"Not there mentally" - NHL insider reveals exactly what is wrong with Elias Pettersson
With just a measly 8 goals over his last 49 games including playoffs with the Vancouver Canucks, Elias Pettersson is coming to the 50 game mark where he has significant underperformed. Now, Sportsnet analyst Justin Bourne reveals what he believes is exactly going wrong with his game.
If you haven't been following the Canucks since last season and take a look at Elias Pettersson's numbers, you would think that there is nothing wrong. Actually, you would think he is excelling in every facet as he scored 33 goals and 55 assists for 89 points in 82 games in 2023-2024. But the truth of the matter is, Pettersson has struggled terribly in the last 50 games going back to last season.
According to Canuck Army, Pettersson scored 14 goals in the month of January, and then cooled of significantly. In the last 34 games,, Pettersson has not scored a single five on five goal, which has been a major point of contention as he makes $11.6 million AAV.
Sportsnet analyst and NHL Insider Justin Bourne reveals Elias Pettersson's issues
On a recent broadcast on Sportsnet, Analyst Justin Bourne commented on what he sees out of EP40's game and believes what the main issues are. He think that at the core, he just mentally is not there 100%
As he broke down some of his plays, he went over that he is not doing the little things right, or if at all. He is not finishing checks, not getting the puck in deep while on the blue line to make the safe play, and is throwing a way pucks instead of dictating the pace with his skill.
All these "little" things are what carry over to the larger aspects of the game liker scoring goals and making great plays. At the end of the day, he does not look like himself out there and needs to figure out a way to turn things around.
