Todd Harvey Discusses the Canucks' 5 New Prospects from Day 2 at the 2025 NHL Entry Draft

The Vancouver Canucks targeted highly competitive prospects as they made five selections on day two of the NHL Entry Draft. They selected three centres, a winger, and a goaltender during rounds two through seven.

After picking right-shot centre Braeden Cootes 15th overall in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft, the Canucks continued to value players who can drive play and compete hard on every shift.

Director of Amateur Scouting Todd Harvey spoke to the media following the draft, addressing his team’s approach to the draft and his satisfaction with how the two days went for his group.

“I am happy with every pick we’ve made. We made it for a reason,” said Harvey. “I love the fact that we had competitive people. We have good people and people that want to be Vancouver Canucks.”

2nd Round, 47th Overall: Aleksei Medvedev, G

Goaltender Aleksei Medvedev was selected 47th overall. The 18-year-old is 6’3”, 178 pounds, with high athletic and skating abilities.

This past season, the St. Petersburg, Russia native played 34 games with the London Knights in the OHL. Medvedev made the OHL’s First All-Rookie Team, posting a 22-8-2 record with a .912 save percentage throughout the regular season.

“We thought it was the right time, and, you know, [Ian] Clark, he’ll be in touch with the goalies,” said Harvey. “We have a really good staff here for development and [will] bring [Medvedev] along, and he’s going to have the net next year in London. And you never know, London, they always have a good team, so maybe they get back to the Memorial Cup.”

3rd Round, 65th Overall: Kieren Dervin, C

Center Kieren Dervin was selected 65th overall from the Kingston Frontenacs in the OHL. Dervin played 10 regular-season games for the Frontenacs and 11 playoff games, tallying two goals and four assists in 21 games.

The Gloucester, Ontario native came up through St. Andrew’s College of the Prep Hockey Conference (PHC) and has committed to Penn State University for the 2026-27 season.

“I watched him play near the end of the year a few times, and then in the playoffs. And he’s got good size, he skates pretty well, can make plays, and sees the ice well, and he’s not afraid to play in traffic,” Harvey said. “I thought I saw something there, and our guy in Ontario really liked him. I thought it was the pick for us.”

5th Round, 143rd Overall: Wilson Björck, C

Center Wilson Björck is a 19-year-old left-shot center from Stockholm, Sweden. He wrapped up his J20 season in Sweden with 28 goals and 39 assists for 67 points in 43 games.

Björck is heading across the pond this fall and will join Colorado College in the NCAA, making the transition to playing in North America.

6th Round, 175th Overall: Gabe Chiarot, RW

Gabe Chiarot is a physical presence on the ice and will be heading into his third OHL season this fall. This past year, he scored 21 goals and added 14 assists with the Brampton Steelheads.

Coming in at 5’11” and 190 pounds, Chiarot is a player who loves to play in the dirty areas and dig pucks out of corners to set up his teammates. He has completed two seasons in the OHL and saw his points total more than triple from 2023-24 to 2024-25.

Gabe’s cousin, Ben Chiarot, has played 13 years in the NHL and has served as an assistant captain for the Detroit Red Wings for the past three seasons.

7th Round, 207th Overall: Matthew Lansing, C

The team used their final pick of the draft on Matthew Lansing, yet another hard-working centre.

Lansing is 6’1” and weighs 181 pounds. He played in the USHL this past season and represented the United States at the U18 World Championships.

Harvey was impressed with how Lansing showed improvement throughout the season and was on a steady trajectory of improvement towards the end of the year.

“When you see guys take steps in their game at the right time and start pushing, it is almost like the light goes off and they figure it out. And it’s really good to see guys take steps like that throughout the season,” said Harvey.

The Canucks now quickly flip the switch to development as prospects will take to the ice with coaches and work on their game while receiving guidance for their upcoming season.

Building relationships is an essential piece of Canucks’ development camp and it is going to be an excellent opportunity for the prospects to meet and greet with each other as well as the development coaches that they will have close contact with over the coming years.