Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Pettersson confirmed today that his season-ending injury was an oblique injury. While he had initially been working to get back into the lineup, once playoffs were out of sight, the training regiment changed to working on coming back for the 2025–26 season.
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“I’ve got great resources here and great resources back home in Sweden. But yeah, I want to stay here for a little bit. Just do some extra work before I fly home to Sweden,” Pettersson said of his off-season plan.
Pettersson finished the season with 64 games played, missing two separate stretches of time due to injury. He played his last game of the season on March 22 against the New York Rangers. He finished this season with 15 goals and 30 assists. Prior to the game against the Rangers, Pettersson had nine points in six games.
“Things just happen up there when I’m playing my best. I mean, I think early in the season, maybe I have kind of one mindset that, yes, I signed the contract, and now I have to do more instead of just being me and being content over things. So yeah, I mean I’ve touched on it before. I’m not perfect. I’m trying to be but yeah, so it’s been a lot of adversity this year. I’m always trying to believe I can grow from it.”
Pettersson’s lack of offensive production wasn’t the only reason his name frequently made headlines. For the majority of January, the biggest piece of Canucks news was regarding the “rift” between Pettersson and former teammate J.T. Miller.
“We couldn’t prepare for the way it blew up and just like that was like the focal point, not if we win the loss, it was like between us. Yeah, maybe we weren’t the best of friends, but we respect each other as teammates,” Pettersson said of the fallout.
All in all, Pettersson acknowledged that this season wasn’t his best, and knows that he has to work in order to get back to his A-game. Building strength was something he touched on in this retrospect.
“That’s what I need. Strength doesn’t come easy for me. I have to train harder,” he added. “Obviously I was dealing with a knee injury last season, that kind of stopped my training last summer. So it was hard to truly train at 100% last summer. But with that being said, I’m just trying to look forward and sucks we’re not playing still. But with that being said, I’m going to take this time to take advantage of the extra month of training to come in great for next season.”
“I think he’ll tell you this, that his preparation has to get better. There’s no secret. If you want to be a great player, you have to prepare, almost an obsessive type of preparation,” Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet said of Pettersson. “He has to, we’ve talked about that, move his feet, shoot the puck, you know, change angles, you know. And you know me. I’m an honest guy. He’s got to practice that. You have to practice better. And I thought those things that he’s learning and do, I think he will do this. I do. I really do think I can bank on him taking this information, going away for four months, and make sure that he has a plan, and the plan has to change. You know, I’m not sure he can train the same way, or, you know, the team. I don’t know who he’s trained. I do kind of know, but I don’t, to be honest, that’s got to change.”
“It was a tough year for him. Everything was happening, but I think maybe this offseason gonna be a big off season for him and come back better for next year, and it’s gonna be a big summer for him,” Nils Höglander said of his friend’s season.
“I think he’s evolving as a person and as a player to that stature he wants to be. Hopefully he’s gonna evolve even more,” Tocchet added. “There’s a lot of expectations on him. There’s a lot of pressure on him. And to deal with pressure, you know, you gotta know, yes, the best players in the world, you know, they prepare every day, mentally and stuff. And I think he’s trying to evolve to that level. Is he there, that there yet no. Are we here to help him? Absolutely. Is his teammates here to help? Absolutely.”
Helping Pettersson get back to his game is something that Tocchet described as a collaborative effort. “We’ve got to meet at the 50 yard line. You know, I’m here, but I’m not going to go to the 75 yard line and you just walk 25 yards. You’ve gotta meet us halfway. And he knows that, and we’ll see where it goes.”
“I’ve had some stretches where I haven’t been good, but also I’ve turned it around, and that’s what I’m gonna do,” Pettersson said at the end of his season media availability.
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