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Canucks: Filip Chytil starts season on IR as Braeden Cootes gets farmed out

Braeden Cootes has been sent to Abbotsford while Filip Chytil has a "muscular" shoulder injury.

Published Sep 25, 2026  •  2 minute read

Braeden Cootes on the ice during development camp in Abbotsford in June. Photo by NICK PROCAYLO /10112084A

The Vancouver Canucks are getting closer to deciding on their opening roster.

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On a Friday that saw both an expected choice and a enforced move, the Canucks have reduced their forward group by two.

First there was the decision to send Braeden Cootes to the AHL, a move which was long expected, but still stands out given his strong pre-season.

Canucks GM Ryan Johnson has been clear from the start that Cootes was almost a guarantee to start the season in the minors, more than once saying he didn’t want any of his young players to be on a “yo-yo.”

In other words, he wants the likes of Cootes to play a lot in Abbotsford, to thrive in those minutes, and for him only to be brought to the NHL when it’s absolutely time for him to be there full-time.

“My conversation with Braeden was very complimentary of everything — how he’s approached it mentally, physically, how he’s handled everything,” Johnson said. “I think I’ve said this before, not just with Braeden, but of all of our players. I don’t want to race things along or put a ceiling on what I think they could be for this organization long-term.

“You start to mess with that a little bit, I feel, when you yo-yo players up and down. There’s uncertainty. When they’re coming up, they’re excited. When they’re going down, they’re wondering why, what they did wrong.”

Meanwhile, Johnson confirmed that Filip Chytil injured his shoulder on Thursday night after he took a spill into the end boards because of a collision with an official.

Johnson said that the assessment is that Chytil had not suffered any structural damage, but had injured some of the muscles in his shoulder.

“He was in great spirits this morning. Unfortunate bounce for a guy who has been through so much, but we’re just evaluating right now. It will be a week to week thing, but nothing at this point that is alarming.”

Unless Johnson makes another waiver claim — and he very well could with dozens of players hitting the waiver wire on Friday and more expected to be made available over the weekend — the demotion of Cootes and the move with Chytil would bring the Canucks forward group down to 13 and would allow the team to start the year with eight defencemen, assuming Johnson does what he has suggested and start the season with just two NHL goalies.

To do so, though, Nikita Tolopilo will have to be waived after Leevi Meriläinen was added from Ottawa off waivers.

SICKBAY — Thatcher Demko will also start the season on injured reserve, Johnson confirmed. That is not a surprise given that he has not yet skated with the team at all.

pjohnston@postmedia.com

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