As Ryan Johnson starts reshaping the Canucks’ roster, Elias Pettersson’s name has naturally been dragged into the conversation. But Johnson made one thing clear to Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre: if Vancouver ever moves Pettersson, it won’t be a salary dump. The Canucks are looking for real value back.
That matters because Pettersson’s contract has become part of the debate around his future. He’s two years into an eight-year, $92.8MM deal with an $11.6MM AAV, and the production hasn’t matched the price tag so far.
In 138 games on that contract, he has 96 points. Before it kicked in, he had 191 points in 162 games over the previous two seasons.
That gap is why some wondered whether Vancouver might settle for less just to get out from under most of the deal. Johnson shut that idea down, saying there are no payroll restrictions on his group as the team moves into what appears to be a long rebuild.
The Canucks are also poking around on another front. CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal said on a recent Oilers Now podcast that Vancouver has checked in on Kraken center Shane Wright.
Seattle is believed to be trying to make a deal work, but the asking price has been steep. Dhaliwal reported that the Kraken wanted either Zeev Buium or Tom Willander in return, and Vancouver isn’t prepared to pay that cost.
That kind of ask fits the situation from Seattle’s side, since Wright is still five years away from UFA eligibility and carries the kind of club control teams usually demand a premium for.
In Edmonton, the Oilers have one restricted free agent left to sort out: winger Colton Dach. His agent, Gerry Johansson, told Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal that the club has said it needs a little more time.
Edmonton has just under $6MM in cap space, according to PuckPedia, and appears to be focused first on landing an external addition before deciding what Dach’s next contract should look like. The 23-year-old finished last season with 13 points and 219 hits in 61 games split between Chicago and Edmonton.
In Other News...
Another Former Oilers First Round Pick Is Suddenly Moving Forward
Xavier Bourgaults development has taken a noticeable step forward in Ottawa, where the former first-round pick has spent most of his recent time with AHL Belleville and started to look like a player who is finding his offensive game. After arriving in the Senators organization as part of roster changes, Bourgault turned in a strong season in the minors and even earned his first taste of NHL action, a sign that his path has started to trend in the right direction.
Now the Senators have rewarded that progress with a one-year, two-way contract that keeps him in the mix for more opportunities next season. Bourgaults rise is the kind of reminder Edmonton fans know well: sometimes a prospects story does not really begin until after he leaves the organization that drafted him, and Ottawa will be watching closely to see whether this latest step leads to something bigger. [Read more 🡒]
Connor McDavid May Have Just Boxed Himself In With Oilers
Connor McDavids latest contract decision already had the hockey world reading between the lines, and the two-year extension only sharpened the focus on what comes next in Edmonton. For a player of his stature, every move carries weight, especially when the organization is trying to chart a path back to contention and the captains future remains the franchises biggest storyline.
Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman were part of the same conversation around the bench change, and McDavids public backing of the move adds another layer to the pressure now facing the Oilers. If the season goes sideways, it will be harder for him to separate himself from the direction the club chose, which is why this is more than just another coaching storyline in Edmonton. [Read more 🡒]