Ahead of a five-game road trip, the Vancouver Canucks are making some roster changes.
Head coach Adam Foote announced on Tuesday that centre Braeden Cootes is being sent back down to the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds. In a subsequent move, forward Max Sasson is being called up from the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks.
Cootes, 18, played in Vancouver’s first three games of the 2025-26 season, posting a minus-two plus/minus in 10:47 of average ice time with a 38.5 face-off win percentage.
According to Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre, Foote praised Cootes for his brief NHL stint to open the season, adding that the youngster will be able to apply that experience back in Seattle.
The NHL rookie was a point-per-game player with the Thunderbirds last year, logging 63 points (26 goals and 37 assists) in 60 appearances.
The Canucks selected Cootes with the 15th overall pick in the 2025 draft.
Meanwhile, Sasson now prepares for his second NHL stint after playing 29 games with Vancouver last season. The 24-year-old posted three goals, four assists and was plus-one in that span.
The Canucks are 1-2-0 as they enter the five-game stint away from Rogers Arena, tied for the team’s second-longest road trip of the season, beginning with a tilt against the Dallas Stars on Thursday.
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