VANCOUVER — Elias Pettersson is feeling good — and that's good news for the Vancouver Canucks. The Swedish centre scored his 15th goal of the season and contributed an assist Saturday, helping the Canucks trounce the Chicago Blackhawks 6-2. Pettersson now has four goals in his last five games.
“Yeah, can you believe it?” he said of the feat, grinning. “Feel great, obviously. It feels good, I’m happy.”
It's been a difficult season for the 26-year-old star. After signing an eight-year, US$92.8-million contract last March, expectations were high for Pettersson coming to the campaign. Talk of a rift with teammate J.T. Miller swirled before Vancouver dealt Miller to the New York Rangers at the end of January. Rumors of an impending trade involving Pettersson persisted up until the NHL's trade deadline earlier this month.
Aamid all the speculation, he struggled to produce offensively and went 15 games without a goal between January 21 and March 5. Since then, Pettersson has registered four goals and two assists, scoring in three straight games, now totaling 41 points on the season.
Pettersson has been doing little things differently, said Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet. "He’s still the same guy. He's a great kid. He's really good kid," he noted. "I think now he’s having a little bit more fun. Listen, you score, you should smile. But he's playing soccer with the guys, doing some stuff. I think he’s just mixing it up.”
Pettersson blasted a shot past Blackhawks goalie Arvid Soderblom at 6:01 of the first period, skimming the top of the inside of the net before the puck bounced back out. Play continued before Nils Hoglander fired the puck back in. The officials huddled and reviewed the play, confirming Pettersson's shot had crossed the goal line, extending Vancouver's lead to 4-1.
“I don't think anyone saw if it went in or not,” said Canucks captain Quinn Hughes. “I was five feet behind. I didn't know if it went in or not, but he's playing great. And just got to keep it going.”
The play ignited a three-goal third period, sealing a key victory for Vancouver (31-24-11) as they battle three other teams for the final Western Conference playoff spot. It’s certainly a result the Canucks can build on through this final stretch of the season, Pettersson said.
“Learn from the stuff we didn't do well and then keep doing the good stuff we did in the first and the third period,” he added. “Hopefully, we can score more goals.”
Filip Chytil left the game with about five minutes remaining after being hit from behind by Blackhawks forward Jason Dickinson. Chytil's head snapped back as he fell hard to the ice, and he struggled to his feet before skating off directly to the locker room. No call was made on the play.
Tocchet, offering no immediate update on Chytil, remarked, “It’s a pretty bad hit. So we’ll see how he is.”
On the bright side for the Canucks, goaltender Arturs Silovs stopped 17 of the 19 shots he faced, securing his first win since November 16, 2024. The 23-year-old Latvian goalie improved to 2-6-1 this season with .861 save percentage and 3.65 goals-against average.
“It's ups and downs,” said Silovs, who has primarily been with the American Hockey League's Abbotsford Canucks this season. “There's always much to learn from. And I think for me, it's maybe not the best experience, but it's experience, and I think I can grow from it.”
Meanwhile, the New York Rangers, who recently acquired J.T. Miller, hope his experience will help them as they strive for playoff contention. General manager Chris Drury made significant moves, bringing Miller from Vancouver for center Filip Chytil, defenseman Victor Mancini, and a first-round pick.
Miller, who set career highs last season with 37 goals and 103 points, immediately proved his worth with the Rangers. He missed time earlier this season for personal reasons and scored only three goals over his last 24 games with the Canucks. He finished with nine goals and 26 assists before the mid-season move, winning 59.2 percent of his faceoffs.
“He’s a really smart hockey player,” Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette said. “His play has been a bright spot for us.”
After the trade, Miller had two goals against the Boston Bruins on his first night with the Rangers and contributed two assists the following game against the Vegas Golden Knights. Miller has also shown his versatility, helping Zibanejad bounce back; since the trade, Zibanejad has tallied six goals and 13 assists. This is after struggling with only nine goals and 20 assists before Miller's arrival.
Over 16 games with the Rangers, Miller has achieved seven goals, 10 assists, and 44 hits, winning 61.3 percent of his faceoffs. His age—32—comes with both risk and expectation, as the Rangers count on him to maintain high performance through the duration of his contract, which goes through 2029-30 at $8 million cap hit.
Miller's addition has changed the dynamics of the Rangers' aging roster as they shift from relying on younger talent to bolstering veteran leadership. The Rangers' vast decisions will influence whether they can craft success before forwards Chris Kreider and Artemi Panarin, who is set to become free agent after 2025-26, exit the organization.
For the Canucks and Rangers alike, every game is pivotal as they steer through the final stretch of the season. Both teams look for consistency, fighting for the playoffs as the league progresses forward.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on March 15, 2025.