Canucks invite three intriguing defencemen to Prospect Showcase
After five long months, the Vancouver Canucks will finally be playing hockey again this weekend.
Sort of.
With the annual Young Stars Classic tournament still on hiatus, the Canucks’ prospects will instead play a two-game series against the Seattle Kraken’s prospects on Saturday, Sept. 12 and Sunday, Sept. 13.
The two games are being billed as a Prospect Showcase and will take place at the Rogers Forum in Abbotsford, B.C., with the Saturday game at 4 p.m. and the Sunday game at 1 p.m.
While a complete roster has not yet been announced for the two games, Adam Kierszenblat of The Hockey News was the first to notice that the Canucks’ official roster on the NHL’s media site had quietly added three new players, all of them defencemen.
Those three players have neither been signed nor drafted by the Canucks, which means they’re most likely invitees for the Prospect Showcase.
That makes a lot of sense, because the Canucks don’t have a lot of prospect defencemen in the system.
The Canucks picked just one defenceman, Samuel Eriksson, in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, whose season in Sweden has already started, so he might not be at the Prospect Showcase. In addition, many of their young defencemen have aged out of participating in a showcase or, like Parker Alcos and Aiden Celebrini, are playing NCAA hockey and are unlikely to attend a prospect camp.
So the Canucks needed to add a few invitee defencemen to round out the roster for the weekend. The added upside is that the Canucks get to take a closer look at these young invitees, which could lead to them potentially joining the organization sometime in the future. Troy Stecher, for instance, was once an invitee to a Canucks camp before they signed him to an entry-level contract.
Who are the three invitees this year? Let’s take a closer look.
Arseni Anisimov – Left Defence
6’0” – 176 lbs – Nov 25, 2007 (18)
Kazan, Russia
Prince George Cougars, WHL
Arseni Anisimov is the most immediately intriguing of the three invitees, as well as coming first in alphabetical order.
“Anisimov may be one of the most underrated defenders in the WHL right now,” said Elite Prospects’ Daniel Gee in one scouting report.
The 18-year-old left-shot defenceman was reasonably productive in his draft year, putting up 41 points in 68 games, second among Prince George Cougars defencemen behind Calgary Flames sixth-overall pick Carson Carels.
Anisimov quarterbacked the second power-play unit for the Cougars and likely would have put up even more points if Carels wasn’t dominating on the first unit. He’s patient and poised with the puck, distributing effectively with his vision and passing, but also has a bomb of a slap shot from the point.
That said, offence isn’t the focal point of Anisimov’s game. He’s a smart, high-IQ defender.
“Defensively, Anisimov is meticulous, physical, and aggressive,” reads his scouting report from Elite Prospects’ 2026 draft guide. “With tight off-puck gaps, timed poke checks, and secondary threat eliminations, he plays a clean game.”
So, why did Anisimov go undrafted this year?
One issue is his size. While listed at 6’0”, he’s actually just short of that height and is slight at 176 lbs.
That might not matter as much if Anisimov were an elite skater or had other high-end elements to his game that set him apart from his peers, but he is instead a jack of all trades, master of none.
“Without a separating tool, whether that be shooting, playmaking, handling, or a unique physical profile, the roles that he can fill at future levels will be limited,” reports Elite Prospects.
Still, players with the intelligence of Anisimov can sometimes overcome those limits, and he deserves a longer look.
Carson Cameron – Right Defence
6’2” – 209 lbs – Jun 27, 2007 (19)
Bobcaygeon, Ont., Canada
Peterborough Petes, OHL
Carson Cameron was the captain of the Peterborough Petes this past season, his third with the OHL club. The 19-year-old right-shot defenceman has now gone through two drafts without being selected.
Part of the issue for Cameron is that his numbers don’t show a lot of progression in his game. As a 16-year-old rookie with the Petes, he put up 26 points in 59 games, which had scouts intrigued by what he might do in his draft year.
Unfortunately, the Petes were one of the worst teams in the OHL, and Cameron struggled to stand out, putting up fewer points: he had 23 points in 63 games. This past season, he again put up fewer points, tallying 22 in 61 games.
Still, there’s something compelling about Cameron’s skillset, as he’s an effective defensive defenceman with the puck skills to potentially keep his head above water at higher levels.
“Cameron’s game is smart, clean, and risk-free,” said Elite Prospects’ Lauren Kelly in one scouting report. “He makes hard clears on the penalty kill, he skates away from pressure on retrievals without much issue, and he can shake pressure with sharp cutbacks.”
Combined with decent size at 6’1” and 209 lbs, Cameron’s smart defensive game and strong skating suggest there might be more to him behind his mediocre numbers. In the right situation, he might even have more offensive upside, as he has the hands and shot.
“He has NHL tools across the board,” said Elite Prospects’ Mitchell Brown. “He could become an effective third-pair defenceman.”
Alonso Gosselin – Left Defence
6’1” – 185 lbs – Aug 13, 2007 (19)
Verdun, QC, Canada
Chicoutimi Saguenéens, QMJHL
The Canucks complete the CHL set with Alonso Gosselin, giving them an invitee defenceman from each major junior league.
While Gosselin technically went undrafted twice, with his August birthday, he was one of the youngest players in the draft in 2025 and was still 18 this past season. He turned 19 less than a month ago.
Gosselin had 28 points in 64 games for the Chicoutimi Saguenéens in 2025-26, but offence is not his calling card. Instead, he’s the type of mobile defensive defenceman who could potentially thrive in the NHL.
The 6’1”, left-shot defender was particularly effective against the rush, modulating his approach based on his opposition.
“Gosselin relied on his skating to instantly close out on opponents in the neutral zone, but when faced with more dynamic rushing threats, he would take a more conservative approach, offering space, before taking it away as soon as the opposition felt comfortable attacking it,” reads his scouting report from Elite Prospects’ 2025 draft guide. “He showed sound technique in those engagements, pivoting at the right time while leading with his stick.”
The issue for Gosselin is that he doesn’t get overly involved offensively. While he’s skilled enough with the puck to make a good first pass to start the breakout, he lacks some of the creativity and higher-end skill to create offensive opportunities.
That’s not a problem in the QMJHL, where he can be partnered with a more dynamic defenceman, but it could be a limiting factor for his NHL potential, as higher levels require a base level of skill and vision.
His defensive upside, however, makes him well worth the invite for the Canucks.