# 2002–03 Vancouver Canucks season

The 2002–03 Vancouver Canucks season was the Canucks' 33rd NHL season.
As of 2023, the only remaining active member of the 2002–03 Vancouver Canucks is Jan Hlaváč. He is a member of HC Stadion Vrchlabí of the 2nd Czech Republic Hockey League.

## Regular season

The Canucks had much success in the regular season as the West Coast Express Line (Brendan Morrison, Markus Naslund and Todd Bertuzzi) played their first full season intact and contributed 67% of the team's goals. The Canucks led all teams in power-play goals scored, with 87. They also set a franchise record with a 10 game win streak in November 2002. As the season wound down, many expected the Canucks to win the Northwest Division title (due to the slow start by division rivals Colorado Avalanche). Despite the chances, the Canucks failed to clinch the Northwest division on the last day of the regular season with a 2-0 loss to the Los Angeles Kings coupled with a win by the Colorado Avalanche. Markus Naslund also lost the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy on the last day of the regular season and missed out on tying fellow Swede Hakan Loob as the only Swedish players who have scored 50 goals in a season. Worse, Peter Forsberg also narrowly beat Naslund for the Art Ross Trophy. Naslund publicly came out to apologize to Canuck fans for "choking".

### Final standings

Northwest Division :
| No. | CR | | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | 3 | Colorado Avalanche | 82 | 42 | 19 | 13 | 8 | 251 | 194 | 105 |
| 2 | 4 | Vancouver Canucks | 82 | 45 | 23 | 13 | 1 | 264 | 208 | 104 |
| 3 | 6 | Minnesota Wild | 82 | 42 | 29 | 10 | 1 | 198 | 178 | 95 |
| 4 | 8 | Edmonton Oilers | 82 | 36 | 26 | 11 | 9 | 231 | 230 | 92 |
| 5 | 12 | Calgary Flames | 82 | 29 | 36 | 13 | 4 | 186 | 228 | 75 |
Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.
Western Conference :
| R | | Div | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | Z- Dallas Stars | PA | 82 | 46 | 17 | 15 | 4 | 245 | 169 | 111 |
| 2 | Y- Detroit Red Wings | CE | 82 | 48 | 20 | 10 | 4 | 269 | 203 | 110 |
| 3 | Y- Colorado Avalanche | NW | 82 | 42 | 19 | 13 | 8 | 251 | 194 | 105 |
| 4 | X- Vancouver Canucks | NW | 82 | 45 | 23 | 13 | 1 | 264 | 208 | 104 |
| 5 | X- St. Louis Blues | CE | 82 | 41 | 24 | 11 | 6 | 253 | 222 | 99 |
| 6 | X- Minnesota Wild | NW | 82 | 42 | 29 | 10 | 1 | 198 | 178 | 95 |
| 7 | X- Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | PA | 82 | 40 | 27 | 9 | 6 | 203 | 193 | 95 |
| 8 | X- Edmonton Oilers | NW | 82 | 36 | 26 | 11 | 9 | 231 | 230 | 92 |
| 8.5 |||||||||||
| 9 | Chicago Blackhawks | CE | 82 | 30 | 33 | 13 | 6 | 207 | 226 | 79 |
| 10 | Los Angeles Kings | PA | 82 | 33 | 37 | 6 | 6 | 203 | 221 | 78 |
| 11 | Phoenix Coyotes | PA | 82 | 31 | 35 | 11 | 5 | 204 | 230 | 78 |
| 12 | Calgary Flames | NW | 82 | 29 | 36 | 13 | 4 | 186 | 228 | 75 |
| 13 | Nashville Predators | CE | 82 | 27 | 35 | 13 | 7 | 183 | 206 | 74 |
| 14 | San Jose Sharks | PA | 82 | 28 | 37 | 9 | 8 | 214 | 239 | 73 |
| 15 | Columbus Blue Jackets | CE | 82 | 29 | 42 | 8 | 3 | 213 | 263 | 69 |
Divisions: PA – Pacific, CE – Central, NW – Northwest
Z – Clinched Conference; Y – Clinched Division; X – Clinched Playoff spot

