Canucks GM Ryan Johnson's first big test: What to do with Elias Pettersson?
The Vancouver Canucks have an $11.6 million question in the form of Elias Pettersson. Does new GM Ryan Johnson keep him and hope the 100-point player is still there, or does he cut his losses and deal him away when his value is at an all-time low?
Canucks GM Ryan Johnson's first big test: What to do with Elias Pettersson? originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Vancouver Canucks started a major rebuild this season with the trade of superstar defenseman Quinn Hughes. However, there’s still a huge question new Canucks GM Ryan Johnson needs to answer almost immediately after taking the job this week. That’s the future of Vancouver’s star players – most notably, the future of star center Elias Pettersson.
That’s the $11. 6 million question in Canucks Land – how do you deal with Pettersson and the remaining six seasons on his current contract? Many will suggest that if Johnson decides to keep Pettersson, there must be a clear plan to get him back to being a 100-point player, as he was in 2022-23.
But for this writer, that no longer seems realistic, especially now that Hughes is no longer a Canuck. And really, will Pettersson be happy if Johnson does what many believe he needs to do and trades a slew of Canucks veterans, including Jake DeBrusk, Brock Boeser, and Thatcher Demko? We don’t think so.
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