Should Vancouver Canucks trade Tom Willander for Shane Wright? | Daily Hive

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Surely, most Vancouver Canucks fans feel the same way about this proposition.

Tom Willander surprised many when he spent just five games in the AHL last year during his first season as a pro. Heck, he even surprised himself.

“I don’t think anyone else was really expecting it to be that fast,” Willander said recently on the Canucks Insider podcast.

And while there were many moments of the youngster looking like a raw rookie, Willander did flash the skating ability and gap control that made him such a tantalizing player during the 2023 NHL Draft.

But if the Canucks truly want to get Shane Wright, they’re going to have to give up something of value.

Shane Wright reportedly has interest in joining the Canucks. (Simon Fearn/Imagn Images)

Are the Canucks comfortable trading a first-round pick in the infancy of their rebuild? Probably not.

Would the Canucks be willing to trade a player like Braeden Cootes to land Wright? Seems unlikely, considering that Vancouver would inevitably have to add.

Could the Seattle Kraken take a flier on Jonathan Lekkerimäki? His upside is intriguing, but the Canucks would have to add to the deal, and attaching Jake DeBrusk to a potential trade probably isn’t cutting it.

There’s also the outlandish idea of an Elias Pettersson for Wright swap. Although the fact that Patrik Allvin is Seattle’s AGM makes the probability of this even less likely.

All of this means that the Canucks best shot of acquiring Wright probably involves using Willander as the centrepiece.

So, is it worth it?

Willander vs. Wright

There’s logic in a potential Willander-for-Wright swap, considering that the Kraken pivot is the superior player with the higher ceiling.

But just how close is Willander’s potential value to Wright’s?

While Willander deserves credit for becoming a full-time NHL player last season, his effectiveness wavered.

The young Swedish defenceman had a solid start with the Canucks, tilting the ice in Vancouver’s favour during his first few NHL games.

However, as the team completely collapsed following the Quinn Hughes trade, Willander had some understandable rookie moments.

But, like any good young player, Willander learned from it.

“I think I have a lot of areas that I lack in, but I can see them a lot more clearly than I could before,” Willander said on the Canucks Insider podcast.

Towards the end of the season, the 21-year-old earned more ice time and took regular penalty-killing shifts. As his game grew, he received more praise from the coaching staff.

“[He’s] relentless and he’s not scared,” Adam Foote said back in March. “It’s amazing to me, a guy’s all over him, and he’s just fine with it. At that age, it’s pretty impressive.”

“He’s going to make some decisions, like maybe that he should have harder clears at times, things like that, but that’ll come with reps.”

Willander ended his season showing promise of being a long-term, top-four defenceman.

But, what’s more likely, Willander being a top-four mainstay, or Wright becoming a second-line centre?

The numbers would suggest that Wright is the likelier bet.

As we’ve detailed, Wright was on an upward trajectory until being shafted under Kraken head coach Lane Lambert last season. During the Kraken’s final 60 games the season prior, Wright led the team in points as a 21-year-old.

Even after his dip last season, the former fourth-overall pick is a likely bet to be a long-term, second-line centre.

The report is that the Kraken are working to find Shane Wright a new home.

If someone acquires Shane Wright, they should pencil him in as a quality top-six center for years to come. The 2nd line is much more likely than the 1st line, but who knows what happens on a new team… pic.twitter.com/rzGd1BgF1i

— Nick (@nickiacoban) July 16, 2026

While Wright took a step back last season, it’s interesting to see that his draft-plus-four season is eerily similar to Sam Bennett, who had 26 points in 82 games as a 22-year-old.

If you’re dealing for Wright, that’s the kind of ceiling you’re hoping for.

Meanwhile, Willander has a good chance of becoming a top-four defenceman. However, his statistical profile doesn’t make that as likely a bet.

Watch The Stats

The Watch The Stats model by Nick Iacoban is definitely bearish on Willander’s potential (and probably a little too bearish with its heavier emphasis on points). But Willander’s underlying profile does compare favourably to Washington Capitals defenceman Martin Fehervary, who has become a second-pairing rock in the NHL.

Should Canucks consider this?

If the Canucks truly want Wright, trading Willander is something they need to consider.

The trade could make sense for both sides. Wright would give the Canucks a likely second-line centre with tantalizing upside, while Willander would give Seattle a top-four featuring the young Swede and recently drafted Chase Reid for years to come.

But outside of the stats and potential, making a deal like this comes with unintended ramifications for Vancouver.

Tom Willander had a promising rookie season with the Canucks. (Bob Frid/Imagn Images)

After the Canucks dealt with locker room chaos for the past two seasons, do they really want to ship one of their best young players out the door?

Do they really have the stomach to jettison a talented rookie who sounds like a leader in defeat?

Can there actually be an appetite to trade away a guy who’s growing alongside the Canucks’ other young, blue-chip defenceman in Zeev Buium?

Dealing Willander would also leave a massive hole in the Canucks pipeline. No other right-shot defender in the Canucks’ system is even a safe projection to blossom into an NHLer.

Wright’s potential shouldn’t be overlooked. He’s shown flashes of being a first-line NHL centre, even if the safer projection is that he’ll be a solid second-liner for a long time.

But at this juncture, uprooting one of the key pieces of a young Canucks core probably isn’t worth the gamble.

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