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

2002–03 regular season :
October: 3–4–4–0 (home: 1–4–2–0; road: 2–0–2–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
1WOctober 10, 20023–0@ Calgary Flames (2002–03)1–0–0–0Recap
2WOctober 12, 20025–3San Jose Sharks (2002–03)2–0–0–0Recap
3LOctober 14, 20022–3Calgary Flames (2002–03)2–1–0–0Recap
4LOctober 16, 20023–6Boston Bruins (2002–03)2–2–0–0Recap
5TOctober 18, 20022–2 OT@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03)2–2–1–0Recap
6TOctober 19, 20022–2 OT@ Los Angeles Kings (2002–03)2–2–2–0Recap
7WOctober 21, 20025–2@ San Jose Sharks (2002–03)3–2–2–0Recap
8TOctober 24, 20022–2 OTMighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03)3–2–3–0Recap
9LOctober 26, 20021–4Dallas Stars (2002–03)3–3–3–0Recap
10TOctober 29, 20021–1 OTBuffalo Sabres (2002–03)3–3–4–0Recap
11LOctober 31, 20021–5Colorado Avalanche (2002–03)3–4–4–0Recap :
November: 12–1–0–0 (home: 5–0–0–0; road: 7–1–0–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
12WNovember 2, 20024–2@ Minnesota Wild (2002–03)4–4–4–0Recap
13WNovember 4, 20024–2@ Colorado Avalanche (2002–03)5–4–4–0Recap
14LNovember 6, 20020–4@ Dallas Stars (2002–03)5–5–4–0Recap
15WNovember 9, 20025–2@ Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03)6–5–4–0Recap
16WNovember 12, 20026–3St. Louis Blues (2002–03)7–5–4–0Recap
17WNovember 14, 20023–2Los Angeles Kings (2002–03)8–5–4–0Recap
18WNovember 16, 20023–1New York Rangers (2002–03)9–5–4–0Recap
19WNovember 20, 20025–3Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03)10–5–4–0Recap
20WNovember 22, 20024–1Detroit Red Wings (2002–03)11–5–4–0Recap
21WNovember 25, 20022–1@ Minnesota Wild (2002–03)12–5–4–0Recap
22WNovember 27, 20023–2@ Carolina Hurricanes (2002–03)13–5–4–0Recap
23WNovember 29, 20025–3@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2002–03)14–5–4–0Recap
24WNovember 30, 20025–2@ Florida Panthers (2002–03)15–5–4–0Recap :
December: 7–6–1–0 (home: 3–3–1–0; road: 4–3–0–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
25LDecember 3, 20021–2@ New York Islanders (2002–03)15–6–4–0Recap
26WDecember 4, 20023–2 OT@ New Jersey Devils (2002–03)16–6–4–0Recap
27LDecember 7, 20022–4Minnesota Wild (2002–03)16–7–4–0Recap
28LDecember 9, 20021–2Calgary Flames (2002–03)16–8–4–0Recap
29WDecember 11, 20023–1Colorado Avalanche (2002–03)17–8–4–0Recap
30WDecember 14, 20026–3@ Edmonton Oilers (2002–03)18–8–4–0Recap
31TDecember 15, 20023–3 OTCalgary Flames (2002–03)18–8–5–0Recap
32LDecember 17, 20022–3@ Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03)18–9–5–0Recap
33WDecember 19, 20023–1@ Nashville Predators (2002–03)19–9–5–0Recap
34WDecember 21, 20024–3 OTEdmonton Oilers (2002–03)20–9–5–0Recap
35LDecember 23, 20023–5@ Colorado Avalanche (2002–03)20–10–5–0Recap
36WDecember 26, 20024–2@ Edmonton Oilers (2002–03)21–10–5–0Recap
37WDecember 28, 20027–3Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03)22–10–5–0Recap
38LDecember 31, 20023–5Toronto Maple Leafs (2002–03)22–11–5–0Recap :
January: 7–5–2–0 (home: 5–2–2–0; road: 2–3–0–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
39WJanuary 2, 20033–2Montreal Canadiens (2002–03)23–11–5–0Recap
40WJanuary 4, 20033–2Florida Panthers (2002–03)24–11–5–0Recap
41WJanuary 8, 20036–4Ottawa Senators (2002–03)25–11–5–0Recap
42LJanuary 10, 20032–3Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03)25–12–5–0Recap
