Insider confirms it for Elias Pettersson: Under scrutiny and tons of pressure

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Cooper Godin
August 14, 2024 (3:58 PM)

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An insider has suggested that Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Pettersson could be under immense pressure if he starts the 2024-25 season poorly.

Elias Pettersson had a tough end to the regular season and didn't look himself when the team reached the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Once their playoff run concluded and the team met with the media, Pettersson told reporters that he had been dealing with a knee issue since January.

Everyone is hoping that Pettersson's knee issue is behind him now and he'll be back to 100 percent healthy by the time training camp rolls around next month. It's going to be a big season for Pettersson as his new contract kicks in, which will see him earn $11.6 million per season.

Pettersson now has the fifth-highest cap hit in the National Hockey League and that will bring a lot of pressure to his shoulders and the team needs for him to return to the 100-point player he was two years ago.

While on Sekeres and Price recently, TSN's Farhan Lalji said that there's going to be immense pressure on Elias Pettersson is his poor play in the last 30 games of last season carries over into the first month of the 2024-25 season. Lalji compared Pettersson to Julio Rodriguez, an outfielder for the MLB's Seattle Mariners, saying that they're both players who have had bad seasons, are getting paid quite a lot and are elite talents in their respective leagues.

"Here's my thing for you on Elias Pettersson. I mentioned this to you and Sekeres. My comparable is Julio Rodriguez in Seattle (Mariners) and Elias Pettersson in Vancouver. Two guys that are elite, generational talents, two guys that have had very, very bad seasons and two guys that are flat out getting paid. And, it kills me that I'm even talking about this but if that last 30 games going into the playoffs carries over into the first month of the season, with the weight of that contract, come on boys, there's going to be like, for a guy that has a difficult time eliminating the noise, there is going to be immense, immense pressure on that young man." Lalji said.

Despite his knee issue, Pettersson will still able to finish the season above a point-per-game, but given that he's getting a big bump in pay in 2024-25 and beyond, he has to be a consistent 100-point player.

In 82 games last season, Pettersson had 89 points (34 goals, 55 assists), 12 penalty minutes and was a plus-20. He followed that up with six points in 13 games during the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

As mentioned, it's a big season for Elias Pettersson and everyone believes he can get back to being a 100+ point player in the National Hockey League and will be surrounded by teammates who will help him get there.