Dakota Joshua was rewarded for two strong seasons with the Vancouver Canucks with a four-year, $13 million contract he signed June 27, 2024. His 32 points (18 goals, 14 assists) helped the Canucks win 50 games and the Pacific Division, and advance to the Western Conference Second Round, a seven-game loss to the Edmonton Oilers.

Joshua was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs by the Canucks on July 17, 2025, for a fourth-round pick in the 2028 NHL Draft. He had 14 points (seven goals, seven assists) and ranked second on Vancouver in hits (193) despite playing in only 57 games that season. He missed the start of the it after being diagnosed with testicular cancer over the summer.

Joshua, chosen by the Maple Leafs in the fifth round (No. 128) of the 2014 NHL Draft, was traded to the St. Louis Blues on July 12, 2019, for future considerations and signed with the Canucks as a free agent July 13, 2022. He played four seasons at Ohio State, scoring 100 points (41 goals, 59 assists) in 128 games and winning the Big 10 regular-season championship in 2018-19.