43LJanuary 11, 20030–3@ San Jose Sharks (2002–03)25–13–5–0Recap
44WJanuary 14, 20034–3Nashville Predators (2002–03)26–13–5–0Recap
45LJanuary 16, 20032–5@ Minnesota Wild (2002–03)26–14–5–0Recap
46WJanuary 17, 20034–2@ Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03)27–14–5–0Recap
47WJanuary 19, 20034–1@ Detroit Red Wings (2002–03)28–14–5–0Recap
48LJanuary 21, 20032–3@ Nashville Predators (2002–03)28–15–5–0Recap
49LJanuary 24, 20032–5Detroit Red Wings (2002–03)28–16–5–0Recap
50WJanuary 26, 20031–0Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03)29–16–5–0Recap
51TJanuary 28, 20032–2 OTMinnesota Wild (2002–03)29–16–6–0Recap
52TJanuary 30, 20033–3 OTEdmonton Oilers (2002–03)29–16–7–0Recap :
February: 9–1–2–0 (home: 4–1–0–0; road: 5–0–2–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
53WFebruary 4, 20033–2@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03)30–16–7–0Recap
54TFebruary 5, 20034–4 OT@ Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03)30–16–8–0Recap
55WFebruary 7, 20034–2@ Buffalo Sabres (2002–03)31–16–8–0Recap
56WFebruary 10, 20032–1Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03)32–16–8–0Recap
57WFebruary 13, 20032–1 OTColorado Avalanche (2002–03)33–16–8–0Recap
58TFebruary 15, 20032–2 OT@ Calgary Flames (2002–03)33–16–9–0Recap
59WFebruary 18, 20034–3 OT@ Detroit Red Wings (2002–03)34–16–9–0Recap
60WFebruary 20, 20034–2@ St. Louis Blues (2002–03)35–16–9–0Recap
61WFebruary 22, 20033–2 OT@ Edmonton Oilers (2002–03)36–16–9–0Recap
62WFebruary 23, 20037–2Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03)37–16–9–0Recap
63WFebruary 25, 20038–0Atlanta Thrashers (2002–03)38–16–9–0Recap
64LFebruary 27, 20032–3San Jose Sharks (2002–03)38–17–9–0Recap :
March: 7–5–3–1 (home: 4–2–1–0; road: 3–3–2–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
65TMarch 1, 20031–1 OT@ Montreal Canadiens (2002–03)38–17–10–0Recap
66WMarch 3, 20036–4@ Boston Bruins (2002–03)39–17–10–0Recap
67LMarch 4, 20030–3@ Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03)39–18–10–0Recap
68OTLMarch 6, 20034–5 OT@ Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03)39–18–10–1Recap
69TMarch 8, 20033–3 OT@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2002–03)39–18–11–1Recap
70WMarch 11, 20034–3New York Islanders (2002–03)40–18–11–1Recap
71TMarch 13, 20034–4 OTSt. Louis Blues (2002–03)40–18–12–1Recap
72LMarch 15, 20030–1Toronto Maple Leafs (2002–03)40–19–12–1Recap
73WMarch 17, 20034–2@ Dallas Stars (2002–03)41–19–12–1Recap
74LMarch 18, 20034–6@ St. Louis Blues (2002–03)41–20–12–1Recap
75WMarch 20, 20037–3Nashville Predators (2002–03)42–20–12–1Recap
76WMarch 23, 20036–0Washington Capitals (2002–03)43–20–12–1Recap
77LMarch 25, 20033–4Dallas Stars (2002–03)43–21–12–1Recap
78WMarch 27, 20035–1Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03)44–21–12–1Recap
79WMarch 29, 20035–1@ Los Angeles Kings (2002–03)45–21–12–1Recap
80LMarch 30, 20031–3@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03)45–22–12–1Recap :
April: 0–1–1–0 (home: 0–1–0–0; road: 0–0–1–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
81TApril 2, 20033–3 OT@ Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03)45–22–13–1Recap
82LApril 6, 20030–2Los Angeles Kings (2002–03)45–23–13–1Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point)
  Overtime loss (1 point) :

