Did Vasily Podkolzin Teach The Canucks a Lesson?

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The 2019 NHL Entry Draft was a special night for the Vancouver Canucks. Hosting the event at Rogers Arena in front of an excited home crowd, Vancouver held the tenth overall pick. Naturally, when the Canucks selected Russian power forward Vasily Podkolzin, the arena erupted in excitement.

Canucks fans attached a high ceiling to the young Russian forward. As a prospect, he was highly touted by scouts, most echoing the exact same report. A relentless forechecker, heavy hitting power forward, defensively responsible, and blessed with soft hands. His primary downside entering the draft was his KHL contract with SKA St. Petersburg, which meant he wouldn’t arrive in the NHL until the 2021 season. Still, Canucks faithful held out hope that he would eventually become the ultimate power forward engine for the club’s young core. Fast forward to today, and Podkolzin is indeed running over opposing teams’ defenseman and lighting up lamps across the Pacific Division. The only problem? He’s doing it in an Edmonton Oilers sweater.

Podkolzin’s tenure in Vancouver was a rollercoaster of mishandled development and shifting front office philosophies. After a promising rookie campaign where he potted 14 goals, his growth hit a brick wall under constant coaching changes and line juggling. The issue was that the Canucks didn’t give him a stable top nine runway, like most franchises would with their first round pick. They also kept him on a short leash, sending him down to Abbotsford in the AHL  repeatedly. In his final season with the Canucks, former head coach Rick Tocchett only trusted the young winger in 19 games. Podkolzin’s confidence looked short, and it was clear that he wouldn’t last under Tocchette’s system.

Podkolzin’s tenure in Vancouver was a rollercoaster of mishandled development and shifting front office philosophies. After a promising rookie campaign where he potted 14 goals, his growth hit a brick wall under constant coaching changes and line juggling. The core issue was that the Canucks never gave him a stable top-nine runway, the kind most franchises afford a tenth overall pick. Instead, management kept him on a short leash, repeatedly sending him down to AHL Abbotsford. In his final season with Vancouver, head coach Rick Tocchet only trusted the young winger in 19 games. Podkolzin’s confidence looked completely shot, and it became increasingly obvious he had no future in Tocchet’s strict, defensive system.

Then came August 2024. The Canucks dumped Podkolzin to rival Edmonton in exchange for a light 2025 fourth-round pick. At the time, few criticized the deal, as management chalked it up to clearing roster space and recouping a draft asset. But trading a former top-ten pick to a divisional rival for pennies on the dollar is a gamble. One that Vancouver should have known could come back to haunt them.

It didn’t take long for the Oilers to hand Podkolzin a far larger opportunity than Vancouver ever offered. Slotted onto superstar e wing, the Russian forward quickly established himself as a permanent linemate alongside the former Hart Trophy winner. When asked about Podkolzin, Draisaitl glows, regularly acknowledging that it’s the relentless dirty work Podkolzin does in the corners and along the boards that makes him so valuable on his wing.

In his first two full seasons for the Oilers, Podkolzin racked up 61 points. While his regular-season numbers were impressive, it was Edmonton’s first-round matchup against Anaheim in last spring’s playoffs that truly made Canucks fans regret giving up on him. In a tight series where several marquee Oilers struggled, Podkolzin stepped up with six points in six games.

Four games into the 2026–27 season, Podkolzin has shot out of a cannon, piling up four goals and two assists in just four games. As the Oilers navigate an early season wave of injuries, his role and opportunities are only going to expand. The Canucks’ rebuild will take time, but as management collects future draft picks, Podkolzin’s case can serve as a stark reminder to new management never to give up on young talent too early, and if you do, certainly don’t trade them to a rival for a fourth-rounder.