Canucks Fans Got Their Wish — and Maybe a Glimpse of the Future

For the Vancouver Canucks, the regular season doesn’t officially begin until Thursday. But if you ask around, some fans might tell you they’ve already earned a moral victory. 

On Sunday afternoon — a day before all teams were required to submit their opening-night rosters — general manager Patrik Allvin announced that defensemen Victor Mancini and Tom Willander had been assigned to Abbotsford in the AHL. The move didn’t come as a total shock for Willander, who showed glimpses of NHL readiness but not enough to lock down a spot. 

The bigger surprise was Mancini. 

Vancouver Fans Blasted Team’s Initial Decision on Victor Mancini

By most accounts, the 23-year-old, who was acquired from the New York Rangers as part of the J.T. Miller trade, had been one of Vancouver’s steadier defensemen throughout camp, and many believed he’d done enough to earn a longer look. Instead, he was sent down, a decision that raised eyebrows — and, judging by the replies to the Canucks’ X (formerly Twitter) post, plenty of fan frustration too. 

“Please fire Allvin,” one commenter wrote. 

“This absolutely sucks. Mancini should be on the team. What does a guy have to do?” another lamented. 

“Mancini was the best dmen in the preseason and still gets sent down lol,” said a different responder. 

It didn’t take long for those fans to get their wish. On Tuesday, the Canucks announced that defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph had been played on injured reserve, retroactive to September 30, and Mancini was recalled to take his spot. 

“This might break the internet,” one commenter joked. 

“Should be on team all the time. Other teams’ players are scared of him,” another stated. 

But this decision isn’t just about injury relief. The recall of Mancini is emblematic of what feels like a sea change in Vancouver — a deliberate pivot toward youth, internal development, and roster reset.  

Canucks’ Opening-Night Roster Signals Shift Toward Youth & Internal Development

Over the last few seasons, the chatter around the Canucks has gradually shifted from “should they trade pieces?” to “can they build from within?” And this decision underscores that shift. 

Take Braeden Cootes, for example. The 18-year-old center, drafted this past summer, headline’s Vancouver’s opening-night roster, marking the first time since Petr Nedved in 1990 that an 18-year-old made the Canucks roster right out of camp. 

And there are five other players — defenseman Elias Pettersson and forwards Jonathan Lekkerimaki, Arshdeep Bains, Linus Karlsson and Aatu Raty — who make the jump to the NHL in 2025 after spending the majority of last season in the AHL. That kind of bold youth inclusion sends signals, not whispers. 

Mancini’s return fits nicely into that narrative. 

His recall isn’t a knee-jerk injury replacement. It’s a microcosm of how the Canucks are trying to remake themselves — giving young players real opportunities, leaning on internal growth, and building a roster more resilient to failure.  

For fans, it means that the moral victories might come earlier than expected. For the team, it means they’re finally showing they believe in what they’ve built. 

Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.

This article was originally published on Heavy Sports

The post Canucks Fans Got Their Wish — and Maybe a Glimpse of the Future appeared first on Heavy Sports.