### Playoffs

2003 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Western Conference Quarterfinals vs. (5) St. Louis Blues: Canucks won 4–3
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceSeriesRecap
1April 10St. Louis6–0VancouverCloutier18,514Blues lead 1–0Recap
2April 12St. Louis1–2VancouverCloutier18,514Series tied 1–1Recap
3April 14Vancouver1–3St. LouisCloutier19,699Blues lead 2–1Recap
4April 16Vancouver1–4St. LouisCloutier19,936Blues lead 3–1Recap
5April 18St. Louis3–5VancouverCloutier18,514Blues lead 3–2Recap
6April 20Vancouver4–3St. LouisCloutier19,522Series tied 3–3Recap
7April 22St. Louis1–4VancouverCloutier18,514Canucks win 4–3Recap :
Western Conference Semifinals vs. (6) Minnesota Wild: Wild won 4–3
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceSeriesRecap
1April 25Minnesota3–4VancouverOTCloutier18,514Canucks lead 1–0Recap
2April 27Minnesota3–2VancouverCloutier18,514Series tied 1–1Recap
3April 29Vancouver3–2MinnesotaCloutier19,394Canucks lead 2–1Recap
4May 2Vancouver3–2MinnesotaOTCloutier19,386Canucks lead 3–1Recap
5May 5Minnesota7–2VancouverCloutier18,514Canucks lead 3–2Recap
6May 7Vancouver1–5MinnesotaCloutier19,350Series tied 3–3Recap
7May 8Minnesota4–2VancouverCloutier18,514Wild win 4–3Recap :
Legend:
  Win
  Loss :

