Linus Karlsson is coming off his first three-point performance for the Canucks.
In a season full of negatives, there are still some things Vancouver Canucks fans should be positive about (however hard it may be to see them). As chaotic as things have been due to injuries, trades, and the like, the play of Vancouver’s young stars has been a positive element to keep track of. One player in particular who has made a mark this year is Linus Karlsson.
Karlsson, of course, was one of the biggest pieces to last night’s 5–4 win against the Boston Bruins, scoring two goals and assisting on Max Sasson’s tally. He was even given the opportunity to shoot during the shootout, though he was unable to score. Throughout 32 games played in the 2025–26 season, he has tallied seven goals and seven assists.
As a depth player, Karlsson has mainly stuck around the third or fourth line this season, though he did get a brief promotion to the first line alongside Elias Pettersson and Jake DeBrusk at the start of December. He has bounced around throughout the season, skating with Calder Cup linemates Sasson and Arshdeep Bains at one point, but has seemed to find a semi-permanent home with Sasson and the newly-acquired Liam Öhgren.
Karlsson’s game has grown by a wide margin since last season, during which he scored three goals and three assists in 23 games played. The forward had managed to establish a bit of a role for himself by the end of the 2024–25 regular season, but of course, it was still the first time he’d played more than five games in a season at the NHL level. Things have changed this season, with the forward consistently putting himself in the right spots to generate a good scoring chance or driving hard to the net to bang in an errant puck.
Impressively, Karlsson has also been one of the more consistent point-producers on the Canucks, as the longest he has gone without registering a point this season is five games — a stretch that lasted from October 25 to November 3, during which he put up one assist. For reference, fellow Canucks such as Kiefer Sherwood, Filip Hronek, and Brock Boeser have all had longer stretches without a point this year.
Expectedly, Karlsson’s minutes have been somewhat sheltered, as the forward is 16th on his team in minutes played with 331:52. This doesn’t mean he hasn’t been trusted in situations other than 5-on-5, however, as he currently ranks ninth on the team in power play minutes with 42:49.
Looking at advanced stats, Karlsson has been one of the most offensively-prolific players on the team regardless of whether he has found the scoresheet or not. He currently leads the Canucks in overall CF% with 59.23%, ranks second in SCF% with 59.16%, and places third in xGF% with 57.98%.
As it stands, Karlsson looks primed to play in his first full NHL season, as he has played in 32 of Vancouver’s 35 games in 2025–26. It’ll be interesting to see how the rest of the forward’s season goes, and whether or not he can continue this impressive stretch of play throughout the entire year.
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