Canucks 2023 NHL Draft Picks Rounds 2-7

The Canucks have finalized their picks in the 2023 NHL Draft in Nashville.

Here's the breakdown:

Hunter Brzustewicz - Round 3, 75th overall

Brzustewicz is from Washington, Michigan and most recently played for the Kitchener Rangers in the OHL, amassing 57 points (6-51-57) in 68 games. The 5-foot-11, 190-pound right side defenceman is a two-way player and was 8th among OHL defencemen for total points scored during the regular season.

He's been a part of the U.S. National Team Development Program since his AAA season with the Oakland Jr. Grizzlies. At 15-years-old as a Jr. Grizzly, he put together a 111-point season (15-96-111) in 66 games. He helped Team USA win silver at the 2022 U18 World Juniors in Germany.

Sawyer Mynio - Round 3, 89th overall

The B.C.-born left side defenceman is from Kamloops and coming off his second season in the WHL with the Seattle Thunderbirds.

Mynio helped the Thunderbirds to the 2023 WHL title, earning Seattle a birth to the Memorial Cup. Mynio, 18, had 31 points (5-26-31) during the 2022-2023 regular season and 4 points (1-3-4) through 19 playoff games.

He spoke with Canucks Rinkside reporter Kate Pettersen about being drafted to a team so close to home.

"It's amazing, it's a great organization and I live close to Vancouver so it's pretty surreal to be here in this moment," Mynio said, adding "They're probably one of my top three teams that I had interest in. Obviously close to home, it's amazing."

Ty Mueller - Round 4, 105th overall

The Cochrane, Alberta native spent the last two seasons at the University of Nebraska-Omaha. Mueller, 20, nearly doubled his points total in his sophomore season with the Mavericks (12-13-25) in 34 games, compared to his freshman year (8-5-13) in 24 games.

Prior to the NCAA, the left winger, played in the Alberta Junior Hockey League spending two seasons with the Sherwood Park Crusaders. In his first season with the Crusaders he had 30 points (6-24-30) in 50 games. The 5-foot-11, 185 pound forward has playmaking ability, having played centre during his time with the Crusaders.

Vilmer Alriksson - Round 4, 107th overall

Alriksson, 18, hails from Enebyberg, Sweden and has represented his country at the U17 and U19 levels of international junior play.

The left winger spent the past two seasons with Djurgardens IF association of Sweden for J18 and J20. He had 21 points (12-9-21) in 43 games last season.

He brings size with his 6-foot-6, 214-pound frame. During the 2021-2022 season he shared time between the J18 Region and J18 Nationell Leagues for Djurgardens IF with a combined 28 points (16-12-29) between both leagues and six point (4-2-6) in seven Nationell playoff games.

Matthew Perkins - Round 4, 119th overall

The 5-foot-11, 156-pound centre, was born in Balgonie, Saskatchewan and is a University of Minnesota-Duluth commit for the upcoming season.

Perkins, 19, played for the Youngstown Phantoms in the USHL last season and helped them to the Clark Cup Championship. Perkins racked up 44 points (15-29-44) in 60 games, and 2 points (1-1-2) in nine playoff games with the Phantoms.

He was drafted 32nd overall in the 2019 SJHL Bantam draft to the Humboldt Broncos and midway through the season was a contender for SJHL Rookie of the Year. He finished the season with 59 points (23-36-59) in 57 regular season games and had a goal and three assists in 11 playoff games.

Aiden Celebrini - Round 6, 171st overall

Celebrini, 18, is a Vancouver native and has committed to Boston University for next season. The right side defenceman capped off his season with the Brooks Bandits of the Alberta Junior Hockey League with the 2023 AJHL Championship. Celebrini tallied 21 points (5-16-21) in 47 regular season games for the Bandits, and 3 points (0-3-3) in 15 games during playoffs.

The 6-foot-1, 187-pound defender attended Shattuck-St. Mary's Hockey Center of Excellence with the U18 Prep team (2-30-32) in 55 games and the U16 AAA team (1-13-14) in 43 games.

Celebrini comes by his athleticism honestly, considering his family's history in sport and development of high-performance training techniques. His brother Macklin is expected to be in the 2024 NHL Draft class, and his father Rick, a former professional soccer player, is a physiotherapist and previously worked for the Canucks. Rick currently works for the Golden State Warriors as the Director of Sports Medicine and Performance, and Celebrini's uncle, Randy, is also a physiotherapist in Vancouver who works with high-performance and professional athletes.