## Player statistics
### Scoring

* Position abbreviations: C = Centre; D = Defence; G = Goaltender; LW = Left wing; RW = Right wing
* † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Canucks only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Canucks only.
| No. | Player | Pos | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM |
| 19 | Markus Naslund | LW | 82 | 48 | 56 | 104 | 6 | 52 | 14 | 5 | 9 | 14 | −6 | 18 |
| 44 | Todd Bertuzzi | RW | 82 | 46 | 51 | 97 | 2 | 144 | 14 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −3 | 60 |
| 7 | Brendan Morrison | C | 82 | 25 | 46 | 71 | 18 | 36 | 14 | 4 | 7 | 11 | −4 | 18 |
| 55 | Ed Jovanovski | D | 67 | 6 | 40 | 46 | 19 | 113 | 14 | 7 | 1 | 8 | −5 | 22 |
| 24 | Matt Cooke | LW | 82 | 15 | 27 | 42 | 21 | 82 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 12 |
| 16 | Trevor Linden | C | 71 | 19 | 22 | 41 | −1 | 30 | 14 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −4 | 10 |
| 33 | Henrik Sedin | C | 78 | 8 | 31 | 39 | 9 | 38 | 14 | 3 | 2 | 5 | −2 | 8 |
| 3 | Brent Sopel | D | 81 | 7 | 30 | 37 | −15 | 23 | 14 | 2 | 6 | 8 | −2 | 4 |
| 22 | Daniel Sedin | LW | 79 | 14 | 17 | 31 | 8 | 34 | 14 | 1 | 5 | 6 | −2 | 8 |
| 6 | Sami Salo | D | 79 | 9 | 21 | 30 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −2 | 0 |
| 26 | Trent Klatt | RW | 82 | 16 | 13 | 29 | 10 | 8 | 14 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 2 |
| 2 | Mattias Ohlund | D | 59 | 2 | 27 | 29 | 1 | 42 | 13 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 12 |
| 10 | Trevor Letowski | RW | 78 | 11 | 14 | 25 | 8 | 36 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −1 | 0 |
| 13 | Artem Chubarov | C | 62 | 7 | 13 | 20 | 4 | 6 | 14 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −2 | 4 |
| 8 | Marek Malik† | D | 69 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 23 | 52 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −7 | 10 |
| 25 | Mats Lindgren† | C | 54 | 5 | 9 | 14 | −2 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 15 | Todd Warriner‡ | LW | 30 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 5 | Bryan Allen | D | 48 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 8 | 73 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 2 |
| 23 | Murray Baron | D | 78 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 13 | 62 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 10 |
| 14 | Brandon Reid | C | 7 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 37 | Jarkko Ruutu | RW | 36 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −7 | 66 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 14 |
| 4 | Nolan Baumgartner | D | 8 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 39 | Dan Cloutier | G | 57 | 0 | 3 | 3 | | 24 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 8 |
| 9 | Harold Druken‡ | C | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 17 | Jan Hlavac‡ | LW | 9 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 18 | Jason King | C | 8 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 15 | Pat Kavanagh | RW | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 81 | Fedor Fedorov | LW | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1 | Peter Skudra | G | 23 | 0 | 1 | 1 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 20 | Darren Langdon† | LW | 45 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −2 | 143 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 27 | Mikko Jokela† | D | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 21 | Zenith Komarniski | LW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | Tyler Moss | G | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 28 | Bryan Helmer | D | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 32 | Brad May† | LW | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −5 | 15 |
| 35 | Alex Auld | G | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |

### Goaltending

| No. | Player | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | GP | GS | W | L | T | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI | GP | GS | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
| 39 | Dan Cloutier | 57 | 57 | 33 | 16 | 7 | 1477 | 136 | 2.42 | .908 | 2 | 3376 | 14 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 341 | 45 | 3.24 | .868 | 0 | 833 |
| 1 | Peter Skudra | 23 | 20 | 9 | 5 | 6 | 522 | 54 | 2.72 | .897 | 1 | 1192 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | Alex Auld | 7 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 165 | 10 | 1.57 | .939 | 1 | 382 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 3.00 | .800 | 0 | 20 |
| 30 | Tyler Moss | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 1 | 2.67 | .929 | 0 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |

## Awards and records
### Awards

| Type | Award/honour | Recipient |
| League (annual) | Lester B. Pearson Award | Markus Naslund |
| League (annual) | NHL First All-Star Team | Todd Bertuzzi (Right wing) |
| League (annual) | NHL First All-Star Team | Markus Naslund (Left wing) |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Todd Bertuzzi |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Marc Crawford (coach) |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Ed Jovanovski |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Markus Naslund |
| League (in-season) | NHL Player of the Month | Dan Cloutier (November) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Player of the Week | Dan Cloutier (February 17) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Player of the Week | Brendan Morrison (February 24) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Player of the Week | Todd Bertuzzi (March 24) |
| Team | Babe Pratt Trophy | Ed Jovanovski |
| Team | Cyclone Taylor Trophy | Markus Naslund |
| Team | Cyrus H. McLean Trophy | Markus Naslund |
| Team | Fred J. Hume Award | Matt Cooke |
| Team | Molson Cup | Markus Naslund |
| Team | Most Exciting Player Award | Todd Bertuzzi |

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| First game | Fedor Fedorov | October 10, 2002 |
| First game | Mikko Jokela | February 18, 2003 |
| First game | Brandon Reid | March 1, 2003 |
| First game | Jason King | March 17, 2003 |

## Transactions

The Canucks were involved in the following transactions from June 14, 2002, the day after the deciding game of the 2002 Stanley Cup Finals, through June 9, 2003, the day of the deciding game of the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals.

