Abbotsford Canucks Captain Chase Wouters earned an NHL contract over the summer for the first time in his pro career, and though it didn’t change much about his offseason, the 26-year-old is very proud to be an option for the Vancouver Canucks.
Wouters has always believed hard work gets rewarded and that good things come to those who put in the work. That was his focus this summer, and he is feeling a little antsy after being away from game action for so long.
General Manager Ryan Johnson signed Chase Wouters to his AHL contract back in 2021 and has been a great resource over the years.
“RJ has done so much for me in my career. He has always believed in me as a player, and as a person, it’s shown over the past five years,” said Wouters. “We have had a lot of great times in Abbotsford; obviously, winning the championship in 2025 was amazing.”
Wouters joined the Abbotsford Canucks for their inaugural season in 2021 following a five-year WHL career with the Saskatoon Blades, where he was a captain for his final three seasons. Johnson immediately knew Wouters had high character and was a natural leader, so he decided to make him captain in Abbotsford, even though he had only one season of professional experience.
“After that first year, like anybody, he had some ups and downs, but the qualities that he brought into the arena every day [were impressive]. It was all summer, waking up every morning going, ‘Why do I feel like Wouters needs to be named captain? Is it too soon?’ said Johnson on an episode of the Canucks Insider Podcast.
“He’s a second-year pro, but every morning or every week I woke up, it became more definitive. I bounced it off some people that I trusted, and it was like, do what you feel, if it’s that.”
The rest is history, and Wouters has been named Man of the Year for the Abbotsford Canucks each of the past four seasons.
Wouters has been excellent at helping young players make the jump into pro hockey. He makes the locker room a welcoming environment for players coming over from Europe, the NCAA or junior hockey.
“If you go back five years, I was 21 and in the same boat as these guys who are coming in. No one knows what to expect when you’re coming in from junior or college to professional hockey. It’s a whole other level, a whole other side of preparation,” said Wouters.
“Something we’ve always talked about in Abby is being a good teammate. That’s the culture we’ve built there, and it will continue. The main thing is making everyone feel comfortable, and making everyone feel like they are a part of what we’re doing in Abby and all the way through to Vancouver.”
One player Wouters helped feel comfortable in Abbotsford was Linus Karlsson. Before playing the entire season in the NHL last year, Karlsson played 164 AHL games over three seasons with Abbotsford. Wouters was captain when Karlsson arrived in 2022 and helped make his first season in North America a smooth transition.
“You could tell right away that he’s a good leader. When I came over, he always invited me for dinners, and he welcomed me to the team,” said Karlsson. “He’s a great leader, and you could tell right away, it was just so impressive to see a young guy like that lead a room the way he did and still does.”
Karlsson spoke about Wouters bringing such high energy to every drill, and those hard battles in practice helped raise the level of all the players when it came to game time.
Wouters has earned an NHL contract and hopes to contribute at the NHL level, but he remains focused on being a key leader in Abbotsford and a resource for young players getting their first taste of pro hockey.
