Vancouver Canucks Suddenly Dump 24-Year-Old Defenseman

The Vancouver Canucks placed defenseman Jack Thompson on NHL waivers on October 25, marking the fourth consecutive day a blueliner appeared on the wire.

The move was announced via the NHL transaction wire.

The 24-year-old right-shot defender has yet to suit up for Vancouver this season after taking a puck to the face during the preseason, an injury that kept him away from the team’s training camp in Penticton and the early portion of the 2026-27 schedule.

With Thompson now recovered, the organization is positioning him for an assignment to its American Hockey League affiliate, the Abbotsford Canucks.

Thompson arrived in the Canucks organization last March in a straightforward one-for-one trade that sent fellow defenseman Jett Woo to the San Jose Sharks.

He finished the 2025-26 campaign with Abbotsford and quickly established himself as one of the team’s more effective defenders on the blue line.

In just 14 games he recorded 13 points, a productive stretch that stood out against the more modest output he had managed earlier in the year with the San Jose Barracuda.

That late-season showing helped secure him a one-year, two-way contract extension with Vancouver over the summer.

Across six professional seasons Thompson has totaled 104 points in 217 AHL games, numbers that reflect a steady if unspectacular offensive contribution at the minor-league level.

His only extended NHL opportunity came in 2024-25 with the Sharks, when he appeared in 31 games and collected the 10 points that represent his entire NHL scoring total to date.

During those minutes, San Jose was outscored and outshot, yet Thompson displayed occasional two-way competence and some offensive upside that could interest a club looking for inexpensive depth on the right side.

Given his limited NHL track record and the Canucks’ clear intention to place him in Abbotsford, the most probable outcome is that Thompson clears waivers.

Should that occur, he is expected to begin his 2026-27 season with the AHL club and provide the affiliate with a mobile, right-shot option capable of contributing offensively.

While any NHL team remains free to claim him before the waiver period expires, the move appears designed primarily to clear the way for his return to the minors rather than to generate interest from contenders seeking immediate roster help.