Former Canucks In The 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs: Eastern Conference

The 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs are officially underway. While the Vancouver Canucks will not be taking part in the post-season — unsurprisingly — there are quite a few former Canucks who will look to make their mark as they pursue the Stanley Cup with their current teams. Here are the former Canucks taking part in the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs in the Eastern Conference.

Atlantic Division

Elias Lindholm, Boston Bruins

Lindholm is one of four former Canucks who now play for the Boston Bruins. Having signed with the Bruins in free-agency after his 26 regular-season games with the Canucks in 2023–24, Lindholm appears to have found his footing with Boston. The centre put up 17 goals and 31 assists in 69 games with the Bruins this season, eclipsing his total from the year prior in 13 less games.

A Canuck for less than 30 regular season games, Lindholm put up six goals and six assists with Vancouver but was sidelined for parts of his stint due to injury. Where he really turned things up was in the post-season, during which he scored five goals and five assists in 13 games. This was Lindholm’s most recent playoff experience, predated by three separate runs with the Calgary Flames in 2018–19, 2019–20, and 2021–22.

Lukas Reichel, Boston Bruins

Reichel’s tenure with the Canucks was an interesting one. The forward was acquired back in October, sent down to Abbotsford full-time by mid-December, and moved to the Bruins at the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline for a sixth-round pick. While he has yet to play for them in the post-season, he did end up skating with Boston in 10 regular-season games, scoring a goal and two assists in this span of time.

Though whether he plays during playoffs or not is currently unknown, Reichel is currently on Boston’s roster. In his time with their AHL affiliate, the Providence Bruins, he scored a goal and five assists in four games.

Nikita Zadorov, Boston Bruins

Zadorov, a fan favourite in his 54 regular-season games with the Canucks, tied a career-high in points this season with 22 in 81 games. The defenceman has hit this plateau two other times in his career — last season with the Bruins and in 2021–22 with the Flames. He did, however, register a different career-high this season by logging 152 penalty minutes.

Like his current Bruins teammate and former Canucks and Flames teammate Lindholm, Zadorov’s last playoff appearance came with Vancouver in 2023–24. Not only did the defenceman step up physically with his trademark big hits, he also stepped-up offensively, scoring four goals and four assists in 13 games.

Luke Schenn, Buffalo Sabres

Joining Pearson in Buffalo’s quest for a Stanley Cup is none-other than Schenn. Schenn and Pearson were teammates for nearly three seasons in Vancouver, though they did not compete in the post-season together as members of the Canucks. They did, however, both take part in playoffs as members of the Kings back in 2015–16. Both Schenn and Pearson were also traded from the Winnipeg Jets to the Sabres this season.

An 18-year veteran of the NHL, Schenn has participated in seven post-seasons throughout his career. His most notable are the two he spent with the Tampa Bay Lightning, during which he won the Stanley Cup back-to-back. Along with the Jets, Kings, and the Lightning, he has also represented the Philadelphia Flyers, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Nashville Predators in the playoffs.

Tanner Pearson, Buffalo Sabres

This year’s playoffs will mark the seventh post-season run Pearson has been on throughout his NHL career, though it will be his first with the Buffalo Sabres as he was traded to the team during the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline. The former Canuck won the Stanley Cup with the Los Angeles Kings in 2013–14 and will look to help the Sabres accomplish this feat for the first time in their franchise’s history.

During his time with Vancouver, Pearson and the Canucks made the post-season once — in 2019–20. The forward put up four goals and four assists in 17 games while facing the Minnesota Wild, St. Louis Blues, and Vegas Golden Knights.

Mar 27, 2026; Buffalo, New York, USA; aBuffalo Sabres left wing Tanner Pearson (70) during a stoppage in play against the Detroit Red Wings at KeyBank Center. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images

Metropolitan Division

Jalen Chatfield, Carolina Hurricanes

Chatfield has found ample success with the Carolina Hurricanes since leaving Vancouver back in 2021. The defenceman has carved himself out a full-time NHL spot on Carolina’s blueline, even playing in over 70 games each season since 2022–23. Though he was a part of the Canucks organization from 2017 to 2021, Chatfield only ended up playing in 18 NHL games for Vancouver during the 2020–21 season.

Chatfield has joined the Hurricanes for three of their post-season runs since becoming part of the organization, with their most recent being last season’s trip to the Eastern Conference Finals. The defenceman suffered an injury during this run, however, resulting in him only playing in nine games and scoring one goal.

Noah Juulsen, Philadelphia Flyers

Former Canuck Noah Juulsen joins former Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet and the Philadelphia Flyers in the playoffs in their first season with the team. Though he didn’t play in every game with the Flyers this season, Juulsen did post a goal and nine assists in 52 games for Philadelphia, marking a new career-high in points and assists for the defenceman.

Juulsen’s lone post-season experience comes from Vancouver’s 2023–24 playoff run, during which he skated in two games. He has yet to suit-up for the Flyers through the current post-season, though Philadelphia has only played in one game thus far.

Artūrs Šilovs, Pittsburgh Penguins

One year after backstopping Abbotsford to their first Calder Cup in franchise history, Šilovs will look to help his new NHL club, the Pittsburgh Penguins, make some noise during the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Šilovs’ history of clutch performances runs deep, with the goaltender having been named Playoff MVP in last year’s Calder Cup run with five shutouts as well as going 7–3–0 to help Latvia win their first-ever medal at the 2023 IIHF World Championship.

This is, of course, not Šilovs’ first time taking part in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The goaltender played hero for the Canucks in 2024 when both Thatcher Demko and Casey DeSmith were unavailable, bringing Vancouver to Game 7 of the Pacific Division Finals. When Vancouver eyed a first-round series-clinching win, Šilovs delivered by stopping all 28 shots he faced.

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