### Trades

| Date | Details | Details |
| June 23, 2002 (2002-06-23) | To Vancouver Canucks:Jeff Farkas | To Toronto Maple Leafs:Josh Holden |
| June 25, 2002 (2002-06-25) | To Vancouver Canucks:Future considerations | To Toronto Maple Leafs:Ryan Bonni |
| September 4, 2002 (2002-09-04) | To Vancouver Canucks:Tomas Mojzis | To Toronto Maple Leafs:Brad Leeb |
| September 21, 2002 (2002-09-21) | To Vancouver Canucks:Sami Salo | To Ottawa Senators:Peter Schaefer |
| November 1, 2002 (2002-11-01) | To Vancouver Canucks:Darren LangdonMarek Malik | To Carolina Hurricanes:Harold DrukenJan Hlavac |
| January 20, 2003 (2003-01-20) | To Vancouver Canucks:Chris HerpergerChris Nielsen | To Atlanta Thrashers:Jeff Farkas |
| January 24, 2003 (2003-01-24) | To Vancouver Canucks:Mikko Jokela | To New Jersey Devils:Steve Kariya |
| February 5, 2003 (2003-02-05) | To Vancouver Canucks:Future considerations | To Philadelphia Flyers:Todd Warriner |
| March 11, 2003 (2003-03-11) | To Vancouver Canucks:Brad May | To Phoenix Coyotes:2nd or 3rd-round pick in 2003 |

### Players acquired

| Date | Player | Former team | Via |
| July 5, 2002 (2002-07-05) | Tyler Moss | Carolina Hurricanes | Free agency |
| July 10, 2002 (2002-07-10) | Jaroslav Obsut | Colorado Avalanche | Free agency |
| July 11, 2002 (2002-07-11) | Nolan Baumgartner | Chicago Blackhawks | Free agency |
| October 24, 2002 (2002-10-24) | John Craighead | Revier Lions (DEL) | Free agency |
| November 3, 2002 (2002-11-03) | Mats Lindgren | Manitoba Moose (AHL) | Free agency |

### Players lost

| Date | Player | New team | Via |
| June 30, 2002 (2002-06-30) | Alexei Tezikov | | Retirement (UFA) |
| July 4, 2002 (2002-07-04) | Scott Lachance | Columbus Blue Jackets | Free agency (V) |
| July 4, 2002 (2002-07-04) | Andre Savage | Philadelphia Flyers | Free agency (VI) |
| July 15, 2002 (2002-07-15) | Jason Strudwick | Chicago Blackhawks | Free agency (UFA) |
| August 15, 2002 (2002-08-15) | Andrew Cassels | Columbus Blue Jackets | Free agency (III) |
| October 11, 2002 (2002-10-11) | Mike Brown | Anaheim Mighty Ducks | Waivers |
| October 11, 2002 (2002-10-11) | Alfie Michaud | Peoria Rivermen (ECHL) | Free agency (VI) |
| October 21, 2002 (2002-10-21) | Martin Brochu | Verdun Dragons (QSPHL) | Free agency (VI) |
| May 31, 2003 (2003-05-31) | Peter Skudra | Ak Bars Kazan (RSL) | Free agency |

