Canucks Draft Niklas Aaram-Olsen 41st Overall

With the 41st pick in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, the Vancouver Canucks have selected Niklas Aaram-Olsen from Örebro HK of the SHL.

About Niklas Aaram-Olsen

Looking to potentially be the 30th player from Norway ever selected in an NHL Entry Draft, Niklas Aaram-Olsen (NAO) has been very interesting to follow this season. Being born in Oslo, he stayed in Norway until he was about 15 years old. In his final season in Norway, he averaged an outrageous 4.14 points per game at the U16 level and an absurd 1.58 points per game at the U18 level, primarily as a 14-year-old.

Following the 2022-23 season, it was pretty evident he needed to be playing at a higher level. He left for Sweden, as many Norwegians will eventually do, and has played with Örebro HK ever since.

In 2023-24, he split his time between the top Swedish U16 and U18 leagues. Then, the following season, he played one game and scored a hat trick at the U18 level before playing the rest of his season at the U20 level, averaging nearly a point per game.

This season, he dominated at the U20 level again in Sweden, posting 1.37 points per game before finishing the season by playing his first 15 professional games with Örebro HK.

The transition to the European pro game wasn’t as smooth as it was for some others in this class. However, he’s a big kid, at 6-foot-1 and 187 pounds. He is a great shooter with a variety of tricks to change his release point and fool goaltenders. He isn’t afraid of playing in the dirty areas on the ice. He projects to be a middle-six winger but plays the type of game that could be used anywhere in an NHL lineup.

THW Prospect Profile Excerpt

NAO is a Norwegian winger who is one of the best goalscorers in the 2026 Draft. He has the skill and scoring to lead a power play and an athletic frame that should set him up well in the NHL. He was excellent in Sweden’s top junior league, scoring a point per game last season as a 17-year-old and leveling that up to roughly 1.4 points per game in his draft year.

He didn’t spend the entire season at the junior level, though, dressing for 16 games in the SHL with Örebro’s senior club. However, he never earned significant ice time and didn’t score any points.

In five games at the Division 1A World Junior Championships, NAO scored six goals and 10 points, helping to lead Norway on an undefeated run through the tourney and back into the top level of the tournament for the 2027 World Junior Championship in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta.

He scored 20 goals and 20 assists in only 29 games, which gives a glimpse into his scoring ability. He can pick a corner from range and looks like a potential top-six winger in the NHL. He isn’t the most competitive or physical player, so don’t draw comparisons to fellow Norwegian Michael Brandsegg-Nygård just because they’re from the same country, but he has a big body and has decent two-way potential.

Continue reading our full player profile here.

How This Affects the Canucks’ Plans

With how much turmoil the Canucks have gone through over the past couple of seasons, this draft has been all about restocking the cupboards. After landing Caleb Malhotra and Adam Novotny in the first round, two high-upside offensive weapons, the Canucks are getting a high-floor option with the way NAO plays the game. If he continues to round out his game, the Canucks could be getting a high-energy middle-six power forward type to go along with the two supremely talented prospects they took in the first round.