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The big blueliner played with the oomph the Canucks want from him vs. the Ducks.
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Published Jan 30, 2026 • 3 minute read
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Vancouver Canucks goalie Nikita Tolopilo (60) makes the save as Elias Pettersson (25) and Anaheim Ducks’ Chris Kreider (20) watch during the second period Photo by Darryl Dyck /THE CANADIAN PRESSArticle content
Elias Junior Pettersson hammered the Ducks’ Olen Zellweger into the end boards near the conclusion of Thursday’s 2-0 Canucks win and it meant so many things.
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It was a defenceman, above all else, defending his net.
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It was a defenceman taking no prisoners.
It was a Canuck showing heart in the face of broad adversity.
It was a young player finding his way back to himself.
To say that the towering Canucks defenceman was grinning wide when asked about the feisty moment post game probably undersells how pleased he was that people noticed.
“That’s my game,” he said. And he’s spot on. That’s the kind of play that drew the Canucks’ eyes to him in his draft year. A big Swede who plays with heart, who plays with an edge, who will put people on their behind.
He’d lost his way on that a little bit. His game suffered.
“Maybe I’d try to calm it down a little bit,” he admitted. “We talked about it a little bit. Me and the coaches, a little bit like, sometimes I was a little too hot.”
Hence his struggles this season. He had to go back to the minors to get it back.
The challenge of the NHL is there’s never a moment where you can get away with a step back. And so to play with edge, you need to be dialed in.
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Head coach Adam Foote said after Thursday’s game that he had worried that the young defenceman had been in the lineup more last season than he should have. Maybe he should have spent a little more time in the AHL working to solidify what he knew he’d need in the NHL.
“We’ve been hard on him,” he said. “Waiting for that moment to pump his tires.”
Thursday was the defenceman’s best game of the year, Foote said.
“You’re good. You know what to do,” Foote said the coaches told him.
“He had time and space. He’d take four or five extra strides to let our forwards get in their lane, to get going. Then he’d make good decisions,” Foote felt. “He’s strong, he’s physical. I think this game will help him grow a lot.”
Fan noise
Let’s be honest, until the Canucks finally scored in the third that was a pretty dire hockey game.
Credit to the Larscheiders for being tongue in cheek late in the game: “We want the cup,” they chanted, while also knowing that the task right now is to begin a build towards the Stanley Cup.
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A title is a long way off, everyone knows.
Fans know that — but that doesn’t mean they don’t deserve more than what they got much of the night on Thursday.
Teddy Blueger spoke to what the fans deserve the other night: they deserve energy and effort at the very minimum. The Canucks weren’t empty but a little more blood in their games would be good for the fans to see.
What’s next?
I keep getting asked what is still to come in terms of trades.
I do think a defenceman and a forward are yet to be moved.
I doubt it’s Filip Hronek. Could it be Marcus Pettersson though?
And what about Conor Garland? He’s a player that management have looked at moving from time to time over the past few seasons. You can get some interesting pieces back: teams around the league know he’s got good value.
Can the Canucks find someone willing to pay the price they’ve obviously been after?
Read More
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Canucks Notebook: What to learn from the Ducks finally taking flight
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