…man was the odd man out among forwards. He skated on defence alongside Victor Mancini, with both Derek Forbort and Pierre-Olivier Joseph missing from practice.

Aatu Räty slotted in at wing during practice. Even though he regularly plays centre, the 22-year-old most recently played wing during the Canucks’ 4-3 preseason loss to the Edmonton Oilers last Sunday. He scored two goals in his last two preseason games.

The Canucks have their final preseason contest on Friday, Oct. 3, against the Oilers.

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