NHL Player News

Coronato scored a power-play goal and went minus-4 in Saturday's 4-1 loss to the Canucks.

Coronato tallied in the first period, but he was also on the ice for all of the Canucks' goals in the third. The 23-year-old winger has yet to live up to the promise that made him the 13th overall pick in 2021, but he will have plenty of opportunities to change the narrative this year. He's slated to see steady top-six minutes and top billing on the power play. Through two games, he has a goal, a minus-6 rating and two shots on net.

Cooley allowed three goals on 25 shots in Saturday's 4-1 loss to the Canucks. The fourth goal was an empty-netter.

Cooley didn't get any help from his offense after the first period. That didn't matter quite as much as him allowing three goals in the third to squander the narrow lead, though one had to be confirmed on video review. The 29-year-old netminder is in a tough spot this year as the backup goalie on a team expected to be near the bottom of the standings. Cooley defied the situation last year with a 2.69 GAA and a .909 save percentage in 31 games last year, but those numbers will be tough to repeat after Calgary's summer sell-off. Expect Dustin Wolf to get the nod in Seattle on Sunday.

Willander notched two assists and a plus-2 rating in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Flames.

Willander has opened the season in a top-four role and on the second power-play unit. The 21-year-old defenseman has earned three assists, three blocked shots and an even plus-minus rating over three contests. There's risk involved in rostering a Vancouver defenseman in fantasy, but Willander has some breakout potential after a 21-point campaign as a rookie in sheltered minutes last year.

Karlsson logged two assists, two shots on goal and a plus-3 rating in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Flames.

Karlsson was on the top line Saturday, which likely helped him break out for a multi-point game. He's earned three assists, five shots on net, two PIM and a minus-1 rating over three contests this season. The Canucks forward combinations are far from settled, so don't be surprised to see Karlsson bounce around the lineup, which could lead to swings in his production on offense.

Pettersson scored a goal and went plus-2 in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Flames.

Pettersson has racked up four hits, six blocked shots and a plus-4 rating over three contests this season. The 22-year-old defenseman has maintained steady time on the third pairing, but he will need to remain effective in the defensive zone, as the Canucks are carrying eight blueliners to start the year. Pettersson should be able to build on his 10-point effort from 70 outings in 2025-26, and he'll be a steady source of hits and blocked shots.

Raty scored an empty-net goal on three shots and added two hits in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Flames.

Raty took a hit from Kevin Bahl in the second period that sent the Canuck to the locker room, but he was able to finish the game. Raty got the last laugh with the empty-netter to open his account for the season. The 23-year-old center was scratched for the first two contests of the campaign, but he got to draw in while Jake DeBrusk (illness) was unavailable. Raty may not be a full-time player early in the campaign, but a spot could open up when injuries arise or trades occur to free up space. Last year, Raty logged 14 points over 66 regular-season appearances, and he added 165 hits.

O'Connor scored a goal on two shots, logged three hits and added two PIM in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Flames.

O'Connor has collected a goal, an assist, five shots, seven hits, four blocked shots and a minus-2 rating over three contests. The 28-year-old is filling a bottom-six role, so his scoring potential is likely to be limited. O'Connor had 29 points over 82 games with the Canucks last year, and production around that level is a fair expectation for 2026-27.

Ohgren scored a goal on three shots, added an assist and went plus-2 in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Flames.

Ohgren worked on the second line Saturday, logging 17:19 of ice time. The line combinations are still a work in progress for the Canucks, but Ohgren has made a good impression so far with a goal, three assists, five shots on net and a plus-2 rating over three contests. If he can secure steady top-six minutes and power-play time, there's a case to be made for a breakout campaign for the 2022 first-rounder.

Merilainen stopped 23 of 24 shots in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Flames.

Getting away from the Oilers made things look a lot better for the Canucks. Merilainen presumably got the start as a reward for his decent relief performance versus Edmonton on Thursday. The 24-year-old netminder has allowed just two goals on 35 shots over his two appearances for the Canucks. He probably won't be that good in the long run, given the rebuilding team in front of him, but he could unseat Kevin Lankinen for the No. 1 job. It'll likely be Lankinen who gets the harder matchup of the weekend Sunday at home versus the Golden Knights.

Clarke logged two assists, including one on the power play, and added five shots on goal, two blocked shots and a minus-2 rating in Saturday's 5-4 overtime loss to the Sharks.

Clarke has racked up six shots, four blocks, five PIM and a minus-1 rating over two contests. The 23-year-old defenseman is in a position to take over as the leader on the blue line as Drew Doughty's role continues to shrink. Clarke had 40 points, 185 blocks and 63 PIM over 82 regular-season outings last year, and it wouldn't be surprising for his offense to find another level in 2026-27.