Canucks Host Panthers Amid Pettersson's Scoring Drought and Draft Buzz
For decades, starting in the mostly woeful 1970s when the Vancouver Canucks were awful, there was still a buzz in town when the Stanley Cup Champions paid a visit. The Montreal Canadiens, the Philadelphia Flyers, the New York Islanders, even once there were the hated Wayne Gretzky rivals—long-suffering Canucks fans would get excited about going to see a truly elite team play.
The Florida Panthers are in town Tuesday night, winners of the last two Stanley Cups. And while it’s still funny they rubbed the Edmonton Oilers faces in it the last two years, they’re a shell of themselves this season. The Panthers sit 12 points out of a playoff spot, 25th in the league, a truly embarrassing fate for a defending Stanley Cup Champion.
It used to be worth going to see Gretzky or Guy Lafleur or Mike Bossy. Even though you can get tickets right now on Stub Hub for under $50, is it really worth it to go out in the middle of an atmospheric river and pay the gross cost for parking and food just to see Carter Verhaeghe or Anton Lundell? Boy, wouldn’t you love to tell the grandkids about the day you saw Evan Rodrigues on Vancouver ice?
Booing Tkachuk and Pettersson's Struggles
The plus side of it, though, is you could go and boo the crap out of MAGA Matthew Tkachuk every time he touches the puck. That might be worth the price of admission.
What isn’t worth it, though, is the home team. We’ve documented daily how awful this Canucks team is and Ben Kuzma now tries to highlight things that you should pay attention to in these games, largely the prospects like Liam Ohgren or Zeev Buium. Remember when it would be a huge news story if the Canucks “best” player was mired in a slump? Is it any surprise that Elias Pettersson hasn’t scored in 20 games?
Pettersson hasn’t scored since Jan. 13 and has just 24 shots in the past 20 games. He’s still tied for the scoring lead with 38 points (13-25) on the league’s last-pace club that’s averaging the second-fewest goals per outing (2.52).
This final stretch of a slow 16-game slog to end a dreadful season is supposed to be about building something for next season. It shouldn’t be about another perplexing riddle in the middle.
Coach's Comments and Low Expectations
“He was out there today at 11:05 for an 11:30 practice and working and then after practice working,” coach Adam Foote noted of Pettersson on Sunday. “He’s on the bike after games. He’s doing the work. One (goal) goes down and he’s had breakaways. I’m sure at times he feels like it weighs on him, but when he’s moving his feet, he’s having success.”
It sure would be nice if someone would pay me $11.6 million for riding an exercise bike or showing up to work 25 minutes early. Goodness the bar is low for this guy.
It should be noted Pettersson has more hissy fits, storming away from media, than he has goals in the last two months.
Draft Prospects Take Center Stage
Oh well, at least there’s the upcoming draft. There’s a raft of new draft prospect rankings out to pay attention to. Again, the names to watch are Gavin McKenna and Ivar Stenberg. Though with Pettersson’s continued ambivalence toward shooting the puck, their biggest need remains centre and, by most accounts, Viggo Bjork is the top centre on the boards, ranked between 8-10, all 5-foot-7 and 177 pounds of him. Sigh. Caleb Malhotra, son of Canucks Manny Malhotra, is up there in some rankings, too, and may be the best bet if the draft lottery lands the Canucks without a top-two pick.
Here’s The Athletic’s top pair in their rankings by Scott Wheeler:
- Gavin McKenna, LW, 5′ 11″, 170 lbs: McKenna is a captivating and supremely gifted winger who had one of the most productive age-adjusted seasons in modern CHL history last season. The college game has come with a learning curve for him at five-on-five, highlighting his lean build and some bad habits, but the dam has broken and he has come on really strong in the second half offensively. The talent and upside are undeniable, but he’s imperfect and can frustrate evaluators.
- Ivar Stenberg, RW, 5′ 11″, 183 lbs: Stenberg is a dynamic left-shot winger who’s comfortable playing both wings and whose statistical track record, skill set and play across levels have made him one of the draft’s clear top-two prospects. He outproduced recent top Swedes like Lucas Raymond at the J20 level in his draft-minus-one season, has dominated internationally, and produced at a historic level in the SHL this season, registering 33 points in 43 games.
Sportsnet’s Jason Bukala has them flipped with Stenberg first and McKenna second, if you favour the Swedish flavour of the Canucks.
- No. 1: Ivar Stenberg: Stenberg’s production has slowed recently, but his approach hasn’t changed. His three-zone detail is reliable, and he never cheats the game defensively. His body of work this year has been exceptional, with 11 goals and 22 assists in 43 games in Sweden’s top pro league.
- No. 2: Gavin McKenna: McKenna has addressed most concerns about his overall game while launching his offensive impact into an entirely new level. In his last 10-game segment, he produced 5 goals and 13 assists, but still has some growing to do defensively, which separates him from Stenberg at this stage.
Check back for more Canucks news throughout the day.