### Signings

| Date | Player | Term | Contract type |
| June 14, 2002 (2002-06-14) | Tim Smith | | Entry-level |
| June 27, 2002 (2002-06-27) | Zenith Komarniski | 1-year | Option exercised |
| June 27, 2002 (2002-06-27) | Trevor Letowski | 1-year | Option exercised |
| June 27, 2002 (2002-06-27) | Peter Skudra | 1-year | Option exercised |
| July 31, 2002 (2002-07-31) | Artem Chubarov | 1-year | Re-signing |
| July 31, 2002 (2002-07-31) | Harold Druken | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 3, 2002 (2002-08-03) | Brendan Morrison | 2-year | Arbitration award |
| September 4, 2002 (2002-09-04) | Steve Kariya | | Re-signing |
| September 9, 2002 (2002-09-09) | Herberts Vasiļjevs | | Re-signing |
| September 12, 2002 (2002-09-12) | Bryan Helmer | 1-year | Re-signing |
| September 12, 2002 (2002-09-12) | Pat Kavanagh | | Re-signing |
| September 16, 2002 (2002-09-16) | Jeff Farkas | | Re-signing |
| September 16, 2002 (2002-09-16) | Ryan Ready | | Re-signing |
| October 3, 2002 (2002-10-03) | Todd Warriner | | Re-signing |
| October 11, 2002 (2002-10-11) | Jason King | | Entry-level |
| January 27, 2003 (2003-01-27) | Ed Jovanovski | 3-year | Extension |
| January 27, 2003 (2003-01-27) | Trevor Linden | 3-year | Extension |

## Draft picks

Below are the Vancouver Canucks' selections at the 2002 NHL entry draft which was held on June 22–23, 2002 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto.
| Round | # | Player | Pos | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 2 | 49 | Kirill Koltsov | D | Russia | Avangard Omsk (RSL) |
| 2 | 55 | Denis Grot | D | Russia | Elemach Elektrostal (Russia-2) |
| 3 | 68 | Brett Skinner | D | Canada | Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL) |
| 3 | 83 | Lukas Mensator | G | Czech Republic | HC Karlovy Vary U20 (Czech U20) |
| 4 | 114 | John Laliberte | LW | United States | New Hampshire Junior Monarchs (EJHL) |
| 5 | 151 | Rob McVicar | G | Canada | Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL) |
| 7 | 214 | Marc-Andre Roy | LW | Canada | Baie-Comeau Drakkar (QMJHL) |
| 7 | 223 | Ilya Krikunov | LW | Russia | Elemach Elektrostal (Russia-2) |
| 8 | 247 | Matt Violin | G | Canada | Lake Superior State Lakers (CCHA) |
| 9 | 277 | Thomas Nussli | C | Switzerland | EV Zug (NLA) |
| 9 | 278 | Matt Gens | RW | United States | St. Cloud State Huskies (WCHA) |

### Draft notes

* The Canucks' first-round pick was involved in the trade detailed in Note A.
* $^a$ The New York Islanders' second-round pick (previously acquired by the Washington Capitals) went to the Canucks as the result of a trade on November 10, 2001 that sent the Canucks' 2002 first-round pick and 2003 third-round pick to Washington in exchange for Trevor Linden and this pick.
* $^b$ The Tampa Bay Lightning's third-round pick (previously acquired by the Philadelphia Flyers) went to the Canucks as the result of a trade on December 17, 2001 that sent Donald Brashear and the Canucks' 2002 sixth-round pick to Philadelphia in exchange for Jan Hlavac and this pick.
* The Canucks' third-round pick went to the Florida Panthers as the result of a trade on May 31, 2001 that sent Alex Auld to Vancouver in exchange for the Canucks' 2001 second-round pick and this pick.
* $^c$ The Los Angeles Kings' third-round pick went to the Canucks as the result of a trade on February 15, 2001 that sent Felix Potvin to Los Angeles in exchange for this pick.
* The Canucks' sixth-round pick was involved in the trade detailed in Note B.
* $^d$ The Canucks received a seventh-round pick from the National Hockey League as compensation for Group III free agent Bob Essensa.
* $^e$ The Canucks received a ninth-round pick from the National Hockey League as compensation for Group III free agent Greg Hawgood.