Welcome to The Hockey News - Vancouver Canucks site’s player preview series for the 2025–26 season. In these articles, we’ll preview the players who are expected to play for the Canucks in the 2025–26 season. In this edition, we’ll cover Vancouver’s first-round selection in the 2023 NHL Draft, defenceman Tom Willander.
Willander’s 2024–25 Season
The 2024–25 season was Willander’s second with Boston University of the NCAA. Prior to joining BU, Willander had solely played in Sweden, spending his draft year with Rögle BK. His move to the NCAA was a successful one. In 2024–25, he collected two goals and 22 assists in 39 games played and acted as one of his team’s top defencemen throughout the season. He also had an impressive showing at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship, scoring two goals and three assists in Sweden’s fourth-place finish. After ample discussion, the Canucks signed Willander to his entry-level contract back on May 14.
Willander’s 2025–26 Predictions
Vancouver’s defence situation is an interesting one, as it appears that five of the six current rosters spots will be locked down by captain Quinn Hughes, Filip Hronek, Tyler Myers, Derek Forbort, and Marcus Pettersson. The sixth spot is currently up for grabs, though Elias Pettersson (D) appears to be the favourite to take this role. While Willander could definitely contend for this position, it may be best to give him some time to grow as a member of the Abbotsford Canucks.
As a highly-skilled, NHL top-four projected defenceman, Willander is likely to find success regardless of whether he starts the season with Vancouver or Abbotsford. Because of the presence of players such as Pettersson, Victor Mancini, Guillaume Brisebois, and Pierre-Olivier Joseph in the depth chart, the most likely scenario is that Willander starts the season in Abbotsford. Of course, this will depend on how each player’s training camp goes, though it’s hard to argue against a depth chart that includes some more experienced players. With that being said, defence coach Kevin Dean has noted that he isn’t going to shy away from letting players play the way that has gotten them success — which could help Willander’s case for cracking Vancouver’s lineup from the get-go.
Ultimately, Vancouver has a special prospect in Willander. He’ll be a key piece of the organization in the very near future.
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