Before the Vancouver Canucks lost for the 19th time in 21 games, Elliotte Friedman reported in his “Saturday Headlines” segment on Hockey Night in Canada that it’s “pretty quiet” around Elias Pettersson as the trade deadline approaches.
But it was stunningly silent around the highest-paid Canuck in Seattle, where Pettersson played his way on to the fourth line before sitting out the final 10 minutes of what turned into a 5-1 loss against the Kraken.
The Canucks’ $92.8-million centre finished with just 14:20 of ice time and recorded zero shots, one hit and three wins in 10 faceoffs. Coach Adam Foote did not use Pettersson during a full two-minute power play to start the third period when Vancouver trailed by two goals, nor during more than two minutes of six-on-five play late in the game.
Pettersson did not get a shift in the final 9:47.
“He’s got to be better, and he knows that, he’s aware of that,” Foote told reporters in Seattle. “We need more from him and he’s got to find it. He knows he’s got to be better for us and we’ll see that next game.
“(He has) got to play with more zip, like, more pace to his game, more engaged. Good things will happen when he gets his motor going.”
It has been a while since Pettersson’s motor roared.
Since returning from the Olympics, Pettersson hasn’t had a shot on target in two games and has now gone 13 National Hockey League games without scoring.
Halfway through Saturday’s game, Foote dropped Pettersson from the first line to the fourth, where he skated between Nils Hoglander and Linus Karlsson. Pettersson did make a nice pass to set up Karlsson in the slot, but his fall to the fourth line mirrored his Olympic deployment for the Swedish team in Italy.
No wonder there hasn’t been much trade interest in the 27-year-old beyond some periodic tire-kicking.
Friedman reported that the Canucks have told teams they’re not willing to retain salary on Pettersson’s $11.6-million annual cap hit, which would further reduce his appeal to anyone who thinks a trade might spur the fallen star back towards point-per-game form.
With 13 goals and 35 points in 51 games, Pettersson is on pace for a 51-point season if he plays the Canucks’ final 23 games. Last season, in the first year of his franchise-record eight-year contract, he had 45 points in 64 games. His points-per-60-minutes of 1.49 is half what it was three years ago during his 102-point season.
If Pettersson stays in Vancouver and his next two seasons are as disappointing as these two have been, the Canucks will be measuring him for a buyout. So, retaining $2-million a season for the next 6 ½ years could actually be a bargain if it facilitates a trade.
Despite losing their ninth straight road game in regulation, the Canucks actually played fairly solidly in Seattle. They slightly outshot the Kraken 28-25, and according to naturalstattrick.com deserved to be about one goal better than Seattle at five-on-five.
But the quality of the best scoring chances the Canucks surrendered were survivable only with elite goaltending, which Kevin Lankinen could not provide in his first start since returning from the Olympics. A backup to Juuse Saros on Team Finland, Lankinen allowed four goals on 24 shots in his first game of any kind since Feb. 4.
Seattle’s goals came on a Vince Dunn shot from distance when Lankinen appeared to be interfered with by Jaden Schwartz, an unlucky carom that left Chandler Stephenson with an open net, a breakaway by Jordan Eberle, and an undefended move to the netfront by Eberle in which the Canuck-killer’s shot was deemed to have brushed teammate Matty Beniers’ skate blade as it beat Lankinen.
Since defeating the Washington Capitals on Jan. 21, Lankinen is 0-6 with a save percentage of .800. The Canucks have yet to win a road game in 2026.
Liam Ohgren scored Vancouver’s only goal and he and linemates Teddy Blueger and Connor Garland – the B.O.G. line – were again the team’s best trio. They combined for six shots, and Ohgren’s speed and Garland’s shifty playmaking gave Seattle problems.
Blueger, however, remains the Canuck most likely to be traded by Friday’s deadline. But interest in the 31-year-old centre, as well as other impending unrestricted free agents Evander Kane and David Kampf, has so far not been what management had hoped. It is more than three months since general manager Patrik Allvin notified other NHL teams that Vancouver’s UFAs were available.
In a rebuild, the Canucks obviously have to get whatever they can for players they would lose for nothing in free agency. But we wonder if the team should circle back on Blueger.
The Latvian told Sportsnet this week he loves Vancouver and wants to stay. Given what appears to be excellent chemistry with Garland and Ohgren, Blueger’s strong season last year and a resumption of superior play since returning from a significant knee injury on Jan. 21, and the organization’s critical need for centres, it seems worth management checking in to see what it would cost to bring Blueger back next season if trade interest remains tepid.
Friedman suggested Monday as a potential deadline for defenceman Tyler Myers, who sat out his second straight game on Saturday, to decide whether he’ll waive his no-movement clause and accept the trade destination — widely reported as Detroit — in the offer Allvin presented him this week. By all accounts, Myers is looking for a more favourable destination for him and family but, as of Saturday night, the Canucks did not have any other firm offers to present the 36-year-old.
The Canucks return home to face powerhouses Dallas and Carolina, Monday and Wednesday, before travelling to Chicago for Friday’s trade-deadline-day game against the Blackhawks.
https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/canucks-takeaways-petterssons-slump-hits-new-low-in-loss-to-kraken/