Paul Cotter Fires Back at Critics Picking Canucks Last

Paul Cotter isn’t buying the predictions about the Vancouver Canucks.

Vancouver lost 3-2 to the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday night, but Cotter was asked afterward about the team’s 2-2-0 start. He went straight at the preseason forecasts.

“For a team that everybody in the world has said, ‘This (team) is going to be last in the League,’ I’m pretty happy with how we’ve been doing,” Cotter said. “We have a great group. I’ve said it 10 times, but we have a very egoless group. We have a mix of older, younger guys and guys in between, and a lot of skill.”

Watch Cotter’s postgame media availability:

He kept going, too. Cotter said a close room willing to get better together “can take you so far,” and pointed out the Canucks have already seen a couple of great teams early.

It’s hard to argue with his own production. Cotter opened the scoring Sunday in his 300th NHL game, tipping a Filip Hronek pass over Adin Hill’s left pad on the power play at 18:52 of the first period. Jake DeBrusk was out sick, so Cotter took his spot on the top unit.

Check out the goal and the rest of the highlights:

That goal came against the team that drafted him. Vegas took Cotter in the fourth round in 2018, and he spent parts of three seasons there before two years in New Jersey.

Now he has four goals and six points through four games with Vancouver. His run started with an overtime winner against the Oilers on opening night. His career high is 16 goals, set with the Devils in 2024-25, and he’s already a quarter of the way there.

Mitch Marner, Victor Olofsson and Marc Gatcomb scored for Vegas. Jonathan Lekkerimaki had the other Canucks goal, and Elias Pettersson picked up an assist to stretch his point streak to four games.

The Canucks open a six-game road trip Thursday in Carolina. Cotter will get his next shot at the doubters there.