Vancouver Canucks put right-shot defenseman on waivers

The move arrived Sunday, and it comes just as the 24-year-old has recovered from an injury that kept him out of action since before the season began.

Thompson opened the 2026-27 campaign on Vancouver's non-roster injured reserve after taking a puck to the face earlier this fall, which kept him away from training camp.

Now that he is healthy, he is expected to report to AHL Abbotsford if no club claims him.

The Canucks sit at 2-9-1 and are searching for answers under head coach Manny Malhotra, so every roster decision is drawing extra attention. A depth defender on the right side is hardly the cause of the slow start.

Filip Hronek, Tom Willander and Victor Mancini are all in the organization, and Thompson has yet to appear in a game this season.
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Because Thompson is waiver-eligible, Vancouver had to expose him before it could assign him to the minors. The Canucks acquired him from the San Jose Sharks in March for Jett Woo, then signed him in June to a one-year, two-way contract that pays $850,000 at the NHL level.

Teams typically have until noon ET the following day to submit a claim, so Thompson's fate should be settled early Monday.

A club hunting for affordable right-shot depth could see value in a 6-foot-1 defenseman who has four goals and 10 points in 34 NHL games with the Lightning and Sharks.

There is also a contract angle to watch. According to PuckPedia's tracker, Thompson is currently heading toward Group 6 unrestricted free agency next summer, since he would need 46 more NHL games to remain a restricted free agent. That makes his path back to the NHL even more important for both sides.

If he clears, Thompson will likely return to Abbotsford, where he collected 13 points in 14 games last spring. If another club claims him, Vancouver loses a young defenseman it acquired less than eight months ago.

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